Worst Drinks in America for 2010

In April my blog covered the topic of fast food sandwiches that are worse than the Double Down from KFC. Now it's time to look at what we're drinking! This month we take a look at the 20 Worst Drinks in America http://eatthis.menshealth.com/slideshow/20-worst-drinks-america-2010#title. What's great about this article is the "sugar equivalent," and if you look at the article, you'll see exactly what's going into our bodies. (My favorite: the 12 Dunkin Donuts Bavarian Kreme Doughnuts piled up around the Dairy Queen Caramel MooLatte). The upside is that this article also lists what we should drink instead.

I'm going to pick what I consider to be the most surprising finds of the 20, but I highly suggest you read the full article to make sure you're not drinking any of these on a regular basis.

Snapple Agave Melon Antioxidant Water is 33 grams of sugar and 150 calories. It's equivalent? Two Good Humor Chocolate Eclair Bars. If you're not crazy about the taste of water, slice up a lemon or lime and throw it in the bottle. A little vitamin C never hurt.
SoBe Green Tea. Sounds healthy, right? It's equivalent to eating 4 slices of Sara Lee Cherry Pie. Honest Tea Green Dragon is the way to go with 180 less calories and 45 less grams of sugar than SoBe's Green Tea.
Arizona Kiwi Strawberry is deemed the "worst juice imposter" having 81 grams of sugar and 345 calories making it the equivalent of eating 42 sugar cubes! Try Fuze Slenderize Strawberry Melon with only 20 calories and 2 grams of fat.
The worst energy drink goes to Rockstar with one 16 oz can being the equivalent to 6 Krispy Kreme Original Glazed Doughnuts! It has 60 more calories the same amount of Red Bull and 80 more calories than a can of Monster. Your best option is a can of Monster Lo-Carb with 260 less calories and 56 less grams of sugar with the same amount of caffeine and B vitamins in the same 16 oz can.

And the number one worst drink in America is the Cold Stone PB&C (Gotta Have It size, 24 fl. oz). It is the sugar equivalent to eating THIRTY chewy chips ahoy cookies and saturated fat equivalent to eating 68 strips of bacon. Our saturated fat intake should be no more than 20 grams per day...and this drink more than triples that. OK, so maybe you're not getting the Gotta Have It size when you go to Cold Stone, but did you know that no regular shake at Cold Stone has less than 1000 calories? Next time, go for the "Sinless" options instead.

Be sure to read the article for the worst bottled coffee, worst smoothie, worst drive-thru shake, worst frozen fruit drink, worst float, worst margarita, worst frozen mocha, worst hot chocolate, worst lemonade, worst espresso drink, worst kids' drink, worst beer, and worst soda in America for 2010.

Many of you have shared with me your ways of enjoying your favorite Starbucks drinks for less calories without sacrificing taste. If you have a favorite drink that you just can't live without, share it with the Body by Kelly community. Let us know how you've managed to not sacrifice your favorite drinks while losing weight or maintaining your goal weight.