Post by Srrh on Jul 24, 2003 12:45:53 GMT -5
;D Stolen directly from abc:
The healthy food watchdog that took all the fun out of Chinese takeout and movie popcorn has done it again, this time with summer's favored treat — ice cream.
"Everyone knows that ice cream isn't a health food," the Center for Science in the Public Interest, an independent, nonprofit group, said in a study released on Wednesday.
"But the staggering calorie and saturated fat content of most of the treats served up at chains like Baskin-Robbins, Ben and Jerry's, Cold Stone Creamery, Friendly's, Haagen-Dazs and TCBY is bound to surprise most consumers."
The CSPI said an empty Ben & Jerry's chocolate-dipped waffle cone, designed to hold at least two scoops of ice cream, itself packs 320 calories and 10 grams — or half a day's worth — of saturated fat.
"If you put a regular scoop of Chunky Monkey ice cream in that cone, it is going to be worse for you than one-pound rack of baby back ribs, with with 820 calories and 30 grams of saturated fat," CSPI nutritionist Jayne Hurley told a news conference to publicize the study.
"This is something eaten by people strolling around a mall," she added. "They have no idea they have just eaten 820 calories and one and a half day's worth of saturated fat."
Haagen-Dazs' Mint Chip Dazzler, a sundae in a cup, has three scoops of ice cream, fudge, cookies, sprinkles and cream — and 1,270 calories, the group said.
Its 38 grams of fat is more more than the day's allowance as calculated by the U.S. government, which says the average American should eat between 2,000 and 2,500 calories a day.
The CSPI called on restaurants and ice cream parlors to list the fat and calorie content of food on menus, helping them make better choices about the food they eat.
The CSPI's Michael Jacobson said the report backed his group's argument that restaurants carry at least some responsibility for the obesity epidemic in the United States.
More than two-thirds of Americans are overweight and 30 percent are obese, both of which raise the risk of heart disease, cancer, diabetes and other big killers.
"It is clear that companies are using every means that they can devise to get us to eat more and bigger products and therefore to spend more in their shops," Jacobson said. "The least they can do, the least they must do, is provide customers with factual information."
He said even food that is labeled may be incorrectly labeled. "Cold Stone Creamery offers fat-free frozen yogurt, or so they would have you believe," Jacobson said. CSPI tests showed a small, 7-ounce serving contained 11 grams of fat and 7 grams of artery-clogging saturated fat.
"Ice cream is an indulgent dessert, and like any indulgence, is meant be enjoyed in moderation," Cold Stone Creamery spokesman Kevin Donnellan responded.
"Lower-calorie options for our customers, such as yogurt, sorbet and lowfat and nonfat mix-ins are also made available in all our stores," he said in a statement.
Spokeswomen for Friendly Ice Cream Corporation and Ben & Jerry's could not immediately be reached.
Baskin-Robbins is owned by British food and drink group Allied Domecq Plc, Anglo-Dutch group Unilever owns Ben & Jerry's and Haagen-Dazs is marketed by Swiss food giant Nestle .
In the past CSPI has put out reports publicizing the health-threatening qualities of other popular foods, including Chinese takeout meals and popcorn
Srrh
The healthy food watchdog that took all the fun out of Chinese takeout and movie popcorn has done it again, this time with summer's favored treat — ice cream.
"Everyone knows that ice cream isn't a health food," the Center for Science in the Public Interest, an independent, nonprofit group, said in a study released on Wednesday.
"But the staggering calorie and saturated fat content of most of the treats served up at chains like Baskin-Robbins, Ben and Jerry's, Cold Stone Creamery, Friendly's, Haagen-Dazs and TCBY is bound to surprise most consumers."
The CSPI said an empty Ben & Jerry's chocolate-dipped waffle cone, designed to hold at least two scoops of ice cream, itself packs 320 calories and 10 grams — or half a day's worth — of saturated fat.
"If you put a regular scoop of Chunky Monkey ice cream in that cone, it is going to be worse for you than one-pound rack of baby back ribs, with with 820 calories and 30 grams of saturated fat," CSPI nutritionist Jayne Hurley told a news conference to publicize the study.
"This is something eaten by people strolling around a mall," she added. "They have no idea they have just eaten 820 calories and one and a half day's worth of saturated fat."
Haagen-Dazs' Mint Chip Dazzler, a sundae in a cup, has three scoops of ice cream, fudge, cookies, sprinkles and cream — and 1,270 calories, the group said.
Its 38 grams of fat is more more than the day's allowance as calculated by the U.S. government, which says the average American should eat between 2,000 and 2,500 calories a day.
The CSPI called on restaurants and ice cream parlors to list the fat and calorie content of food on menus, helping them make better choices about the food they eat.
The CSPI's Michael Jacobson said the report backed his group's argument that restaurants carry at least some responsibility for the obesity epidemic in the United States.
More than two-thirds of Americans are overweight and 30 percent are obese, both of which raise the risk of heart disease, cancer, diabetes and other big killers.
"It is clear that companies are using every means that they can devise to get us to eat more and bigger products and therefore to spend more in their shops," Jacobson said. "The least they can do, the least they must do, is provide customers with factual information."
He said even food that is labeled may be incorrectly labeled. "Cold Stone Creamery offers fat-free frozen yogurt, or so they would have you believe," Jacobson said. CSPI tests showed a small, 7-ounce serving contained 11 grams of fat and 7 grams of artery-clogging saturated fat.
"Ice cream is an indulgent dessert, and like any indulgence, is meant be enjoyed in moderation," Cold Stone Creamery spokesman Kevin Donnellan responded.
"Lower-calorie options for our customers, such as yogurt, sorbet and lowfat and nonfat mix-ins are also made available in all our stores," he said in a statement.
Spokeswomen for Friendly Ice Cream Corporation and Ben & Jerry's could not immediately be reached.
Baskin-Robbins is owned by British food and drink group Allied Domecq Plc, Anglo-Dutch group Unilever owns Ben & Jerry's and Haagen-Dazs is marketed by Swiss food giant Nestle .
In the past CSPI has put out reports publicizing the health-threatening qualities of other popular foods, including Chinese takeout meals and popcorn
Srrh