The shocking amount of sugar in coffee by McDonald’s, Starbucks and others

Doctors and nutritionist have made us well-aware of the harmful effects of over-consuming sugar in our ever day lives. While you might have tried your best to substitute processed sugar with healthier options, or even reduced sugar consumption in general, it can be especially difficult to give up on sugary treats during the colder seasons, with fast-food companies bringing out their special festive coffee drinks.

However a report by Daily Mail, presents a shocking portrayal of just how much excess sugar is there in festive coffees offered by some of our most favourite brands including Dunkin Donuts, Starbucks, Krispy Kreme, and McDonald's.

Sugar content in festive coffees

Before looking at the figures of sugar content, you should know that the American Heart Association advises men to consume maximum of 36 grams of added sugar per day, while women should stick to no more than 25 grams per day.

The worst offenders among the coffees was Dunkin’s Peppermint Mocha Swirl Frozen Coffee with 1,170 calories and 182 total grams of sugar, which is staggeringly more than the recommended upper limit of sugar intake.

Krispy Kreme's autumnal Frozen Pumpkin Spice Latte is the second worst with 101 grams of sugar. This is even more sugar than a McDonald's McFlurry ice cream with Oreos, which is a dessert.

Peppermint White Chocolate Mocha Frappuccino from Starbucks is also loaded with 88 grams of sugar.

McDonald’s Peppermint Mocha Latte was the best among this cohort with 58 grams of sugar which is still way more than the recommended sugar you should be consuming in a day.

Coffee or dessert?

Excessive sugar intake has been linked to heart disease, diabetes, tooth decay and cavities, cognitive problems and not to mention, weight gain. Processed sugar also does not have much nutritional value.

According to Joan Salge Blake, a nutrition professor at Boston University, it is prudent to treat these designer festive coffees as dessert rather than coffee. She states,

Plain coffee does provide antioxidants and is the beverage of choice for many early risers.

When you add skim or low fat daily milk to plain coffee, you will get calcium, vitamin D, and potassium, three nutrients that many Americans are falling short of in their diets. However, I would treat these designer coffees as dessert and keep them to small amounts.

Sources used:

Daily Mail: ‘The Christmas coffees that'll give you a gut like Santa's: Festive drinks at Dunkin' and Starbucks contain up to 1,200 calories and 14 TIMES more sugar than a donut’