One tub of Ben and Jerry’s ice cream can contain as many calories as TEN cans of Coke – or three Shake Shack burgers – while a Turkey Hill container can have more salt than SIX portions of McDonalds fries, nutrition statistics show
- DailyMail.com looked at 200 tubs of ice cream from popular brands including Turkey Hill and Blue Bell
- It revealed that some of the flavors sold by Ben and Jerry’s were the most calorific, salty and sugary on the list
- Dietitians say ice cream contains a lot of calories because it must be at least 10 percent milk fat
- They warn that consuming too many calories causes obesity, raising the risk of diseases like type 2 diabetes
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One tub of Ben and Jerry’s ice cream can contain as many calories as ten Coca-Cola cans or three Shake Shack burgers, while a tub of Turkey Hill may have the equivalent salt content to six portions of McDonald’s fries.
DailyMail.com went through the calorie, salt and sugar content of more than 200 tubs from popular ice cream brands Ben and Jerry’s, Breyers, Blue Bell, Turkey Hill, Halo Top and Haagen Dazs to analyze their contents and compare them to fast food treats.
It revealed that out of the ice creams sold in tubs smaller than a pint, Ben and Jerry’s had the flavors with the most calories, salt and sugar.
But overall two of Blue Bell’s five-pint tubs were the most calorific and sugar laden, while one of Turkey Hills’ three-pint packages contained the most salt.
Each brand sells a whole range of tubs, with some having much lower counts than others. Ice creams with a strawberry or vanilla flavor tended to be at the lower end of the scale for calories, sugar and salt.
Dietitians say ice creams contain a large number of calories because they are made from a mixture of milk, cream and sugar — and must be at least 10 percent milk fat.
They warn that consuming too many calories can lead to obesity, which already affects two in five American adults and raises the risk of type 2 diabetes, heart disease, some cancers and even strokes.
Ben and Jerry’s Peanut Butter ice cream was the most calorific one served as a pint, at a total of 1,400 calories — compared to 139 for a can of Coca-Cola.
The most sugar-filled was their Phish Food tub with 112 grams each.
And the most salt-laden was also the Salted Caramel Core at 710 milligrams.
Overall, Blue Bell’s five-pint Milk Chocolate ice cream had the most calories out of any of the tubs checked by DailyMail.com — with 2,880 calories.
The most sugar-filled was also a Blue Bell — their five-pint Strawberries and Homemade Vanilla flavor which contained about 372 grams (g).
For comparison, one milk chocolate Hershey bar contains about 24 g of sugar.
The saltiest ice cream was Turkey Hill’s three-pint Salted Caramel which had about 1,620 milligrams (mg) of sodium — far above the 260 mg in a medium helping of McDonald’s fries.
Dietitian Cindel Gwyn, from Nutrition that Works, previously said: ‘Ice cream is a nice treat to curb cravings.
‘But the downside is that overconsumption… may eventually result in weight gain, an increase in cholesterol and issues with regulating blood sugar.’
Women are told to consume about 2,400 calories a day, whereas men should have about 3,000.
They should also limit themselves to about 24 grams of sugar daily, and 2,300 milligrams of salt.
Consuming over this amount leaves them at risk of obesity and the associated health risks.
The findings come amid an ongoing obesity crisis in America where the number of children and adults who are overweight continues to rise.
To thrash out a plan to tackle the crisis President Joe Biden is to host a conference on hunger, nutrition and health this September.
The administration has already set itself the goal of ending hunger and increasing healthy eating and physical activity in the U.S. by 2030 so that fewer Americans face diet-related disease.
It is not clear what actions the administration may take, but Biden has called for ‘bold’ moves to help bring down American waistlines.
In 2020 Unilever — which owns Ben and Jerry’s — announced it would no longer market its products to kids in an effort to curb the childhood obesity crisis.
The company said at the time: ‘The World Health Organization names childhood obesity as one of the most serious public health issues of the 21st century.
‘And it’s a key reason why Unilever is committing to new principles on marketing and advertising foods and beverages to children.’
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Read more at DailyMail.co.uk