"low fat" news and stories

When you stop into a Starbucks, do you stick with the standard whole milk in your drink or do you order low fat or skim milk instead? In some markets, Starbucks customers so overwhelmingly opt for lower fat options that the coffee chain has decided to test 2% low fat milk as the drink default in about 300 of their stores to see how consumers respond. The stores are located in four key markets: Orange County, California; Jacksonville, Florida; Oregon; and London, Ontario. Milk options other than low fat will still have to be added as a customization to your drink, including skim, whole and soy.

If the program is a success, the switch could be applied to all stores, which would alleviate some of the criticism about Starbucks' high-fat drinks, although it is unclear as to whether the regular Frappuccino drinks will change their recipes, as well.

Source

Oats are a great source of soluble fiber, and as the specific fiber contained in whole oats, beta-glucan soluble fiber, has been shown to help control cholesterol, some oat products are allowed to claim that they reduce the risk of coronary heart disease. These products include oat bran, rolled oats or whole oat flour, and they also must meet the FDA's standard for "low fat" foods. The Quaker Oat company has requested - and temporarily received (pdf) - an exemption to the "low fat" standard for some of their other oat products, like instant oatmeal. The exemption allows qualifying products to make the claim that they coronary heart disease right on the packaging by allowing them to increase their oat content to acceptable levels, even if by doing so they surpass the federal maximum for low fat products. Not all oat products will be eligible, but Quaker's reduced sugar instant oatmeal products would qualify under the new plan.

Source

Professional football players have heavily regulated diets, but regardless of what they're eating when they're off the field, they're clearly working off those pounds when they play. The same cannot be said for the rest of us. During the Super Bowl, it is estimated that 30 million pounds of food, of which 4 million is fat, will be consumed across the country. Chips are the most popular snack, with 11.2 million pounds of potato chips sold for the game. Other snacks put up impressive numbers, as well: 8.2 million pounds of tortilla chips, 4.3 million pounds of pretzels, 3.8 million pounds of popcorn and 2.5 million pounds of nuts. And it doesn't look as though they counted calories from beer, sodas and other drinks in these numbers.

To avoid packing on the pounds during the game, there are a few simple things you can do:

• Eat breakfast or lunch before the party, so you won't be as hungry and as likely to binge.
• Try and go for a walk/run in the morning before the game and burn off a few extra calories.
• Try drinking diet soda or water to avoid the hundreds of calories that come from drinks alone.
• When it comes to snacks, make a low fat/low calorie dip to bring to the party, such as salsa, a bean-based dip or a yogurt dip made with nonfat yogurt.
• Limit your chip consumption by sticking to veggies or lower fat crackers for dipping - especially if you're planning on chowing down on pizza or buffalo wings.

One last suggestion? Stand up and cheer for your team when they get a first down and do your own little touchdown dance when they score. Taking the opportunity to burn off a couple of extra calories never hurt.

We already know that probiotics are one of the hottest health buzzwords of the year, so it's no surprise to hear that Dannon, which was one of the first companies to actively promote probiotics in their products in the US with the launch of Activia, has some new products to add to their line. First up is Activia Light, a fat free version of the original yogurt. It has less sugar than the original and about 30% fewer calories per serving, but still comes in four fruity flavors: strawberry, raspberry, peach and vanilla.

There are also two other new items in Dannon's lineup. DanActive, a "probiotic dairy drink" which was released nationwide this month that is supposed to help strengthen the body's immune system. Danimals, a kids yogurt drink, is also being re-released with a new formulation that includes "he world's most researched probiotic culture for children, Lactobacillus GG (LGG)," which has been clinically shown to improve gastrointestinal and immune functions and contribute to good oral health.

Have you heard of Z Trim? It's a fat substitute made from plants (also known as "agricultural bi-products") that not only has no fat, but has zero calories. It is marketed as an all-natural weight loss product, but since it can be used in everything from baked goods to soups and dressings, it sounds as though it could just as easily fit into the general health food category.

It was developed a few years ago by the USDA and is primarily composed of the hulls from oats, soybeans, peas and rice, as well as bran from corn and/or wheat, all of which are "processed into microscopic fragments, purified, and dried and milled to an easy-flowing powder," which can then be reconstituted with water to create a very smooth paste that gives a mouthfeel similar to - you guessed it - fat. It has a lot of natural dietary fiber, so it also helps provide a feeling of fullness.

So what does it taste like? Apparently, it's pretty much like other fats and most people can't taste or feel the difference in what they're eating. In fact, a school district in Pittsburgh switched to using it several months ago, but just recently revealed that fact to students, who never noticed the difference and approved of all the food with and without Z Trim.