WASHINGTON, March 24 (UPI) -- Coffee creamer can pack on the calories, the non-profit Center for Science in the Public Interest said Monday in Washington.
The nutrition label on Coffee-mate might list 10 calories and one-half a gram of saturated fat, but most people use about a tablespoon-size serving, Bonnie Liebman, nutrition director of the Center for Science in the Public Interest, said.
"Anyone glancing at the Nutrition Facts label for most of these coffee creamers would have a false sense of security," Liebman said in a statement.
It's more like 45 calories and 3 grams of heart-harmful saturated fat and three of four servings in office coffee daily and a person can consume half a day's saturated fat via coffee creamer, Liebman said.
Several iterations of Coffee-mate and other brands are lower in saturated and trans fat.
The findings, published by the Center for Science in the Public Interest's April issue of its Nutrition Action Healthletter, said that its only "Best Bite" ratings go to International Delight Fat Free and Silk liquid creamers, as well as plain old fat-free, 1 percent, 2 percent, or even whole milk, and the fat-free half & half made by Land O'Lakes and some store brands.
