Chains' Worst Summer Drinks Slideshow
Dunkin' Donuts: Mountain Dew Coolatta
An electric green soda-flavored slushie? Yeah, it's probably not what your nutritionist is drinking. At 200 calories per 16-ounce serving (the size of a small cup), the drink doesn't have much to offer in the nutrition department — it contains zero percent of the daily recommended value of iron, calcium, and vitamins A and C.
McDonald's: Frozen Strawberry Lemonade
New to the fast food giant's McCafé menu this summer is their Frozen Strawberry Lemonade. And at 250 calories per 16-ounce serving, it's a lemonade that would have definitely weighed down the neighborhood stand. While it's fat-free and provides a good amount of vitamin C (154 milligrams), it also also a little high in sugars (65 grams) and carbohydrates (61 grams). Perhaps it would be better instead to wait for the July debut of the Mango-Pineapple Real Fruit Smoothie, the newest addition to their more health-conscious line of beverages.
Dairy Queen: Lemonade Chillers
Frozen lemonade déjà vu. Dairy Queen's new line of Lemonade Chillers (offered in regular and strawberry flavors) are relatively on par with McDonald's Frozen Strawberry Lemonade drink as far as the nutrition facts are concerned. A small cup of the regular flavor comes in at 250 calories, and the strawberry at 280.
Starbucks: Mocha Coconut Frappuccino
Back again this year to the coffee behemouth's roster of beloved frappuccinos are the Coconut Mocha and Coconut Crème varieties. Sans whipped cream, a 12-ounce "Tall" size of the Coconut Mocha runs about 300 calories, with 12 grams of fat and 50 grams of carbohydrates. If you can't live without it, try the "light" version instead which has a considerably reduced 110 calories and 0.5 grams of fat for the same size.
Arby's: Jamocha Oreo Shake
No doubt Arby's new confection is "good mood food" — this summer, the chain's popular Jamocha Shake got a sweet upgrade by adding pieces of Oreo, "America's favorite cookie," to the mix. Tasty though it may be (the folks at the Dallas Observer certainly had good things to say), this limited-time-offer indulgence comes at a price. The 20-ounce beverage (the only size it's offered in) clocks in at 630 calories, 170 of which are from fat, not to mention it has 101 grams of sugars, 120 milligrams of sodium, and 115 grams of carbohydrates per serving.
Jack-in-the-Box: Blackberry Ice Cream Shake
How do blackberries go from low-cal, good-for-you fruit to waistline unfriendly? Well, in the case of Jack-in-the-Box's new summer shake, when the blackberry component is actually blackberry syrup and it's mixed with vanilla ice cream and topped with whipped cream. According to the company website, there are 880 calories in a 16-ounce serving — the highest calorie count among the five ice cream shakes offered. Though the drink has a high potassium content (711 milligrams), it also has 28 grams of saturated fat and 97 grams of sugars.
Sonic: Double Stuf Oreo Sonic Blast
Oreos get the fast food milkshake treatment at more than one chain this summer. In May, popular drive-in/drive-thru concept Sonic introduced the Double Stuf Oreo Sonic Blast to its line of "Blast" shakes. If you're one of those people who likes to lick all the cream out of the middle of an Oreo than you'll no doubt enjoy the flavor of this drink — the ice cream used in it is actually made with Oreo cream filling. Just be warned: The Regular size (14 ounces) packs a hefty 680 calories, 330 of which are from fat.
Cold Stone Creamery: Cake 'n' Shake
A shake that mixes cake batter ice cream with pieces of yellow cake? If you're saying to yourself, "I gotta have it," be advised that at Cold Stone Creamery the request comes at the price of 1670 calories. That said, "loving it" or "liking it" won't get you much of a calorie downgrade either (totaling 1400 and 1140 calories, respectively). You could get a 16-ounce "sinless" version, but somehow 670 calories, 7 grams of fat, and 780 milligrams of sodium doesn't sound completely guilt-free.