How Bad is Strawberry Milk?

After watching last week's episode of Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution where Jamie went on a mission to remove flavored milk from the schools, I wondered how bad the flavored milk actually was.  So,  I checked it out on Calorie Count and in one cup:

Plain 1% Milk:

102 calories

2.5g fat

12g carbs (12g sugar)

8g protein

Strawberry 1% Milk and Chocolate 1% Milk:

180 calories

2.5g fat

26g carbs (26g sugar)

7g protein

The major (only) difference is the amount of carbs/sugar.  At first glance, it might not seem like that is a big deal, just 14 grams of sugar.  But one teaspoon of sugar is 4 grams.  Thus, the flavored milks have almost 4 extra teaspoons of sugar in one cup!

Unbelievably, the schools defended the flavored varieties saying they increased consumption.  Apparently, the schools are more concerned about children's calcium intake than their sugar intake.  Considering the childhood obesity epidemic, schools might want to rethink that stance.   

The most encouraging part of the episode was when many of the kids that ordinarily would have taken flavored milk started taking the plain milk. They did so because their teacher, after learning from Jamie about the nutritional differences, encouraged them to.  So, even if schools continue to serve flavored sugar milk, we can get our kids to choose the healthier option through education, awareness and encouragment.