Beware the fat and calories in fancy coffees

A Starbucks Java Chip Frappuccino packs 650 calories, 25 grams of fat and 99 grams of carbs.
By JANE E. ALLEN
LOS ANGELES TIMES
To the unsuspecting person looking for a refreshing treat, a 16-ounce frozen coffee confection or frothy coffee drink can sure beat run-of-the-mill java.
But though that unadorned cup of coffee has no calories before the addition of milk, cream or sugar, the same can't be said of its fancier cousins. Hot and cold lattes, espressos, mochas, cappuccinos and spiced teas known as chais can pack a hefty caloric punch. They may also supply a hefty chunk of the day's fat, carbohydrates and sugar.
And yet somehow, coffee tends to fall under the radar. "People have some idea that coffee is this calorie-less beverage and that you're just adding 'a little something' to it," said Lola O'Rourke, a registered dietitian in Seattle, where Starbucks pioneered the modern coffeehouse. "In the days when people drank coffee black, or with a little milk, cream or sugar, you probably weren't adding more than 100 calories."
Calories add up
Today, depending on whether that drink is 12, 16 or 24 ounces, and whether it's whipped up with nonfat, whole or soy milk -- or even half-and-half -- a consumer may be sipping 150 to 500 calories. A spritz of whipped cream can add 130 calories.
"I think people haven't fully incorporated that into their consciousness," O'Rourke said.
Not that the nutritional information is easy to find.
Starbucks discloses nutritional facts for all its beverages on its Web site, www.starbucks.com. Consumers also can find the information in a book kept in every Starbucks store.
On a recent hot morning in Beverly Hills, Calif., a visiting Katie Clarke, 26, of Boston, said she and her co-workers regularly go for Starbucks runs. Her regular order used to be a Frappuccino, a blended coffee-milk drink that can be flavored with mocha syrup, chocolate syrup, caramel, chocolate chips or toffee, until she checked the Starbucks nutritional info. A mocha Frappuccino has 290 calories, 4 grams of fat and 58 grams of carbohydrates (48 from sugar).
Now, she said, "I just try to be a little bit more aware." She's changed her regular drink to a mocha latte with nonfat milk.
Carbs and caffeine
Workers at Peet's Coffee & amp; Tea, a specialty coffee retailer founded in Berkeley, Calif., will read consumers the calorie and fat content for coffee and tea drinks. But that leaves today's carb-conscious dieters without carb and sugar specifics readily obtainable for packaged and many prepared foods. Peet's espresso-based drinks are made with whole milk, and its Caffe Freddo ice blended drinks are made with 2 percent milk, unless patrons request otherwise, a spokeswoman said.
The National Coffee Association in 1999 found that 29 million Americans drank gourmet coffee beverages daily, often for the caffeine boost.
The calorie-dense liquids aren't as satisfying as food and "don't stop you from eating that amount of calories in something else," O'Rourke warned.