I Love McDonald's Fruit Smoothies

Nutritional Value of McDonald's Smoothies

Overview  

Marketed as an option for the more health-conscious fast-food customer, McDonald’s fruit smoothies come in two flavors: strawberry banana and wild berry. If you don’t want to take time at home to throw some frozen fruit and yogurt into a blender, these smoothies could be a low-fat option for a drive-through breakfast or snack. As a beverage to sip with a meal, a smoothie will add a lot more calories than diet-friendly choices, such as diet soda or water—- but not nearly as many as a large shake or frappe.

Smoothie Ingredients  

McDonald’s lists ingredients for its smoothies on its website. The strawberry banana smoothie contains strawberry and banana purees, water, sugar, concentrated apple juice and less than 1 percent of these ingredients: cellulose powder, flavorings, xanthan gum, citric acid, fruit and vegetable colorings, pectin and ascorbic acid. Ingredients for the wild berry smoothie are similar, with strawberry, blackberry and blueberry purees and the addition of concentrated pineapple juice. The low-fat yogurt in both smoothies includes sugar, whey protein, fructose, cornstarch, gelatin and active yogurt cultures.

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Counting Calories  

Size matters when you‘re counting the calories in a McDonald’s fruit smoothie. According to the company’s nutrition information, a 12-oz. cup of either flavor has 210 calories and a 16-oz. cup has 260 calories. The large size, which is 22 oz., has 330 calories for the strawberry banana flavor and 320 calories for the wild berry. By contrast, a 22-oz. mocha or caramel frappe will cost you 680 calories, a 22-oz. chocolate McCafe shake 880 calories and a 22-oz. strawberry McCafe shake 860 calories.

Other Nutrients  

The fruit smoothies at McDonald's are low in total fat, with just 1 g in the large and medium sizes and 0.5 g in the small. Each has 5 g of cholesterol. Carbohydrates range from about 48 g to about 77 g; sugars range from 44 g to about 70 g. The strawberry banana flavor is slightly higher in sodium with 35, 40 and 55 mg for the small, medium and large; the wild berry flavor has 30, 35 and 45 mg, respectively. The smoothies will give you 70 to 120 percent of your daily recommended vitamin C -- depending on flavor and size -- but only 2 or 3 g protein per serving.

Recommendations  

If you love fast-food shakes -- or your kids do -- a fruit smoothie might be a more healthful alternative. The low-fat yogurt in both McDonald's flavors helps to keep overall fat and calories relatively low. But if you have a blender, it's simple enough to concoct your own smoothies with ingredients like skim milk, fresh or frozen fruit, yogurt, juices and flavor extracts. "Diabetes Forecast," a publication of the American Diabetes Association, suggests that "your best bet is to make them from scratch and add your own healthy ingredients."

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