This story has been updated since it was originally posted on 8/17/2022 to include more expert insight
Who doesn’t love coffee?! Well, okay—some of us don’t love the bitter taste. If you’ve got a sweet tooth but still want that morning caffeine boost, it’s likely that you prefer adding some unhealthy flavored ingredients like these to your coffee every morning. Unfortunately, health experts warn that regularly consuming creamer can take a serious toll on your health, leading to blood sugar spikes and weight gain over time.
To learn more about how flavored coffee creamers can hold you back from your weight loss goals, as well as discover some of the most unhealthy options to steer clear of, we spoke to Lisa Richards, certified nutritionist and creator of The Candida Diet, and Mary Sabat, nutritionist and personal trainer. They gave us a rundown.
“Adding milk or creamer to coffee is a practice done by most coffee drinkers to enhance the flavor and creamy nature of the often bitter and acidic drink,” Richards notes. “While it is common adding creamer is also a way calories, sugar, and fat sneak into our diet and it adds up quickly.”
That doesn’t necessarily mean you have to take your coffee black all the time, but it does mean you should be careful about the coffee add-ins you consume on a regular basis—and some are definitely worse than others. Sabat and Richards cite International Delight, Dunk Extra Extra, and Coffee Mate as some of the worst.
Worst Coffee Creamers That Lead To Weight Gain
Overall, it’s best to avoid any sort of sweet creamer if you don’t want to deal with the health risks at hand. However, Richards pointed out a few popular options in particular that can be especially damaging to your health due to their whopping sugar content and high calorie counts.
International Delight candy bar flavors
Although a candy-flavored cup of coffee certainly sounds delicious, it shouldn't come as a surprise that Richards says International Delight's candy-bar-inspired line of creamers are some of the worst options out there when it comes to fattening ingredients.
"These are some of the worst creamers because they are loaded with added sugar and high in calories," she warns. Take the Almond Joy variety, for example, which contains 5 grams of sugar and 35 calories per tablespoon. "This may not sound like a lot, but who has less than 1 tablespoon of creamer?" Richards points out. True!
Dunkin' Donuts Extra Extra creamer
If you're a die-hard Dunkin' Donuts fan (maybe you're even upset that you can't order these drinks anymore), you may be inclined to purchase their Extra Extra creamer at the grocery store to get the taste of your favorite coffee shop at home. However, Richards warns that this is one of the worst ingredients you can add to your coffee if you want to avoid blood sugar spikes and weight gain, noting that "just a tablespoon of it is 40 calories and 6 grams of sugar." Yikes!
Coffee Mate
Maybe you go for a more classic option when you're browsing the creamer selection. Coffee Mate creamer is a long-beloved kitchen staple for many people, and it comes in a range of flavors, from French Vanilla to Hazelnut to Mocha. It's even available in both liquid and powdered varieties. Unfortunately, Sabat warns that this sprawling collection offers some of the worst options out there for your overall health.
"This brand of creamer contains high amounts of corn syrup and hydrogenated vegetable oil, which can cause blood sugar spikes and increase inflammation," she warns. You can learn more about the health effects of high fructose corn syrup here.
The bottom line
All in all, adding any sort of sugary, flavored creamer to your morning cup of joe is generally not the best option for your health. "These creamers are void of any nutritional value and contain a large serving of sugar and calories for such a small serving," Richards says. "It would be best to avoid these types of creamers and opt for black or traditional milk," she concludes. Noted!
