Thanks to President Reagan, July is National Ice Cream Month!  Joanne and I have always been fond of ice cream.  Very early on in our relationship, we went to the Scooper Bowl and had fun sampling various flavors, some of which were not even on store shelves yet.

Going out for ice cream remains one of our favorite "date" activities.  We are partial to J.P. Licks and their rotating flavors of the month, Cabot's and their mainstay sundaes, Oxford Creamery when we are on the south coast, and, of course, our neighbors across the street, White Mountain Creamery.

Everybody deserves to enjoy ice cream, and thanks to the variety available, as well as an understanding of balance, we all can.  For example, some of the non-dairy ice creams, such as those made with coconut milk, can work very well for people with a milk protein allergy and have a taste and texture that rival traditional ice cream.  As long as our consumption is in line with our needs and goals, we can all partake.

 

Thanks, 

Jonah Soolman, Registered Dietitian / Co-Owner 

 

 

Whether we are standing in the frozen foods aisle peering through frosty glass doors or holding up the line at the local ice cream shop, the choice many of us struggle to make is the same: do we opt for the frozen yogurt, or do we go for the ice cream?

Back about a decade ago, I went through a phase where I was modifying cookie recipes in all sorts of ways in an effort to make them healthier: nuts and dried fruit instead of chocolate chips, oil instead of butter, whole wheat instead of white flour, reduced sugar, etc.  These changes sounded good in theory, but who was I kidding; these "cookies" were only cookies by name and bore a stronger resemblance to pancakes.

They never quite hit the spot.  Either I ate the healthier cookies by the batch in an effort to quell my cookie craving, or I chased them with traditional baked goods anyway.

What does any of that have to do with the ice cream vs. frozen yogurt debate?  Just like with my cookie experience, we want to be careful not to get so caught up in nutrition that we neglect pleasure, for if we do, the irony is that we often end up losing out on both.

Frozen yogurt does have some nutrient benefits compared to ice cream (See "She Said" section below.)  However, if frozen yogurt is going to leave you still craving ice cream, and you are going to overeat in an effort to satisfy that desire, then perhaps it is better to just have a small amount of ice cream when the craving sets in, enjoy it, and get on with your day.

 

I don't have a problem with frozen yogurt per se.  It has a lot of things going for it, including being lower in saturated fat and a good source of protein and calcium as well as providing probiotics.  But ice cream also has nutrition benefits: it is a good source of calcium, vitamin D, vitamin A, and some of the B vitamins that help with energy release.  In addition, given its richness, it takes a smaller amount of ice cream (compared to frozen yogurt) to be satisfying.  And let's face it, when you are really craving ice cream, a fro-yo just doesn't cut it!

 

I'm not suggesting that anyone go out there and begin a Ben & Jerry's binge, but totally denying yourself one of summer's most quintessential treats will just lead to feelings of deprivation and eventually overeating of less satisfying foods.  So go ahead and order that real ice cream - just be sure to savor and enjoy it!