How to order a healthy pumpkin spice latte

It’s Pumpkin Spice Latte season. If you’re a pumpkin spice latte lover, you can’t wait for fall to arrive and for your local coffee shop to launch their fall sweet treat.

Not only is it warm and delicious on a chilly fall morning, but it also contains pumpkin. So can it also be healthy? Finally, pumpkin is very nutritious. It is high in vitamin A and a good source of potassium and fiber. But we all know that a Pumpkin Spice Latte is much more than just pumpkin. All those extra ingredients can quickly make your favorite drink fall short on the healthy scale.

“It really depends on how you order it and how often,” says Kimmie Sharp, MMN, RDN, LMNT, LD, Registered Dietitian with Nebraska Medicine.

Depending on the café a 16 oz. A cup of Pumpkin Spice Latte can contain about 400 calories, 13 grams of fat, and almost 60 grams of sugar. That’s about double the amount of added sugar recommended in your daily diet.

Added sugars are sugars and syrups that are added to foods during preparation or processing and at the table. Added sugar provides no nutrients and can add extra pounds around your waist. The American Heart Association recommends that the average woman limit her daily intake of added sugar to 25 grams and the average man to 37 grams daily.

While latte can be high in sugar and fat, there are ways to make these sweet treats less damaging to your waistline.

How to make a Pumpkin Spice Latte healthier

• Ask for sugar free syrup
• Reduce the number of syrup pumps added to the drink
• Instead of syrup, use a sugar substitute like stevia, aspartame, or sucralose
• Add cinnamon instead of sugar
• Eliminate or reduce the amount of whipping cream
• Ask for skim milk or another alternative like almond, soy, or oat milk
• Avoid coconut milk, which can be high in fat
• If making your own, choose light whipping rather than heavy whipping
• Buy a small cup rather than a large one

Health Benefits of Pumpkin Spice Lattes

Though this fall beverage contains some pumpkin and spices, it’s such a small amount that they don’t offer much in terms of health benefits, Sharp says. The healthiest ingredients in a Pumpkin Spice Latte are milk and coffee. “If you have the healthy version, it’s a great way to add extra protein to your diet,” notes Sharp.

Skim and soy milk have the most protein, giving you 11 and 12 grams, respectively, in a 16 oz. Cup. Almond milk, on the other hand, only provides 1.5 grams of protein and oat milk 1.5 grams.

If you strip out all the extras and look at the benefits of coffee, you’ll enjoy some additional health benefits associated with a regular java habit, as long as you keep things in moderation. According to the American Heart Association, these include:

• Thanks to caffeine, coffee gives you energy, can help you lose weight and sharpens your mental focus
• May improve mood, brain function and exercise performance
• When consumed regularly, coffee is associated with a lower risk of type 2 diabetes, Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s
• A rich source of antioxidants that can protect against cell damage
• Coffee consumption has been linked to a lower risk of mortality. These include deaths from heart disease, nervous system disorders, and suicide

How to make a healthy Pumpkin Spice Latte at home

If you want to skip the café altogether and save a little money, you can make your healthy version of the Pumpkin Spice Latte at home. Try this version and change it to your liking:

• 1 cup of brewed coffee or one or two espressos
• 1/2 cup skim milk or milk of your choice
• 3 tablespoons pumpkin puree – make your own or buy pumpkin puree
• 1/2 teaspoon Pumpkin Pie Spice (mixture of ground cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg)
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 teaspoons sugar-free maple syrup or sweetener of your choice
• Sprinkle cinnamon

Mix milk and pumpkin in a saucepan. Cook over medium heat or in the microwave for 30 to 45 seconds. Remove from stove. Stir in the vanilla, spices and sweetener. Pour into a cup and froth the milk with a milk frother. Pour coffee into a large mug and pour the milk froth mixture over it. Sprinkle with cinnamon and enjoy!

“Remember, if you prefer pumpkin spice lattes with all the extras, it’s okay to indulge and indulge occasionally,” says Sharp. “Just don’t make it a daily habit. Moderation is key.”