Britain’s healthiest ice lollies REVEALED amid UK heatwave: Tropical, cola and strawberry-flavoured freeze pops can contain just 13 CALORIES (similar to just 1/18th of a Magnum!)
- MailOnline analysed dozens of summertime treats sold in supermarkets as the UK saw temperatures hit 40.2C
- Among the healthiest options were Mr Freeze’s Freeze Pops, which contains just 13.5 calories per pole
- Mr Freeze’s snacks also took the second and third spots, with their strawberry and orange flavoured Jubbly
- Meanwhile, Ice Kitchen’s banana and milk chocolate lolly has 211 calories — nearly as much as a Mars bar
- Experts said that ice lollies can help Britons feel refreshed in the hot weather which today broke records
- But they warned the sweet snacks can’t be relied on completely to keep cool, urging Britons not to overheat
If you fancy tucking into an ice lolly while basking in Britain’s record-breaking heatwave today, you might assume they’ll be bad for your waistline.
But you needn’t fear, according to MailOnline’s analysis of the nation’s favourite treats.
Among the options best for your waistline were Mr Freeze’s Freeze Pops, which contains just 13.5 calories per pole — a tenth of a packet of Walkers ready salted crisps (130 calories each).
Mr Freeze also took the second and third spots, with its strawberry and orange flavoured Jubbly’s containing just 17 calories per lolly.
Meanwhile, Ice Kitchen’s banana and milk chocolate ice lolly had 211 calories per stick — nearly as much as a Mars bar (228) or a classic Magnum (230).
Our analysis — comparing dozens of summertime treats — comes as the UK endured its hottest day in history, with temperatures breaching 40 for the first time ever.
Experts said ice lollies can help Britons feel refreshed in the hot weather and help keep them hydrated but warned they won’t be able to rely on them completely to keep cool and advised turning to shade, cool flannels and fans to prevent overheating.
• Eat at least 5 portions of a variety of fruit and vegetables every day. All fresh, frozen, dried and canned fruit and vegetables count
• Base meals on potatoes, bread, rice, pasta or other starchy carbohydrates, ideally wholegrain
• 30 grams of fibre a day: This is the same as eating all of the following: 5 portions of fruit and vegetables, 2 whole-wheat cereal biscuits, 2 thick slices of wholemeal bread and large baked potato with the skin on
• Have some dairy or dairy alternatives (such as soya drinks) choosing lower fat and lower sugar options
• Eat some beans, pulses, fish, eggs, meat and other proteins (including 2 portions of fish every week, one of which should be oily)
• Choose unsaturated oils and spreads and consuming in small amounts
• Drink 6-8 cups/glasses of water a day
• Adults should have less than 6g of salt and 20g of saturated fat for women or 30g for men a day
Source: NHS Eatwell Guide
MailOnline examined 80 branded and supermarket-own ice lollies on sale in shops across the UK.
Freeze Pops by Mr Freeze — which costs as little as £1.50 for a box of 20 — have as few as 13.5 calories per stick and also contain the lowest amount of sugar (3.1g).
The lollies, which come in strawberry, raspberry, cola, lemonade and tropical flavours, are made with natural colours and flavours.
Mr Freeze Jubbly, which come in strawberry and orange flavours (£1.65 for eight), were the next lowest in calories, with just 17 per serving. And they had just 4g of sugar — making them the second and third lowest in sugar content.
Pip Organic Rainbow Fruity Lollies (19 calories), Bear Strawberry Fruit Lollies (21 calories) and Asda Smart Price Fruit Flavoured Ice Lollies (24 calories), were also among the least calorific options.
For comparison, ice creams such as Lotus Biscoff and Haagen Dazs Peanut Butter Crunch, ice creams on sticks surrounded by a chocolate shell, contain more than 300 calories per serving — up to 23 times more than the lowest-calorie lollies.
And entire tubs of ice cream can have up to 1,300 calories, with Ben & Jerry’s Peanut Butter Cup, Chunky Monkey and a tube of Classic Magnum ice cream among the worst offenders.
And other snacks, such as a pack of Walkers crisps (130 calories) and a Mars bar (228 calories) have up to 17 times more calories.
Meanwhile, the most energy-dense ice lollies had nearly as many calories as a chocolate bar.
Ice Kitchen’s Banana and Milk Chocolate Ice Lolly (£2.80 for a a pack of three) contains 211 calories and is also the most sugary (21g per stick).
And the Coconut Collaborative’s Dark Chocolate Snowconut Sticks (132 calories), which cost £3 for three, are 10 times more calorific than Mr Freeze’s Ice Pops. Although they contain coconut cream as a base rather than water, like the lowest-calorie treats, and have just 4.8g of sugar — four-times less than the Ice Kitchen option.
Ice Kitchen’s Strawberries and Cream flavoured snack (£4 for three) was the third-most calorific (111) and one of the most sugary (13.8g).
Professor Gunter Kuhnle, an expert in nutrition and food science at the University of Reading, told MailOnline that the heatwave is a time to ‘cool down and eat something that is enjoyable’. He said the ice lollies can help ensure that people are consuming enough liquids.
However, Dr Duane Mellor, a dietitian at Aston Medical School in Birmingham, told MailOnline that while ice lollies can help make a person feel refreshed, other precautions to stop overheating are still needed.
He explained: ‘Crushed ice is used to stop core temperature rising in sports or military situations to help manage heat stress.
‘However, the amount of ice in the average ice lolly will do little to keep the temperature of your body down.’
A spokesperson for Refresco, the Leicestershire-based manufacturer of Mr Freeze, said its ice lollies are made with are both made with natural colours and flavours.
‘Each have less than 20kcal per serving. Alongside this, we have also launched a Sugar Free variety this year, which is now available in Sainsbury’s,’ they added.
A Coconut Collaborative spokesperson said its product’s calorie content is ‘not that high’ when compared to some big brands, are lower in sugar than many ice lollies and don’t use refined sugar. It noted that its recipe’s main ingredient is coconut cream, so ‘is unlike many other lollies where the main ingredient is water’.
‘Coconuts are great for you and contain medium-chain fatty acids, which studies suggest are easier and faster metabolised in our body when compared with long-chain fatty acids,’ the spokesperson added.
It comes as Britain today experienced its hottest day on record with temperatures soaring past 40C (104F).
The mercury hit an unprecedented 40.2C (104.4F) at London Heathrow Airport at 12.50pm — around an hour after a reading of 39.1C (102.4F) in Charlwood, Surrey, beat the previous all-time UK high of 38.7C (101.7F) in Cambridge in July 2019.
Forecasters said an absolute maximum of 43C (109F) is possible later on — and the highs in England are equal to the warmest spots anywhere in Europe today. The UK is also hotter than Jamaica, the Maldives and Barbados.
The Met Office also confirmed that last night was the warmest night on record in Britain, with temperatures not falling below 25C (77F) in many areas of England and Wales. The highest overnight minimum in the UK last night was 25.9C (78.6F) at Emley Moor in West Yorkshire, while it was 25.8C (78.4F) at Kenley in Croydon, South London.
This smashed the previous record of 23.9C (75F) in Brighton set on August 3, 1990. It comes one day after Wales had its hottest day ever with 37.1C (99F) in Hawarden, Flintshire — beating a record set in the same village in 1990.
In Cambridgeshire today, the surface of the A14 at Bottisham appeared to have melted and buckled. And on the trains, Network Rail and operators upgraded their travel advice for those heading north out of London into the red warning area to ‘do not travel’, saying there will be no services in or out of London King’s Cross all day today.
The heat has brought major rail chaos for commuters around the capital, with no Thameslink or Great Northern trains running in any location north of London, from Blackfriars via St Pancras, or from King’s Cross or Moorgate.
Are YOU drinking enough water? From murky brown to golden yellow and even transparent, urine guide relied on by the NHS reveals if you need more fluids amid UK’s heatwave
We’ve been inundated with pleas urging us to keep hydrated amid the UK’s record-breaking heatwave.
But how do you know whether you’ve actually had enough water?
It might sound obvious, but simply looking at the colour of your urine can provide the answer.
So if you plan to brave Britain’s Saharan-esque 40C temperatures today, experts recommended you follow a handy guide used widely within the NHS.
Similar to a paint chart at B&Q, it charts a scale from clear to dark brown.
Clearer colours suggest you have had enough water for now, but the opposite end of the spectrum could be a warning sign of severe dehydration or potentially worse.
Clear to pale urine (number one) suggests a person is well hydrated, while a light yellow urine (number two) is ‘ideal’, the health service guide states. A darker yellow or pale honey-coloured urine (number three) means a person may need to hydrate soon and a yellow, cloudier urine (number four) is a sign to drink. Darker yellow urine (number five) means a person is starting to become dehydrated, while an amber-coloured urine (number six) is ‘not healthy’ and means the body ‘really needs more liquid’, the NHS says. Orange urine (number seven) means a person is becoming ‘severely dehydrated’, while a very dark red or brown urine (number eight) means a person needs to see their GP — and the colour may not be down to not drinking enough
WHAT DOES THE URINE GUIDE SHOW?
Colours 1-3 suggest normal urine
1. Clear to pale yellow urine suggests that you are well hydrated
2. Light/transparent yellow urine suggests an ideal level of hydration
3. A darker yellow/pale honey coloured urine suggests that you may need to hydrate soon
Colours 4-8 suggest you need to rehydrate
4. A yellow, cloudier urine colour suggests you are ready for a drink
5. A darker yellow urine suggests you are starting to become dehydrated
6. Amber coloured urine is not healthy, your body really needs more liquid. All fluids count (except alcohol)
7. Orange/yellow urine suggests you are becoming severely dehydrated
8. If your urine is this dark, darker than this or red/ brown, it may not be due to dehydration. Seek advice from your GP
Johanna Hignett, a registered nutritionist, told MailOnline the urine colour chart is ‘simple and useful in this hot weather’.
She added: ‘The darker the urine colour the greater the chance of your fluid levels being low in your body.
‘It’s such an easy and simple tool to use to prompt people to remember to drink.’
However, others note the urine scale is not a full-proof way of knowing whether you are dehydrated.
This is because the colour can also be affected by what you drink, the speed at which you drink and certain medications.
For example, urinary tract infection medicine pyridium can turn urine red, anti-inflammatory drug sulfasalazine can cause it to turn orange, and antidepressant amitriptyline can turn it blue or green.
Britons should also be aware of other tell-tale dehydration symptoms, such as feeling thirsty, lightheaded and tired.
Soaring temperatures increases the risk of becoming dehydrated.
Under normal conditions, people lose fluids through sweat, tears and urine, which is replaced by drinking, as well as eating foods with a high water content, such as cucumber, tomatoes and melon.
But when a person is overexposed to the sun, the body loses more water than usual, along with essential body salts such as sodium and potassium, through sweat.
The NHS guide, which trusts tend to put together themselves, labels urine on a scale of one to eight.
Clear to pale urine (one) suggests a person is well hydrated, while a light yellow urine (two) is ‘ideal’, the health service guide states.
A darker yellow or pale honey-coloured urine (three) means a person needs to drink soon and a yellow, cloudier urine (four) should swig some water as soon as possible.
Darker yellow urine (five) means a person is starting to become dehydrated, while an amber-coloured urine (six) is ‘not healthy’ and means the body ‘really needs more liquid’, the NHS says.
Orange urine (seven) signals someone is becoming ‘severely dehydrated’, while very dark red or brown urine (eight) should warrant a trip to the GP. This is because the dark colour may not be down to not drinking enough, instead it could be a sign of a urinary tract infection, hepatitis or liver disease.
Adults are advised to drink six to eight glasses of fluid every day — around 1.5 litres — with all drinks apart from alcohol counting towards the total.
But the amount each person needs depends on their size, physical activity levels and underlying conditions, as well as the weather.
Amid the heatwave, Dr Simon Cork, a senior lecturer in physiology at Anglia Ruskin University, said people can use urine colour as a good indication of whether they are drinking enough.
Health chiefs have warned Britons to stay hydrated as temperatures today hit 40.2C (104.4F) at Heathrow — breaching the former high of 38.7C (101.7), set in 2019
Hottest day in history: Britain hits a record 40.2C – first time ever in the forties
Britain today experienced its hottest day on record as temperatures soared past 40C (104F) amid growing rail travel chaos as schools shut again and millions of people respond to the extreme heat by working from home.
The mercury hit an unprecedented 40.2C (104.4F) at London Heathrow Airport at 12.50pm – around an hour after a reading of 39.1C (102.4F) in Charlwood, Surrey, beat the previous all-time UK high of 38.7C (101.7F) in Cambridge in July 2019. In third place is 38.5C (101.3F) in Kent in August 2003, and 38.1C (100.6F) in Suffolk yesterday is fourth.
Elsewhere today, the mercury got up to 38.8C (101.8F) at Kew Gardens in West London around noon – also beating the all-time high. It was 38.1C (100.6F) at St James’s Park in Central London and 37.7C (99.9F) in Chertsey, Surrey.
Forecasters said an absolute maximum of 43C (109F) is possible later on – and the highs in England are equal to the warmest spots anywhere in Europe today. The UK is also hotter than Jamaica, the Maldives and Barbados.
The Met Office also confirmed that last night was the warmest night on record in Britain, with temperatures not falling below 25C (77F) in many areas of England and Wales. The highest overnight minimum in the UK last night was 25.9C (78.6F) at Emley Moor in West Yorkshire, while it was 25.8C (78.4F) at Kenley in Croydon, South London.
This smashed the previous record of 23.9C (75F) in Brighton set on August 3, 1990. It comes one day after Wales had its hottest day ever with 37.1C (99F) in Hawarden, Flintshire – beating a record set in the same village in 1990.
The method works because the kidneys cleanse the blood of toxins and transforms waste into urine.
If a person has not drank enough water, the kidneys produce a very concentrated, dark-coloured urine, Dr Cork explained.
He added: ‘If you are sufficiently hydrated (or even excessively hydrated) then your kidneys will get rid of that excess water in the form of very dilute, clear urine.
‘The clearer your urine is, the more hydrated you are.’
But record-high temperatures will be causing people to more fluids through sweat, lowering the amount of water in the circulatory system.
Dr Cork said: ‘This can have detrimental effects on blood pressure.
‘If blood pressure falls too low then our organs are not adequately perfused by blood and, in extreme cases can start to fail.’
However, Professor Hugh Montgomery, chair of intensive care medicine at University College London, told MailOnline urine colour alone ‘isn’t a good guide’ for hydration levels.
The colour of urine is also affected by the type of drink you consume, how quickly a person drinks and certain medications.
Studies have warned that it should not be used on its own to assess whether people are hydrated.
But experts said other signs can also point to whether a person should be drinking more.
Experts warned that strong-smelling urine and passing urine fewer than four times a day are also signals that a person isn’t drinking enough.
Feeling thirsty, dizzy, lightheaded and tired are all signals of dehydration, as are a dry mouth, headaches, weak muscles and constipation.
Professor Mike Tipton, a physiologist at the University of Portsmouth, told MailOnline that it is essential people drink enough, especially when it’s hot outside.
He said: ‘Dehydration compounds the strain on the heart and circulation experienced during heat waves and can compromise your ability to control body temperature.
‘Those particularly susceptible to dehydration include the young and the elderly.’
Experts urged those who have dark-coloured urine or other dehydration symptoms to turn to water and stay clear of coffee and alcohol.
Water is the best choice of soft drink for hydrating as it is calorie and sugar free and ‘gives a brilliant refreshing drink in hot weather’ when chilled, Ms Hignett said.
Meanwhile, Dr Cook advised people to avoid caffeine and alcohol-based drinks as they are diuretics and make it harder for the kidneys to retain water, leading to more frequent urination.
And he urged Britons to keep drinking throughout the say, rather than drinking ‘large amounts in short bursts’.
Dr Cork added: ‘The water we ingest needs to be compartmentalised into the right parts of the body.
‘Drinking a whole pint of water very quickly may trick the kidneys into thinking your sufficiently hydrated and you may end up peeing that water out quite quickly.’
Professor Montgomery said that Britons can dodge dehydration by staying cool so they don’t sweat and loose fluids in the first place.
Those venturing outdoors should limit the time as much as possible, wear light and loose clothing and wear a broad-rimmed hat.
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