7-Eleven just announced its newest product called Slurpee Lite, a sugar-free version of their wildly popular frozen slushy drinks.
The sugar-free version of the convenience store’s Slurpees will come in several flavors, including mango, strawberry banana, and cherry limeade, with more flavors to be introduced later. The drinks will be flavored with sugar-free Fanta soda and will contain 50 percent fewer calories than the original.
An eight-ounce serving of a Slurpee Lite contains a mere 20 calories. Currently, a 12-ounce Coca-Cola Slurpee has 97 calories and the Fanta flavors in the same size have 99 calories.
This shift for the frozen treat comes as a response to soda, juices, and other various high-sugar, high-calorie drinks being named as the biggest culprit in the obesity crisis. Just last week the Institutes of Medicine recommended the total ban of sugary drinks in schools. Soon it is believed that a government enforced calorie reduction on drinks and snacks will take place. 7-Eleven may just be trying to get ahead of the game.
Lisa Lillien is an author and Food Network host who runs the “Hungry Girl” low-calorie eating empire. She shared her support of the sugar-free Slurpee. “It’s nice to have guilt-free frozen options when the weather is hot.”
Lillien also shared with her readers that she is looking forward to trying one of the new drinks and she appreciated the new calorie-conscious product because, “It helps people become more aware of the calories they are consuming.”
It’s not fair to assume people are going to quit wanting sweet treats. And as most nutritionists will say, there’s nothing inherently wrong with a treat now and then. The Slurpee Lite offers a dieter the chance to stay on track while indulging. At the same time, the lower calorie drink can help keep a non-dieter from increasing their waistline without much sacrifice.
While we’re all for a sugar-free drink, and have to give 7-Eleven credit for being proactive in trimming the calories, we wish they’d done so without adding one more chemical to quick-serve food and beverages. The Slurpee Lite has Splenda, a chemically-based artificial sweetener that was recently found to alter the microflora in our guts. With so many natural alternatives, like Truvia, available, we just have to question why they didn’t go with that.
Next week, on May 23, the drinks will hit stores and customers are welcome to free samples.
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