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Starbucks' 'Healthier' Frappuccinos Still Have Nearly 50 Grams of Sugar

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Starbucks has heard the cries of health-focused consumers: The company has announced that it's testing a lower-sugar version of its famous Frappuccino, according to news reports.

But here's the catch: This "slimmed-down" version still contains twice as much sugar as a candy bar.

Starbucks is testing a lower-sugar caramel Frappuccino in 600 stores in California, Missouri and Rhode Island, according to CBS MoneyWatch. A 16-ounce "Grande" size of the new drink has roughly 25 percent less sugar: It contains 49 grams of sugar, down from 67 grams in the original version, CBS News reported. The new version also contains 50 fewer calories than the original.

But even in this "healthier" form, the sugar content in one of the new caramel Frappuccinos still exceeds the sugar content of many other infamously sugar-laden foods and drinks. For comparison, a 16-ounce regular Slurpee from 7-Eleven has about 36 grams of sugar, a 12-ounce can of Coke has 39 grams of sugar and a 1.5-ounce Hershey milk chocolate bar has 24 grams of sugar.  

And a single lower-sugar Frappuccino will still put you well over the daily recommended amount of sugar: The American Heart Association says that adults should limit the amount of added sugars they consume to no more than 25 grams a day for women and 36 grams a day for men.

Originally published on Live Science.

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Sara G. Miller
Sara G. Miller
Staff Writer
Sara is a staff writer for Live Science, covering health. She grew up outside of Philadelphia and studied biology at Hamilton College in upstate New York. When she's not writing, she can be found at the library, checking out a big stack of books.