What not to eat at the mall

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By Danielle Dowling, Nubella News From the endless lines to the overwhelming store selections, a day of shopping is bound to leave you famished and thirsty. And it doesn't help that the floor plans of most malls force you to pass through the food court at least once, thus luring you in with the enticing smells of everything savory and sweet. Your best line of defense against such temptation is to drink plenty of water—and steer clear of the following fattening fare: Baked and fried treats. At all costs, avoid the glistening cinnamon rolls laden with cream cheese frosting. Even though cinnamon is said to improve your body’s ability to metabolize glucose, it won’t contribute enough to burn 700 calories. Perhaps worst of all is the funnel cake, which will add 760 calories to your daily tally and require 209 minutes of walking to work it off. Since they both have about half the caloric content, a soft pretzel and a glazed doughnut are slightly better bets. Smoothies. How bad could a drink made from frozen fruit, juice, and ice be? Well, that depends on the size and the ingredients. While drinking a large 30-oz. smoothie might double, even quadruple, your recommended daily amount of vitamin C, it equals about 400 calories. Add yogurt or sherbet to the mix and you’ll up the calorie count anywhere from 50 to 150 units. So keep your smoothie simple and small, and you’ll take in about 200 calories of good-for-you nutrients. And stay away from smoothies that pack a lot of peanut butter—a 30-oz. serving of this kind of drink can even top a cinnamon roll in terms of calories and fat, with 1,170 and 30, respectively. Caffeinated beverages. If you’re looking for a midday pick-me-up, plain old coffee, with its minuscule amount of calories and lack of fat, is the best candidate in this category. But once you add sugar and syrups and milk and cream—you know, the things that make a cup of joe worthwhile—you also potentially introduce a ton of calories and fat. Creamy coffee drinks from some of the most popular hotspots can impart as many as 700 calories and 15 grams of fat. And just when you thought it was safe to sip all the diet cola you want, researchers from the University of Texas Health Science Center reported last year that the more diet soda you drink, the more weight you’re likely to gain.