Comments on: Nutrition Information on a can of Fat Free Reddi Whip

Question: Nutrition Information on a can of Fat Free Reddi Whip

sparrows — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 11:18:09 -0800

In a can of Reddi Wip Fat Free, which claims to contain 40 servings at 5 calories each, are there really just 200 calories in the whole can? (In other words, are they allowed to round down the exact serving size and/or number of calories, when the serving size is so tiny?) If not, what's the max number of calories that could actually be in there, and is there any way I can find out that true exact number?

By: caddis

caddis — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 11:26:16 -0800

Even if it were six calories it would still only be 240 total. What's the problem here?

By: rxrfrx

rxrfrx — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 11:26:54 -0800

Yes, the manufacturer is allowed to round down the nutritional content of each individual serving. For calores-per-serving of less than 50, the manufacturer can round to the nearest 5-calorie increment. This means that the maximum calories per can would be about 7.49*40 calories. So the total number of calories in the full can would be somewhere between 200 and 300. Unless you're regularly consuming entire cans of Reddi Whip, it seems useless to try to determine the "true exact" calorie content of the product. Mere differences in absorption from person to person, and from one mealtime to another should make the consumption of 5 or 10 servings of the product pretty much insignificantly different from 8 or 12 servings.

By: Gucky

Gucky — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 11:31:17 -0800

Plus, good luck getting the cream dregs out of the can unless you have a remarkable dispensing technique.

By: Partial Law

Partial Law — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 11:49:00 -0800

Sidenote about rounding down: Often you will see something like "0 carbs per serving!" or "0g lactose per serving!" There's a reason they phrase it like that, and it's not because it sounds better than "lactose-free."

By: monju_bosatsu

monju_bosatsu — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 11:49:58 -0800

It's zero calories if you only want the nitrous oxide.

By: jamjam

jamjam — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 11:53:09 -0800

Good point, Gucky. I wonder if there are can openers out there that can cope with aerosol cans.

By: unrepentanthippie

unrepentanthippie — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 11:53:19 -0800

Dieters at the office report you can take the chocolate version and freeze it in stemmed glasses, and it tastes like chocolate mouse.
/ slight tangent

By: TedW

TedW — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 12:13:26 -0800

Did you mean chocolate moose?

Also, most people don't precisely measure the amount of whipped topping they use, so that variation probably eclipses the rounding error.

By: sparrows

sparrows — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 12:26:24 -0800

Perfect, rxrfrx, thank you!

It matters because for a while I decided to eat 1500 calories of very healthy simple stuff plus 200 calories of "anything else" a day.

I noticed the Reddi Wip can is maybe the most delicious fun I can have with 200 calories if I eat it at intervals across one day.

I'll go ahead and count it as 300 calories (I know the real max is more like 280 or 290 since I can't get at the last bits in the can, but why not keep it simple). So at most I could have two cans over three days.

That's a great tangent, unrepentanthippie.

Anybody else want to add favorite whipped cream ideas? (Aside from the obvious naughty ones)

By: Ambrosia Voyeur

Ambrosia Voyeur — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 12:33:13 -0800

Well, the whole can is only 7 oz, and the ingredients are alleged to be

Grade a whole milk,* sucrose, dextrose, corn syrup, grade A cream,* inulin (polyfructose), non-fat dry milk solids, modified food starch, cellulose gum, mono- and diglycerides, artificial color, artificial flavors, disodium phosphate, polysorbate 80, lecithin, carrageenan, guar gum, nitrous oxide (propellant).
*Adds trivial amount of fat.

Whole milk is 17 KCal per oz, so the whole can would contain less than 119 KCal from that component (7 x 17). Sucrose is 108 KCal per oz, so if you figure 6 oz are milk and one is sugar, the can total is 210 KCal.

By: Ambrosia Voyeur

Ambrosia Voyeur — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 12:34:42 -0800

My mom swears by Reddi Wip on graham crackers. There's some miraculous WW point value attached to that snack, since in WW they count fiber against calories.

By: unrepentanthippie

unrepentanthippie — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 13:57:04 -0800

mouse/mousse
Sorry; sick; overmedicated.

By: fuzzbean

fuzzbean — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 14:09:24 -0800

I can add nothing to this thread, but you, madam, are AWESOME.

(I used to eat Reddi-Whip straight out of the can when I was studying for exams. I don't know why.)

By: smackfu

smackfu — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 14:56:43 -0800

For calores-per-serving of less than 50, the manufacturer can round to the nearest 5-calorie increment.

This also explains things like spray oil that are zero calories.

By: SassHat

SassHat — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 15:39:23 -0800

Please don't eat a whole can of fat-free whipped cream. I have this sinking feeling it might make you poop your pants or something. Try half a can and see how you feel. Stay near the bathroom.

By: TedW

TedW — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 17:02:21 -0800

mouse/mousse
Sorry; sick; overmedicated.

I was just having a little fun; my typos are usually much worse. I hope you weren't offended.

By: unrepentanthippie

unrepentanthippie — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 18:25:29 -0800

Not at all.
Mine are usually worse than that.

By: la petite marie

la petite marie — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 18:33:05 -0800

The WW recipe is to put ReddiWhip on chocolate graham crackers, then freeze it. After awhile it tastes like an ice cream sandwich. I used to make these when I was on WW, and ended up eating them all at the same time. They're really good.

By: booksandlibretti

booksandlibretti — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 19:32:40 -0800

How many points were those frozen-whipped-cream sandwiches? They must be one to be worthwhile, right? Even then, I can't imagine two of those would be better than one of these (and they're big!).

By: philomathoholic

philomathoholic — Sat, 13 Oct 2007 00:35:04 -0800

... is there any way I can find out that true exact number?

The way the pros determine food caloric content is to burn it. They then measure the amount of energy produced by the reaction. Wikipedia link.

By: la petite marie

la petite marie — Sat, 13 Oct 2007 09:38:38 -0800

How many points were those frozen-whipped-cream sandwiches?
It was either one point or two, I don't remember.

By: sparrows

sparrows — Mon, 12 Nov 2007 11:10:50 -0800

For anybody who thinks this is weird (or awesome for that matter)... it's just a 7-ounce glass of milk flavored with cream and sugars, plus some kind of propellant that doesn't matter nutritionally. Think about all the Starbucks drinks that have twice as many calories (and cost twice as much :))