Diet Food Reviews
Lifeway Lowfat Kefir Probiotic Cultured Smoothie
By: | Jul 19, 2006
Lifeway Kefir is a cultured milk smoothie made using a group of probiotic bacteria, collectively termed Kefir batches. It is very similar to a yogurt smoothie - in fact, that's just what it tastes like, and it was delicious! It had a very thick consistency. When I poured it into a cup, there were quite a few lumps coming out of the bottle - this is after shaking it. Despite the lumps, the kefir was a smooth going down - like a very thick yogurt smoothie with a slightly tart taste, which was actually very pleasant. Maybe it was because it was so thick that I didn't drink a lot of it at once - just an 8 ounce serving. Of course, a few hours later I went back for more and more and ... until the bottle was fiished. There are other ways of using Lifeway Kefir other than drinking it straight, as suggested on the bottle. I tried mixing some of the kefir with granola, and again it was delicious!
Although I really enjoyed the Lifeway Kefir, there are a few too many calories for my liking. One serving is 1 cup (8 ounces) and there are 4 servings per bottle. One serving has 174 calories. While I didn't drink this all at once, by the end of the day it was finished. This means that I had 656 calories - just from drinking a bottle! Remember the label claim above that you can include 3 servings per day as part of a "calorie controlled" diet - that would be 522 calories. If your "calorie controlled" diet is around 1800 calories then almost 1/3 would be coming from one beverage - no way! There is also 2 grams of fat, 1.5 grams of which are saturated, 25 grams total carbohydrates, 21 grams of sugar, 3 grams of fiber, 14 grams of protein and 10-30% of a few vitamins and minerals - per serving.
Lifeway Kefir was a bit on the expensive side at $3.79 per bottle. With the amount of calories in one bottle, you could have had a Lean Cuisine Pannin which I HEART [review] AND one of Amy's meals like the Indian Mattar Tofu I recently reviewed and loved [link]. BUT, I really did like the granola and the kefir mixed together, and I can also see adding it to mixed fruits for a tasty snack - I am aiming for something like the Dole Fruit Parfait, and I can even include it in a smoothie. So, I definitely think I will be adding this to my "will buy again" list.
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I love Kefir. I like to think of it as "effervescent" rather than tart.
Wow! That is a lot of calories comign from just a beverage! Way too many. Looks yummy though. If you add it to your "will buy again" list, make sure not to drink it all in one day! ;)
Low Fat products usually have high calories, and it's not even helpful in keeping us well. see this post link
Of course you can make your own Kefir smoothies and control how much sweetening you use.
Here is a how to: link
Thanks for your cool blog Tanya. You know good trash when you see it! ;)
Dear folks at Lifeway,
On 10/26/07 my family purchased a Lowfat Kefir Cultures milk smoothie Probiotic beverage in Strawberry. My family was very dissapointed at the fact that it tasted "tangy" and was over ferminted with many chunks in it. The number on the cap is 21EXP /12/23/07 and was produced by 2005, Lifeway Foods INC., Morton Grove IL 60053 Plant #17-111. Please contact us if you have any questions at (540)462-2901 109 Colonnade Avenue Neal Fortney.
Cultured milk? Yogurt? I'm American. Raised on the sweetened 'yogurts' so popular in this country. And man are they expensive! But then I visited Japan, tasted real yogurt, and suddenly craved the sour/tart balance. Kefir is the first product that I think you can gulp right down and love. I ate Stonyfield Farm Organic Yogurt for a while, but no more after finding Kefir.
The flavored varities honestly have way too much sugar added. I recommend you acclimate yourself to the plain one, and enjoy the soothing effect on your stomach. The sweetened ones are too sweet. But it plain is too plain, then add something light to it. I sometimes open the fridge for a quick gulp when I'm getting hungry.. or add a small amount to a meal shake.
great stuff
soothes the stomach
I just wondered if freezing the Kefir product changes the viability of the live cultures/probiotics?
I live in Southeast Minnesota. Where can I find this product???
I talk about this product to anyone who is interested in improving their diets. I skip the flavored offerings, because yes, they are higher in sugar (even the sweeteners are natural), and the light plain variety is yummy enough as it is. With 11 grams of protein per 8 oz serving and only 110 vs. the 174 in the flavored varieties, you can drink the whole bottle throughout the day, as a meal, or between meals, to get 44 grams of protein for only 440 calories. Each serving also contains a healthy dose of vitamin D, and 30% of your recommended daily value of calcium. In a whole bottle, that translates to 90% of your DV for calcium, in a tasty, wholesome beverage that, with its huge variety of live and active cultures (much better than yogurt) which eases digestion of any other foods you consume. This is truly a superfood, and considering a souped-up, empty-calorie latte from Starbucks costs as much and has nearly twice the calories, I think it is a steal. I always try to keep a bottle handy. I just wish supermarkets would keep better inventory on the plain... sometimes it is not available. Very frustrating.