With its wide variety of tea options, Starbucks offers many healthy green tea drinks for customers looking to reap the benefits of green tea. Green tea is renowned for its powerful antioxidant properties and can aid in weight loss, improve brain function, and reduce the risk of chronic illnesses like cancer and heart disease. When choosing a green tea drink at Starbucks, there are a few key factors to consider regarding health.
Caffeine Content
One of the most important factors when determining the healthiest green tea drink is the caffeine content. Many Starbucks green tea options are made with a green tea base along with added caffeine from black tea or coffee. For people sensitive to caffeine or looking to limit intake, opting for an uncaffeinated green tea is best.
Starbucks offers a few uncaffeinated green tea options:
- Iced Peach Green Tea
- Iced Pineapple Green Tea
- Green Iced Tea
These drinks are made from pure green tea leaves and hot water, with no added caffeine. The peach and pineapple flavors come from fruit juice concentrates rather than artificial syrups. Opting for uncaffeinated varieties allows you to gain the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory benefits of green tea without excess caffeine.
Sugar Content
Secondly, examining the sugar content is crucial for determining the healthiest green tea beverage. Many Starbucks green tea drinks have added sugars in the form of flavored syrups, juice concentrates, and sweeteners like classic syrup or liquid cane sugar.
Higher amounts of added sugars can counteract some of the health benefits of green tea. The American Heart Association recommends limiting added sugar intake to no more than 25 grams or 6 teaspoons per day for women and 36 grams or 9 teaspoons per day for men.
To limit added sugars, choose green tea options without flavored syrups or opt for fewer pumps of syrup if flavors are desired. Also, request drinks unsweetened or with a sugar substitute like stevia or monk fruit extract. The lowest sugar green tea options at Starbucks include:
- Green Iced Tea
- Iced Green Tea Lemonade with light lemonade
- Emperor’s Clouds and Mist Green Tea with no classic syrup
Milk/Creamer Content
Finally, taller or “venti” size green tea lattes and matcha drinks at Starbucks can contain two cups of steamed milk. While milk provides protein, calcium, and vitamin D, large amounts add significant calories and fat without nutritional benefits. Limiting milk content by opting for “short” 8 oz sizes can increase the health profile of green tea lattes.
Additionally, dairy-free milk alternatives like almond milk, coconut milk, or oat milk are lower in calories and fat than whole milk. Requesting green tea lattes made with non-dairy milks can further reduce the calorie count.
Some lower milk options include:
- Short hot or iced green tea latte with non-dairy milk
- Hot or iced Emperor’s Clouds and Mist green tea with soy milk and no classic syrup
- 8 oz toasted vanilla matcha green tea with oat milk
The Healthiest Green Tea Drinks at Starbucks
Given these factors – caffeine, sugar, and milk/creamer content – here are some of the top picks for healthy green teas at Starbucks:
Iced Peach Green Tea
This refreshing peach-infused iced green tea has no added caffeine or sugar. The light peach flavor comes from white tea and fruit juice concentrates. For only 60 calories in a tall size, this is one of the lowest calorie and nutritious unsweetened green teas.
Iced Green Tea Lemonade with Light Lemonade
Combining chilled brewed green tea with a splash of low-sugar lemonade adds a touch of sweetness and citrus flavor. With 110 calories and 19 grams sugar in a tall size when made with light lemonade, this has less sugar than the classic version.
Hot Brewed Emperor’s Clouds and Mist Green Tea
This soothing hot green tea blend has hints of ginseng, pineapple, and coconut flavor from herbal infusions. With no added syrups or milk, it provides antioxidants without extra calories or sugar in a zero-calorie Tall hot tea.
Matcha Green Tea Latte with Coconut Milk
Smooth and rich matcha green tea powder produces a more potent concentration of health benefits. When made with the nutty flavor of dairy-free coconut milk in a short 8 oz serving, this has only 90 calories and 7 grams of fat compared to 190 calories and 9 grams of fat in the full 12 oz venti size with 2% milk.
Iced Green Tea with Peach Tranquility Tea Bag
Brewing a Peach Tranquility herbal tea bag into chilled green tea adds peach and candied ginger flavor and doubles the antioxidant content. With no added sugars or caffeine, this custom iced green tea is refreshing and naturally sweet.
Avoid the Following:
On the opposite end of the spectrum, here are a few green tea options at Starbucks that may be higher in added sugars, caffeine, and calories:
- Iced Shaken Sweet Tea – Made with a black tea base, this has 90 mg caffeine and 39g total sugars in a Venti serving.
- Matcha Green Tea Crème Frappuccino – Blended with milk, cream, and classic syrup, this frosty drink has 65g of sugar in a venti.
- Iced Pineapple Green Tea Lemonade – The classic lemonade adds 24g sugars to the venti size.
Customizing Your Green Tea
One of the best ways to create a healthy green tea beverage at Starbucks is to customize your order. Here are some healthy customization tips:
- Ask for light or no classic syrup
- Substitute sugar-free syrups like vanilla, cinnamon dolce, or caramel
- Request less pumps of syrups or sauces
- Ask for stevia or monk fruit extract instead of classic syrup
- Substitute milk with almond milk, coconut milk, or oat milk
- For hot tea, ask for hot water on the side to dilute strong tea
- Size down to a Tall or Short 8 oz cup
- Add fresh lemon slices or dashes of cinnamon for natural flavor
Conclusion
Starbucks offers many healthy and nutritious green tea options, as long as you pay attention to added sugars, caffeine, and milk content. Prioritizing unsweetened varieties without caffeine and limiting size, syrup pumps, and dairy can help keep the calorie and sugar count down. Customizing your drink order is key for the healthiest green tea beverage. Focus on antioxidant-rich hot green teas and refreshing iced green teas without heavily sweetened lemonades or creme-based Frappuccinos. With some simple modifications, you can enjoy the wide range of green tea products at Starbucks while still maintaining a balanced diet.
