The large A&W Root Beer Milkshake has taken on Hall of Fame status in The Sun’s Fatabase of nutritional information due to sky-high levels of sugar (252 grams), carbs (278 grams), salt (1,200 milligrams) and calories (1,720).
Meanwhile, a large Wendy’s Chocolate Fudge Frosty Shake has only 78 grams of sugar, 96 grams of carbs, 210 mg of salt and 530 calories.
So why does the A&W shake come in at such high levels? Possibly because it’s nearly a litre in size: 961 grams compared with Wendy’s 451.
Still, we decided to take a look at what goes into an A&W shake — and were surprised to find “milk” wasn’t one of the listed ingredients. Here’s the breakdown, in order of volume:
Milk ingredients: No, not “milk” but “milk ingredients”. This is a technical term that allows suppliers to mix a variety of processed dairy products without having to go into great detail about them. It could include dried milk powder, milk fat, even cheese. It’s commonly used in baking, meat products and sauces.
Sugar: A 12-ounce can of Coca-Cola contains 39 grams of sugar. The large A&W root beer milkshake contains 252 grams — or the equivalent of six cans of Coke.
Modified milk ingredients: When milk goes through so many processes that all you’re left with is milk byproducts, “modified milk ingredients” is the umbrella term used to describe what remains. These can include casein (factory-extracted milk proteins), butter oil compound (which is generally 51-per-cent sugar) and whey proteins.
Glucose/fructose: The Canadian term for what’s more commonly known as high fructose corn syrup, a corn-based sweetener that has replaced common table sugar in many food products (often as a cost-saving measure). Critics say it is more harmful to humans than sugar — and research has shown it is more likely than sugar to cause weight gain and the buildup of abdominal fat — although the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has classified it as “generally recognized as safe.”
Guar gum: The ground endo-sperm of guar beans, this water-soluble fibre thickens milk and maintains homogeneity in ice creams. It’s also a laxative.
Propylene glycol alginate: An additive derived from kelp, which has been used for more than a century as a thickener in food such as ice cream and salad dressing. There is some evidence that it inhibits nutrient absorption, but it will also protect you from strontium absorption if a nuclear bomb drops on you during lunch.
Carrageenan: A vegan alternative to gluten, this extract from red seaweeds of the Philippines increases viscosity. Variations have been used since 600 BC. It is also used in shampoo, beer and shoe polish.
Locust bean gum: A vegetable gum extracted from seeds of the carob tree that serves as a thickening agent, as well as a chocolate substitute. It is often used to enhance the flavour of cigarettes, and is also used in cosmetics, insecticides and paper making.
Artificial flavour: Defined as any flavour derived from a product not generally intended for human consumption. According to Wikipedia, “These are typically produced by fractional distillation and additional chemical manipulation [of] naturally sourced chemicals or from crude oil or coal tar.”
Polysorbate 80: A substance that comes from polyethoxylated sorbitan and oleic acid, Polysorbate 80 is used in foods as an emulsifier — that is, it stabilizes the way other ingredients react when combined. In the A&W shake, Polysorbate 80 helps ice cream hold shape as it melts.
Microcrystalline cellulose: This polymer is derived from high quality wood pulp and used as a fat substitute and anti-caking agent.
Potassium phosphate: Otherwise known as the salts from potassium and phosphate ions. If you ate a lot of this, and enjoyed some sodium phosphate into the bargain, you might find yourself passing small kidney stones.
Sodium citrate: Sometimes known as “sour salt”, this sodium salt of citric acid stabilizes emulsified fat and provides a salty, sour taste that you often find in club soda.
Salt: Also known as sodium chloride, it’s added for taste as well as preservation — but it’s worth noting that one gram of salt per kilogram of body weight will kill a human. High salt intake can give you muscle cramps and dizziness, as well as neurological issues, stomach cancer, renal disease, strokes and high blood pressure.
Colour: Food colouring can be derived from seeds (annatto E160b red-orange), algae (chlorophyll E140 green), vegetables (Betanin), spices (carotenoids E160a) and even insects (Cochineal E120). One of the colours in the A&W shake is tartrazine (FD&C Yellow #5), which is a coal tar derivative that the U.K. Food Standards Agency says increases hyperactive behaviour in children and inflames the stomach lining of rats. Norway, Austria and Germany have tried to have it banned in Europe.
Calcium sulphate: An industrial chemical coagulant that comes from gypsum, this tasty white rock can be found in Plaster of Paris, fat spreads, beer and mustards, among hundreds of other things.
Quillaia: Used in vaccines for foot and mouth disease, this substance is the milled inner bark and branches of the soapbark tree and serves to keep food products moist by pulling moisture in from the air. It’s also used in plastics, cosmetics, hair conditioner and as a foaming agent in soft drinks.
Caramel: Made by, essentially, burning the water out of sugar, industrial caramel comes in many forms, such as a dark bitter liquid, or in candy form when boiled into cream, butter and vanilla flavouring.
Sodium benzoate: A preservative usually found in salad dressings, soft drinks and medicines. When you hear fireworks make a loud whistling sound, that’s sodium benzoate burning.
Potassium sorbate: Known as “wine stabilizer”, this salt comes from berries and inhibits mould and yeast.
Water: When A&W adds their root beer to the shake, this makes up the majority of it. But at least it’s good for you! If you prefer the diet root beer option, include aspartame, malic acid and dimethylpolysiloxane (a silicone used in contact lenses, shampoo and caulking).
Source information: aw.ca, Wikipedia, U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Canada Food Inspection Agency, Drugs.com, kidshealth.org, How Stuff Works