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With summer well underway, ice cream shops all over the nation have been serving up cold and delicious treats of many flavors to customers of all ages.
But can ice cream be part of a healthy diet? And does a particular ice cream flavor have a big impact on the food's nutritional value?
Fox News Digital spoke to two experts to get to the bottom of these questions just in time for National Ice Cream Day on Sunday, July 21.
Ice cream "absolutely can be part of a healthy diet," Dr. Chris Mohr, a Louisville, Kentucky-based fitness and nutrition adviser at Fortune Recommends Health, told Fox News Digital via email.
"Food is [about] a lot more than calories, sugar and fat," he said.
Ice cream "can absolutely be part of a healthy diet," one doctor said. But there are caveats. (iStock)
"The key is moderation and balance," he said. "Enjoying a scoop occasionally can help manage sweet cravings, which might make it easier to stick to healthy eating goals."
Keri Glassman, a New York-based nutritionist and founder of the platform Nutritious Life, told Fox News Digital that ice cream should be a "conscious indulgence."
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"Ice cream, because of the fat, is a very satisfying indulgence," she said.
"Meaning, you should be able to eat a cone and be done. Just be careful and don't dive into a pint with a spoon."
Ice cream, Glassman also told Fox News Digital, contains something called C15:0, an essential fatty acid.
Both chocolate ice cream and vanilla ice cream are sweet treats beloved by many. But is one flavor healthier than the other? (iStock)
"C15:0 has been linked to slowing our biological age at the cellular level. It targets multiple longevity pathways, strengthens our cells against age-related breakdown, and supports our long-term heart, metabolic and liver health," she said.
Does the ice cream flavor matter?
So, given all that, how much does the flavoring of the ice cream base matter?
Not much, Mohr and Glassman said.
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"Nutritionally, chocolate and vanilla ice cream are relatively similar," Mohr said. "The more important factors to look for are the quality and ingredients used and the ingredients within the ice cream, like candies, caramel and the like — which typically add more calories, added sugar and saturated fat."
Glassman agreed, saying that rather than something like "chocolate vs. vanilla," the real thing to look at is the "type and quality of the ice cream."
Keri Glassman (right), founder of Nutritious Life, told Fox News Digital that a person should focus less on the flavor of an ice cream and more on the "type and quality of the ice cream." (iStock; Keri Glassman)
"You'll want to check the ingredient labels carefully. Look for products made mostly from real ingredients, such as cream, milk, cocoa and vanilla beans," she said.
"Many ice cream products have all kinds of unhealthy added ingredients, such as dyes and gums."
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One way to make eating ice cream as healthy as possible is to look for "the highest quality ingredients," Glassman said.
Additionally, a person can "add on nutrient-dense toppings like a little dark chocolate, chopped nuts or fresh fruit – and, most of all, enjoy it," she said.
Ice cream contains a lot of fat, meaning a person should be satisfied after a single cone or scoop, said one expert. (iStock)
Mohr suggested a different technique to make eating ice cream as healthy an experience as possible.
"To make your ice cream a bit healthier, add fresh fruits or nuts on top – or, even better, on the bottom – and use the ice cream as the topping vs. the base," he said.
"This is a great way to boost nutritional value but keep that ice cream flavor as well."
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Alternatively, a person who is looking to cut down on calories could try a soft-serve ice cream, rather than a traditional hard-serve variety.
"Soft-serve often contains more air and may include additional additives for texture, making it less calorie-dense per volume," he said. "Hard-serve ice cream is usually more calorie-dense."
Ice cream contains an essential fatty acid that may slow down aging. (iStock)
However, Mohr added, "Both types can fit within a balanced diet when consumed in moderation, but it's smart to look at the nutritional information provided on the packaging if you're concerned. What you do most of the time is always more important than what you do some of the time — so both can fit."
While both of the ice cream flavors are nutritionally similar, the experts told Fox News Digital they do have a personal preference for one or the other.
"What you do most of the time is always more important than what you do some of the time."
"I was always a vanilla guy but recently switched to be a bigger fan of a chocolate base," Mohr said.
"That said, large surveys have shown vanilla is a more popular choice."
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Glassman, meanwhile, described herself as "a chocolate person in general" — but not for ice cream.
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"When it comes to ice cream, a real high-quality vanilla bean is a fave of mine," she said.
Christine Rousselle is a lifestyle reporter with Fox News Digital.
