heavy cream vs half n half
 

i have an issue with cream. if its in my house, i am tempted to make that chocolate whipped cream stuff. you know the stuff with cocoa, and splenda, whipped until nice and fluffy.. well, im addicted to it, so i just dont keep cream in the house. well. i drink about 2 cups of coffe in the morning, and i have been using half n half. is this bad? can i continue to use this instead of heavy cream?
any thoughts are appreciated.
thanks
dawn

Half and half, as the name says, is 50% milk. Since milk is not allowed on Atkins, yes, it is illegal.

I have been using half and half instead of cream on the recommendation of 2 guys I know who have been on Atkins for over a year. THe difference carb wise is about .1 and the difference calorie wise is one half the calories. I do not know the official word but I do know it had no effect on my weight loss. I for one cant figure out how cheese is allowed when it is made from milk. If you are eating a lot of cream as a treat I would cut back since that was a killer to my loss when I was doing it.

Cheese does not contain the amount of lactose milk does.

It is an individual thing, but if I have any milk or other kinds of sugar, I don't lose at all. One bite of salad dressing that has trace sugar ruins a whole week for me...

Personally, I think it all boils down to "how much" cream, 1/2 & 1/2 or cheese (or any dairy product) you consume that can be adverse to your WOE.

I use 1/2 & 1/2 in my coffee in the morning...less than 2 oz....and do not use cream for making desserts...I have decided to get rid of that habit of having to have a dessert and it has proven successful for me.

I debated this when I first started Atkins. I didn't like the way heavy cream tasted w/coffee, so I switched to Half & Half. I limited to 2-4 tbsp though. I'm not doing induction anymore and I eat a lot of the stuff that is not on Atkins list, like using Coffeemate instead of Half & Half. These changes don't seem to affect weight loss though, I guess it's different for everyone. :agree:

:wiggle: happy low carbing

I use 1/2 & 1/2
 

I use fat free non-dairy 1/2 & 1/2 because:
1. it tastes better
2. less than 1 carb per ounce (I use 1-2 oz a day)
3. its 1/2 the price
4. the "non dairy" has no milk
5. very few calories
I'm still basically doing induction and no problems

In my opinion, I think it's like most things, YMMV (Your milage may vary). I use 1/2 and 1/2 because I'm like another member and don't like how cream tastes in milk. I don't use heavy cream at all and only use a little 1/2 and 1/2 in the morning.

It doesn't appear as if it's hurt anyones stats really by doing this, either. But, again, you never know. some people's bodies may be sensitive to it.

hi there,

This sounds interesting. What brand do you use? Is it a soy milk product (like "Silk")???

Most liquid non-dairy creamers have 2g carbs per ½ oz serving.


Doreen

I use half 'n' half because it is readily available everywhere they serve coffee. My life on this WOE is complicated enough sometimes; at least "coffee, cream, no sugar" is a simple request. :)

The other reason is that the only heavy cream I can find in my supermarket is whipping cream and it has junk added to it (I assume to improve its whippability). I don't want that junk in my coffee.

-- Disclaimer: Yes, I have read the entire Atkins book recently, but my memory is not perfect: --
Isn't milk okay in later stages of Atkins, as long as you are on a high enough carb limit to "afford" it? I thought was only banned during Induction and not out-and-out illegal.

I never read Atkins for Life, but on DANDR, I believe milk is listed together with "very once in a while" foods, such as sugar, white rice, and white flour, not with the foods you can regularly consume during maintenance, like potatoes.

If you ever read DADR, he literally rants about milk... it is a fun read.

IMO, half 'n half is fine when you're only using a bit in your coffee. As fairchild pointed out, the carb difference is negligible when you're using such a small amount. As long as you're counting the carbs, it shouldn't be a big problem.

The concern might be if you're making a recipe that calls for a larger volume. In addition, half 'n half won't always give the same result in cooking, and you might end up disappointed with a ruined recipe.

I used to use a lot of heavy cream in my coffee. After a while, it dawned on me that the reason was my coffee tasted really raunchy with nothing in it. Solution? I switched brands of coffee ... no more raunch .. and no more cream :) Now I enjoy it black!


Doreen

LOL Doreen! I know exactly what you mean. :)

JV1311, DANDR is the one I read and I just read it a month ago! I must really be slipping in my old age. I'll go home and look for that passage. Maybe I blocked it out because I'm such a dairy lover. ;) Thanks for the info.

I use both. Half and half has half the carbs per serving that whip cream has. And the bonus is that Costco carries both with half the cost from the grocery stores! Like someone here said, your mileage will vary. See how your body handles it. I've lost 31 pounds as of Monday and the half and half hasn't stalled me.


Here is something from atkins.com:
Can I drink milk when doing Atkins?
Milk is not permitted because it contains too many carbohydrates, including lactose, a natural sugar. If you're craving milk, try diluting heavy cream or half-and-half with water, as a substitute. Although cream is almost 100 percent fat, it does contain some lactose, so most people need to limit their intake to a maximum of 4 ounces daily to lose weight. (Be sure to count the carbs.) If you're not losing weight as quickly as you'd like, limit cream intake to no more than 2 ounces daily.

Annie-Pie

Well it depends on how much half and half your using. I've seem some people have a little coffee with their cream.. I only use 1 tbs of half and half per cup , so I've always used that in my one morning cup.