Fiber-Filled, Antioxidant-Packed Ice Cream—Brilliant? Sacrilegious? Nasty?

Discoblog
By Brett Israel
Nov 12, 2009 2:25 AMNov 19, 2019 10:56 PM

Newsletter

Sign up for our email newsletter for the latest science news
 

What's the most important scientific research in the world, you ask? Obviously it's the quest to transform ice cream into a healthy food. Of course, the brain freezing goodness will still be chock full of fat and calories, but hey, toss in some healthy stuff and you can binge guilt-free, right? Right? Via LiveScience:

In addition to ice-cream's fat- and calorie-filled ingredients, the researchers hope to add dietary fiber, antioxidants and probiotics (gut bacteria that support a healthy digestive system) to your delectable dessert. Antioxidants could protect cells from damage caused by molecules called free radicals and are suspected of helping to prevent a slew of diseases.

Researchers hope to have a taste-testable prototype within six months, but it may not be entirely delicious; some antioxidant ingredients have a bitter flavor, the researchers note, and adding fiber might give the ice cream a gritty texture. Still, the research team is optimistic they can strike a balance between health and taste, and they hope to have shelf-ready tubs within two years. Check out the video below of these scientists working in the best laboratory ever.

Related Content: Discoblog: Fighting Child Obesity, One Bake Sale at a Time Discoblog: Researchers Discover How Ice Cream Controls Your Brain Discoblog: Let Them View Cake: Looking at Food Pics Equals Less Eating

// <![CDATA[ var image = 'http://media.eurekalert.org/multimedia_prod/pub/web/18221_web.jpg'; if (swfobject.hasFlashPlayerVersion("9.0.0")) { // has Flash 9; use JW Player 4 var s1 = new SWFObject("http://www.eurekalert.org/eutube/jw4/player.swf","ply","320","240","9","#FFFFFF"); s1.addParam("allowfullscreen","true"); s1.addParam("allowscriptaccess","always"); // Note: "file" location is relative to the player's location (i.e. in "jw4/"); "image" location is relative to this page's location s1.addParam("flashvars","file=http://media.eurekalert.org/multimedia_prod/pub/media/18221.flv&image=" + image + "&stretching=none"); s1.write("player"); } else { // has Flash

Video: University of Missouri News Bureau

<p> <div id="player">

<object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" width="320" height="240" codebase="http://fpdownload.macromedia.com/get/flashplayer/current/swflash.cab"> <param name="movie" value="http://www.eurekalert.org/eutube/jw3/flvplayer.swf" /> <param name="quality" value="high" /> <param name="width" value="320" /> <param name="height" value="240" /> <param name="file" value="http://media.eurekalert.org/multimedia_prod/pub/media/18221.flv" /> <param name="image" value="http://media.eurekalert.org/multimedia_prod/pub/web/18221_web.jpg" /> <param name="flashVars" value="file=http://media.eurekalert.org/multimedia_prod/pub/media/18221.flv&amp;width=320&amp;height=240&amp;image=http://media.eurekalert.org/multimedia_prod/pub/web/18221_web.jpg"> <embed src="http://www.eurekalert.org/eutube/jw3/flvplayer.swf" quality="high" width="320" height="240" play="true" loop="false" quality="high" flashVars="file=http://media.eurekalert.org/multimedia_prod/pub/media/18221.flv&amp;width=320&amp;height=240&amp;image=http://media.eurekalert.org/multimedia_prod/pub/web/18221_web.jpg" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" pluginspage="http://www.adobe.com/go/getflashplayer">

</embed> </object> </div> <script type="text/javascript"> var image = 'http://media.eurekalert.org/multimedia_prod/pub/web/18221_web.jpg'; if (swfobject.hasFlashPlayerVersion("9.0.0")) { // has Flash 9; use JW Player 4 var s1 = new SWFObject("http://www.eurekalert.org/eutube/jw4/player.swf","ply","320","240","9","#FFFFFF"); s1.addParam("allowfullscreen","true"); s1.addParam("allowscriptaccess","always"); // Note: "file" location is relative to the player's location (i.e. in "jw4/"); "image" location is relative to this page's location s1.addParam("flashvars","file=http://media.eurekalert.org/multimedia_prod/pub/media/18221.flv&image=" + image + "&stretching=none"); s1.write("player"); } else { // has Flash < 9; use JW Player 3 var s1 = new SWFObject("http://www.eurekalert.org/eutube/jw3/flvplayer.swf","single","320","240","7"); s1.addParam("allowfullscreen","true"); s1.addVariable("file","http://media.eurekalert.org/multimedia_prod/pub/media/18221.flv"); s1.addVariable("image",image); s1.addVariable("width","320"); s1.addVariable("height","240"); s1.write("player"); } </script> </p>

1 free article left
Want More? Get unlimited access for as low as $1.99/month

Already a subscriber?

Register or Log In

1 free articleSubscribe
Discover Magazine Logo
Want more?

Keep reading for as low as $1.99!

Subscribe

Already a subscriber?

Register or Log In

More From Discover
Recommendations From Our Store
Shop Now
Stay Curious
Join
Our List

Sign up for our weekly science updates.

 
Subscribe
To The Magazine

Save up to 40% off the cover price when you subscribe to Discover magazine.

Copyright © 2024 Kalmbach Media Co.