Check out Costco’s newest sweet and salty sundaes
Costco’s iconic food menu is known for its savory items, but the new Sunday flavors will satisfy dessert lovers.
Can a milkshake’s “health score” help you decide if the sweet treat is worth it?
In a study published in December, online health care company PlushCare analyzed the unhealthiest vanilla milkshakes sold at American fast food chains based on scores determined by calories, sugar, saturated fat, and sodium. The study pitted chains like McDonald’s, Sonic, In-N-Out, Dairy Queen, Arby’s and Fatburger against each other, and the No. 1 ranking may come as a surprise to some.
Do you have a sweet tooth? Here are America’s most unhealthy fast food milkshakes.
What is the unhealthiest fast food milkshake?
Fatburger’s 890-calorie vanilla milkshake is the least healthy compared to 13 other fast food chains, according to PlushCare’s analysis. At the bottom, McDonald’s ranks 14th.
What are the top 10 most unhealthy fast food milkshakes?
Plushcare analyzed vanilla milkshakes from 14 different fast food chains. The top 10 most unhealthy are:
| Ranking | fast food chain | unhealthy score |
| 1 | fat burger | 63 |
| 2 | sonic | 55 |
| 3 | Five Guys | 51 |
| 4 | Carl’s Jr. | 50 |
| 5 | A&W | 47 |
| 6 | Dairy Queen | 44 |
| 7 | in and out | 43 |
| 8 | jack in the box | 42 |
| 9 | steak & shake | 41 |
| 10 | whataburger | 39 |
| 11 | burger king | 36 |
| 12 | arby’s | 33 |
| 13 | smash burger | 27 |
| 14 | mcdonalds | 26 |
How does PlushCare determine the “Unhealthy Score”?
Plush Care rated the “relative unhealthiness” of 14 different milkshakes based on each drink’s kilojoules (a metric unit used to measure energy based on calories), sugar, saturated fat and sodium, the study explains.
Despite being based in California, PlushCare utilized the British nutrient profiling method, a tool for determining the “healthiness” of foods, to assign points to each of four categories. The points were then totaled to determine the final score. The higher the score, the more unhealthy the item.
For example, Fatburger’s vanilla milkshake has an “unhealthy score” of 63. That’s because this shake scored 11 points for energy, 30 points for saturated fat, 19 points for sugar, and 3 points for sodium.
Study also ranks burgers, nuggets, and fries
In addition to milkshakes, Plushcare also analyzed the “unhealthiest” fast foods: cheeseburgers, chicken burgers, chicken nuggets and fries. The rankings are as follows:
cheeseburger
| Ranking | fast food chain | unhealthy score |
| 1 | Five Guys | 50 |
| 2 | whataburger | 42 |
| 2 | smash burger | 42 |
| 4 | Carl’s Jr. | 37 |
| 5 | sonic | 36 |
| 6 | wendy’s | 34 |
| 7 | shake shack | 30 |
| 7 | fat burger | 30 |
| 9 | steak & shake | 26 |
| 10 | in and out | twenty five |
| 10 | Dairy Queen | twenty five |
| 12 | A&W | twenty three |
| 13 | jack in the box | 20 |
| 14 | burger king | 18 |
| 14 | mcdonalds | 18 |
| 16 | Culver’s | 17 |
chicken burger
| Ranking | fast food chain | unhealthy score |
| 1 | Popeye | 39 |
| 2 | fat burger | 38 |
| 3 | Zaxby’s | 37 |
| 3 | smash burger | 37 |
| 5 | bojangles | 36 |
| 6 | Church’s Texas Chicken | 35 |
| 7 | grow a cane | 33 |
| 8 | burger king | 31 |
| 9 | whataburger | 30 |
| 10 | sonic | 28 |
| 11 | kentucky fried chicken | 27 |
| 11 | shake shack | 27 |
| 13 | wendy’s | 26 |
| 14 | arby’s | twenty five |
| 14 | Chick-fil-A | twenty five |
| 16 | A&W | twenty three |
| 17 | jack in the box | twenty two |
| 18 | Culver’s | twenty one |
| 18 | Dairy Queen | twenty one |
| 20 | mcdonalds | 14 |
chicken nuggets
| Ranking | fast food chain | unhealthy score |
| 1 | Popeye | 30 |
| 2 | arby’s | 29 |
| 3 | shake shack | 26 |
| 4 | burger king | twenty five |
| 5 | jack in the box | twenty two |
| 5 | Chick-fil-A | twenty two |
| 7 | wendy’s | 20 |
| 8 | kentucky fried chicken | 19 |
| 9 | mcdonalds | 18 |
french fries
| Ranking | fast food chain | unhealthy score |
| 1 | Five Guys | 28 |
| 2 | steak & shake | 19 |
| 3 | bojangles | 18 |
| 3 | smash burger | 18 |
| 5 | kentucky fried chicken | 17 |
| 5 | Carl’s Jr. | 17 |
| 5 | shake shack | 17 |
| 8 | jack in the box | 15 |
| 8 | sonic | 15 |
| 8 | fat burger | 15 |
| 11 | Culver’s | 12 |
| 11 | Zaxby’s | 12 |
| 11 | wendy’s | 12 |
| 14 | Chick-fil-A | 11 |
| 14 | Dairy Queen | 11 |
| 14 | arby’s | 11 |
| 14 | A&W | 11 |
| 18 | burger king | 9 |
| 18 | grow a cane | 9 |
| 18 | whataburger | 9 |
| 18 | Church’s Texas Chicken | 9 |
| twenty two | mcdonalds | 7 |
| twenty three | in and out | 6 |
Greta Cross is USA TODAY’s national trends reporter. Story ideas? Email her at gcross@usatoday.com.
