Collagen Creamer

These 5 Coffee Creamers Are Filled With Toxic Ingredients. We Recommend Tossing Them.

Written by Claire Hannum

Updated on January 11, 2024

There’s nothing like a freshly brewed cup of coffee to start your day. It’s so much more than the drink itself…the familiar scent of freshly ground coffee beans and the warmth of your favorite mug in your hands are part of a morning ritual that you share with millions around the world.But there’s one addition that transforms your morning coffee into a major health risk: grocery store coffee creamers.

Some of the most popular brands of coffee creamer—ones you may have trusted in your kitchen for years—are full of toxic oils and artificial chemicals. Even a small splash can impact your health, especially when used every day.

In this blog, we reveal the dangerous ingredients in five popular coffee creamers—and share a healthy option that you can enjoy without worry.

Table Of Contents

5 Unhealthy Coffee Creamers

Here are five popular coffee creamers and their toxic ingredients exposed.

1. Coffee Mate


alt="Container of Coffee Mate Original Creamer"

Ingredients: Corn Syrup Solids, Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil, Sodium Caseinate, Dipotassium Phosphate, Sodium Aluminosilicate, Mono- and Diglycerides, Artificial Flavor, Annatto Color (1)

Coffee Mate is the original coffee creamer, dating back to 1961. Coffee Mate’s main ingredients are corn syrup solids, hydrogenated vegetable oil, and a milk derivative called sodium caseinate. Vegetable oil is notoriously linked to serious health issues like heart disease, diabetes, and chronic illness (2).

Coffee Mate proudly boasts of its two-year shelf life without needing refrigeration, a sure sign of harmful fillers and preservatives. Coffee Mate is so dangerous that several countries in Europe have banned it!

2. International Delight


Container of International Delight Caramel Macchiato Coffee Creamer

Ingredients: Water, Sugar, Palm Oil, Sodium Caseinate, Dipotassium Phosphate, Carrageenan, Mono- and Diglycerides, Natural and Artificial Flavors, Sodium Stearoyl Lactylate, Salt (3)

International Delight was the first brand to bring a wide range of flavors to the coffee creamer market. It’s loaded with sugar and contains palm oil, which is high in saturated fat. While studies on palm oil’s direct impact on heart health often have inconclusive results, the fact is that saturated fat is associated with an increase in “bad” cholesterol (4). This can increase your risk of heart disease (5, 6).

3. Silk


Silk Coffee Creamer Toxic Ingredients

Ingredients: Almond Milk, Cane Sugar, High Oleic Sunflower Oil, Pea Protein, Potassium Citrate, Baking Soda, Sunflower Lecithin, Natural Flavor, Sea Salt, Gellan Gum (7)

Silk coffee creamer tends to throw people off, because it’s easy to assume that a plant-based creamer would be healthy. But in reality, Silk creamers are loaded with ingredients worth avoiding. Silk Vanilla Almond Creamer contains almond milk, cane sugar, high oleic sunflower oil, and gellan gum (8).

The last thing you want is to be loading up on heaps of sugar with your morning coffee. Too much sugar can increase your risk of heart disease, high cholesterol, inflammatory issues, insulin resistance, weight gain, type 2 diabetes, and more (9, 10, 11).

4. Dunkin' Donuts

Container of Dunkin Donuts Coffee Creamer

Ingredients: Skim Milk, Cane Sugar, Cream, Palm Oil, Potassium Citrate, Natural Flavor, Carrageenan, Dipotassium Phosphate (12)

Dunkin’ Donuts Original Coffee Creamer includes sugar, palm oil, cream, and carrageenan. Carrageenan is a common creamer ingredient. It’s a thickener and stabilizer that has been linked to inflammation, severe digestive problems, and even cancer (13, 14, 15).

5. Starbucks

Container of Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Latte Coffee Creamer

Ingredients: Nonfat Milk, Sugar, Heavy Cream, Buttermilk, Vegetable Oil (High Oleic Soybean Oil), Natural Flavor, Gellan Gum.

Starbucks coffee creamers contain a massive 6 grams of sugar per tablespoon (16)! Recommended daily sugar intake is 30 grams for women and 25 grams for men. Just a few tablespoons of Starbucks creamer in your coffee could resulting in you hitting half or more of your daily sugar intake (17).

What to Look for in a Healthy Coffee Creamer

Choose a healthy coffee creamer by looking for one without vegetable oils, dairy, sugar, gluten, soy, GMOs, or artificial sweeteners. NativePath Coffee Creamer checks all the boxes, and offers a delicious and healthy formula to start your mornings. NativePath creamer is packed with collagen, which can boost bone density, joints, hair, skin, and more (25, 26, 27).

It also includes a serving of MCT powder, which provides a quick and healthy energy boost to power up your coffee. The best part? No toxic chemicals.

If you like your coffee sweet, you can even get NativePath Coffee Creamer in fun flavors like french vanilla, mocha latte, and our brand new hazelnut.

A Creamer With Health Benefits? Yes Please!

A Creamer With Health Benefits? Yes Please!

Each scoop adds a delicious hazelnut flavor with our signature blend of Grass-Fed Collagen and MCT Powder to support healthy bones and joints, with a boost of energy, focus, and metabolism, too.

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The Bottom Line

Most big-name coffee creamer brands are full of unhealthy ingredients that can put a damper on the time-honored ritual of morning coffee. Instead of an unhealthy coffee creamer, choose one without harmful ingredients like sugar, artificial sweeteners, vegetable oils, GMOs, dairy, gluten, or soy. For a creamer that also includes the health benefits of collagen and MCT powder, try NativePath Coffee Creamer.

Frequently Asked Questions

Sugar-free doesn’t always mean healthy. In fact, many creamers that advertise themselves as sugar-free are simply using unhealthy artificial sweeteners in sugar’s place (think: aspartame, erythritol, and sucralose). Certain artificial sweeteners have been linked to health issues like depression and anxiety symptoms, weight gain, and an increased risk of heart disease, cancer, and diabetes (18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24).

Claire Hannum
Article by

Claire Hannum

Claire Hannum is a New York City-based writer, editor, wellness seeker, and reiki practitioner. Her writing has appeared in Self, Health, Prevention, and over a dozen other publications.

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NativePath has strict sourcing guidelines and relies on peer-reviewed studies, academic research institutions, and medical associations. We avoid using tertiary references.

    Medical Disclaimer

    This content is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not intended to provide medical advice or to take the place of such advice or treatment from a personal physician. All readers/viewers of this content are advised to consult their doctors or qualified health professionals regarding specific health questions. Neither Dr. Chad Walding nor the publisher of this content takes responsibility for possible health consequences of any person or persons reading or following the information in this educational content. All viewers of this content, especially those taking prescription or over-the-counter medications, should consult their physicians before beginning any nutrition, supplement, or lifestyle program.

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