Soft Drinks

My wife recently went to a seminar on the bad effects of soft drinks. Ever since then, I was banned from drinking my usual Diet Coke. It has been difficult...it was my daily caffeine fix, but the sacrifice was warranted.

The consumption of soft drinks has increased by 500% over the past fifty years. Americans drink about 50 gallons of soft drinks per person per year. Therefore, the soda industry grosses $40-50 billion per year.

Why are soft drinks bad?

Soft drinks contain simple sugars or artificial sweeteners, caffeine, and food additives. Due to their ingredients, soft drinks have been linked to many health problems.

12 ounces of regular soda contains about 10 teaspoons of sugar!!! A can of regular soda has about 150 calories (empty calories). Think about what this could cause...weight gain, diabetes, depressed immune system, and heart disease. Diet soda has also been implicated in weight gain so beware!!!

Sodas (regular and diet) increase the risk for tooth decay. The acid dissolves the enamel in twenty minutes. The more you drink, the worse the decay. The acid has been linked to calcium loss which contributes to the development of osteoporosis and also reflux disease (heartburn).
Of note, the pH of soda is about 2-4, while human blood pH is about 7.35.

Caffeine is linked to anxiety and sleep disorders. It can also increase blood pressure, cause palpitations and possibly reduce calcium stores.

Soft drinks also contain sodium which can contribute to elevated blood pressure and dehydration.

Soft drinks typically have no nutritional value. Unfortunately, many children are replacing milk, water, and fruit drinks with sodas. Also beware of energy drinks...they contain larger doses of sugar and caffeine plus other stimulants.

Interestingly, soft drinks can remove rust off metal surfaces, clean corrosion from car batteries, and possible clear clogged drains.

Due to my wife's advice, I have been drinking more water and fruit juices. Try to replace the sodas with water, teas (loaded with antioxidants), milk, and fruit juices (low sugar of course).

Hope this was informative.