Beverages: Soda

Get the Inside Scoop on Soda by Reading This...If You're Brave Enough, Of Course.

   Everyone loves the sound of a fresh can of Coca Cola being opened and the quiet popping of the effervescence inside. Coke, being one of the most popular beverages in the country, as well as many others like Dr. Pepper, Pepsi, Sprite, and Mountain Dew, are desired and chugged down by Americans. I mean, what's not there to like? You have the yummy taste, the effervescence, and the refreshing feel - but wait! With this deliciousness comes a lot of other things too...Although great-looking externally in the can, these sodas do a lot of damage to you internally. Therefore, in this entry I'm going to talk to you about the health effects that soda brings along secretly - as briefly as I can.

   

   How many sodas will you drink today? One, two, three, four? Ten? As I have said in my previous blog entry, with the exponential growth in technology throughout the years, man is finding so many new ways to change food up for more taste for our taste buds. Lots of foods are enhanced with flavorings, chemicals, sugars, and more. Well, hate to break it to you, but the same is done with soda. I know that the finished product of soda may taste delicious and refreshing, and that the flavor you like may become addicting. Aaand I also know the phrase, "but just one won't hurt." That may be true, but if you continue to drink soda your whole life as a child and throughout your teenaged years and adult years, even having just one a day can cause potentially serious health effects.

   First of all, studies are showing more and more that soda is one of the primary causes of obesity. Why? Because of the nutritional content. Having little nutritional value at all, soda is considered a drink with lots of "empty calories." I found a good definition of empty calories on www.choosemyplate.gov: "Calories from solid fats/and or sugars...add calories to the food but few or no nutrients." So therefore, what you are drinking is an empty-calorie drink. You are adding calories to your diet that you do not need. And because those calories have no nutritional content, you are, in fact, gaining weight! Another way you are gaining weight is through the chemicals in soda, aka obesogens. When obesogens mess with our hormonal systems, they can cause weight gain.

   Second, soda can potentially affect the cardiovascular system of the body. The refined sugar in soda "can elevate your triglycerides, a type of fat that, when there is too much, can clog your arteries and makes you more susceptible to heart attacks and strokes" (livestrong.com). None of us want that! The heart is supposed to keep us living. Also, the refined sugar increases the amount of insulin going in the blood stream, and way too much insulin can cause high cholesterol, heart disease, high blood pressure,...the list goes on. Again, the chemicals in soda, when they mess with our hormonal systems, can also cause these same symptoms (heart disease, cholesterol, etc.). Wow!
   Well, how can you apply what you've read to your lifestyle? DRINK MORE WATER AND LESS SODA. Even cut down from three to two a day. Or two to one a day. And eventually get to the point where you can go without one for a day. It takes patience, but cutting down on soda is worth it. Life is too short to live an unhealthy lifestyle.

  So, I do not know if this convicted you in any way or just made you extremely mad, but I hope it got you thinking, even a little. Just thought I'd share my two cents on soda. Please, if you want to de-friend me on Facebook on unfollow me on Twitter, go right on ahead. I am just trying to change someone's lifestyle one person at a time. :)    --Caroline