October 18, 2007
How many times have I heard this..."Dr. Suber, I just have to have my Sundrop in the morning or I'm no good." "Dr. Suber, things just don't taste as good without a Coke to wash it down."
Our society seems to be addicted to these sugar sweetened beverages, and asking clients to remove them from their diets is like asking them to cut off and arm or leg, as they seem to not be able to function without them.
Well I have had enough!!! People need to know the real dangers of these drinks and the negative impact they have on their overall health. So sit back, relax, grab a Coke and read on, because I hope that after you finish this article it will be your last!
Over the past 2 decades, obesity has escalated to epidemic proportions in the United States and many countries around the world.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than 1 billion adults throughout the world are overweight, and of these, at least 300 million are considered obese.
In the United States alone, an estimated 129.6 million persons, or 64% of the population aged 20–74 y, are overweight, and 30% of those 129.6 million are considered obese.
Similar trends are being seen among children and adolescents, which could lead to serious health complications in adulthood. Being overweight and obese is associated with hypertension, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, depression, and breast, endometrial, colon, and prostate cancers.
In the United States there is a parallel increase in rates of being overweight and obese with consumption of carbohydrates, largely in the form of added sugars.
The WHO has suggested that added sugars should provide no more than 10% of dietary energy, yet in the US it is 16%. The largest source of these added sugars is soft drinks, which account for 47% of total added sugars in the diet.
The term soft drink includes sodas and other sugar-sweetened beverages
such as fruit drinks, lemonade, and iced tea. Consumption of these beverages has
increased by 135% between 1977 and 2001.
In the United States, a 12-oz can of soda provides 40–50 g of sugar in the
form of high-fructose corn syrup ((HFCS) 45% glucose and 55% fructose), which is
equivalent to 10 teaspoons of table sugar. One soda per day could lead to a weight gain of 15 pounds in 1 year.
Paralleling the pattern of soda consumption is that of the consumption of
fruit drinks and fruitades (drinks made by adding water to powder or crystals),
which are similarly sweetened and are often consumed in large amounts by toddlers and young children.
Consumption of these fruit drinks and soda represents nearly 81% of the
increase in caloric sweetener intake across 2 recent decades in the United States.
The increased consumption of high fructose corn syrup, the prevailing sweetener used to flavor calorically sweetened beverages in the United States, has been found to mirror the growth of the obesity epidemic. The intake of sugar-sweetened beverages may promote weight gain and obesity by increasing overall energy intake.
Thirty studies were identified and included in this systematic review.
Most of the cross-sectional studies, especially the large ones, found a
positive association between the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages and
body weight.
Soda consumption weight gain arises because of the low satiety(your sense of feeling "full") of liquid foods.
When persons increase liquid carbohydrate consumption, they do not
at the same time reduce their solid food consumption.
Some evidence suggests that the palatability of both sugar-sweetened and
artificially sweetened drinks increases subjective hunger and hence energy intake and weight gain.
The consumption of fructose-sweetened beverages increases adiposity(fat storage) more than does the consumption of either sucrose-sweetened or artificially sweetened beverages. This finding is of particular interest because soft drinks
are sweetened with HFCS in the United States.
In addition to its potential role in weight gain, the intake of sugar-sweetened soda may increase the risk of type 2 diabetes, probably because of the HFCS which is rapidly absorbable.
The consumption of sucrose-sweetened items significantly increased
inflammatory biomarkers. The proinflammatory process increases the
risk of diabetes, and may be exacerbated by a high intake of rapidly digested and
absorbed carbohydrates.
Soft drinks that contain caramel coloring are rich in advanced glycation endproducts
[AGEs], which may increase insulin resistance and inflammation. The intake of sweetened soft drinks may be associated with a greater risk of pancreatic cancer.
The consumption of cola-type beverages is associated with bone mineral
density loss and with bone fractures because of their high phosphate content.
The intake of soft drinks has been linked to increased risk of dental caries
because of the sodas' high sugar content and acidity, which results in enamel
erosion over time.
Fruit juices, such as apple juice, which are consumed in great quantities by
young children, are also been linked to being overweight and obese.
Well, are you finshed with that evil beverage you started at the first of this article? I hope so. I hope you go to your refrigerator and your pantry and throw away any soda that you have. I hope you avoid them like the plague, and that you go without them long enough that you never crave them again.
I hope that your children will stop drinking them and that their health will never suffer as a result of consuming them.
I guess I will not be receiving any thank-yous from Coca-Cola, but if abstaining from soda helps you or your family live healthier and happier, then I have done my job.
Until next time, all the best, in health and life.
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*This article is designed to provide general guidelines only. Please consult with your physician before making dietary changes or beginning an exercise program. |
