Not so Sweet Facts about Soft Drinks

Myth: Fruit drinks are healthy (or at least healthier than soda)

◦ Fruit drinks have little to no actual fruit juice. Many are mostly added sugar and water, but contain nearly just as many calories as soda.

Myth: Diet soda is healthy◦ Diet soda is very acidic. The acid in diet soda can

erode tooth enamel, which leads to tooth decay and cavities.

Don’t Believe It…

Worthless to the body - Soft drinks are full of sugar and calories, there is no nutritional value.

Contribute to obesity and diabetes – Sugar drinks is full of high-fructose corn syrup, which is a sweetener linked to obesity.

Damages teeth – When the sugar in soft drinks combines with bacteria in the mouth, it creates an acid that weakens enamel, causing cavities and tooth decay.

Weaken the bones – Most sodas contain phosphorous and caffeine, which are believed to contribute to osteoporosis.

Why Say No to Soft Drinks?

The term “soft drink” is referred to any beverage with added sugar, or any other sweetener. This includes soda, fruit punch, lemonade, as well as sport and energy drinks.

What are Soft Drinks?

Most recently, studies have raised concerns that diet soda boost stroke risk.

Diet and regular soda have been linked to obesity, diabetes, kidney damage, certain cancers, and elevated blood pressure.

What health links are linked to Soft Drinks?

An increase in sugary drinks consumption is a major contributor to the obesity epidemic.

On an average day, 50% of America consumes sugary drinks; approximately 5% drinks at least 567 calories from such drinks, which is equivalent to 4 cans of soda.

Soft drink companies produce 10.4 billion gallons of sugary drinks per year, which is enough to serve every American a 12-ounce can every day for one year. One can of soda per day for a year adds up to 31.4 pounds of sugar consumed.

Soft Drinks & Obesity

One 12-ounce can of soda has approximately 150 calories and 40 grams of carbohydrates. This is equivalent to 10 teaspoons of sugar!!

By drinking one or two sugary drinks a day increases the risk of diabetes by 26%.

Soft Drinks & Diabetes

Soft Drinks & Heart Disease

A recent study has found that consuming sugary drinks has increased not only the risk of obesity, but metabolic syndrome and fatty liver disease. Reducing the amount of soft drink intake is associated with less weight gain and metabolic improvement.

Soft Drinks & Weight

Companies spend billions of dollars marketing beverages. A significant portion is aimed directly at youth ages 2-17 years old.

From 2010 to 2013, Red Bull had increased advertising spending by 84%, and TV advertisement to youth by approximately 59%. Red Bull and 5-hour Energy targeted their TV advertising to a teen audience. Teens saw 20% to 30% more of these advertisements that adults.

Soft Drink Marketing

http://cspinet.org/liquidcandy/ http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/healthy-drinks/sugary-drinks/ http://

www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2014/06/09/319230765/fruit-juice-vs-soda-both-beverages-pack-in-sugar-and-health-risk

http://www.sugarydrinkfacts.org/sugary_drink_facts_in_brief.aspx http://www.rethinksugarydrink.org.au/ http://www.everydayhealth.com/diet-nutrition/say-no-to-soda.aspx http://health.clevelandclinic.org/2013/03/soda-do-you-drink-it-every-day/ http://

www.diabetes.org/food-and-fitness/food/what-can-i-eat/making-healthy-food-choices/what-can-i-drink.html

References