When I was in college I was addicted to Diet Coke. I mean really addicted. When my roommates and I were moving to Hidden Cove Apartments one Summer we looked for two things when we chose the location of our specific apartment: the proximity of the swimming pool and the location of the nearest Coke machine so that we would always have that supply of Diet Coke just a stone’s throw away. My bedroom was actually the dining room of a huge 3 bedroom apartment so I was closest to the sliding glass doors that led out onto the patio that was adjacent to the pool and drink machine. I must have consumed at least 6 or 7 Diet Cokes a day. If only I had known what I was putting into my body then I would have reconsidered. The only saving grace for me was that I didn’t consume full sugar drinks. I was also lucky that I was not allergic to aspartame, even though the side effects of it are severe enough. Many people suffer today from a range of illnesses that can be traced to soda consumption. It is a public health problem that needs attention from all of us when we consider our own future health and that of our children.
According to the American Journal of Public Health, the average American consumes over 56 gallons of soft drinks per year. In the year 2000, more than 15 billion gallons of soda were sold in this country. That is an alarming amount given the fact that each twelve ounce can of soda contains on the average 10 teaspoons of sugar, 150 or more calories, caffeine, and multitudes of artificial preservatives and coloring. The soft drink industry is the single heaviest user of refined white sugar in the United States. For those who prefer the diet variety as opposed to the full sugar ones aspartame promises a whole list of its own potential health hazards. (Try soda with Splenda if you simply must have it on occasion.) The consumption of carbonated beverages has been linked to an increase in obesity, diabetes, osteoporosis, and various urinary tract maladies. In spite of all of these facts, soft drinks amount to over one quarter of all beverages consumed in the United States. The soda marketing in our country is, of course, aimed straight toward our children and teenagers. Carbonated soda adds more sugar to the average two year old’s diet than cookies and ice cream combined. Teenagers are the highest consumers of soft drinks because they have easy access without as much parental control. Look in the breezeways of high schools. Drink machines are everywhere. The drink companies make deals with schools in many areas in order for the machines to be placed there. They pay a certain percentage of profits to some schools. Teenage boys consume an average of 3 or more cans of soda per day while ten percent of them admit to 7 or more cans per day. Girls average 2 or more cans per day with ten percent of them admitting to chugging down 5 or more cans in a day.
Some of the components of soft drinks are:
Sugar – sugar increases insulin levels in the body which then increases blood pressure, obesity, heart disease, and diabetes just to name a few. A twelve ounce serving of soda contains in excess of 100 percent of the Recommended Daily Allowance of sugar. Tooth decay is definitely increased with higher soda consumption.
Aspartame – This is a chemical which is used as an artificial sweetener in diet sodas. “The blue stuff” has at least 92 different health hazards associated with its use, including brain tumors, birth defects, emotional disorders and many more.
Phosphoric acid – This chemical has been suspected of hindering the body’s ability to absorb calcium and other nutrients. This can lead to osteoporosis, a major public health issue for many people today. Phosphoric acid may also neutralize the hydrochloric acid which is normally present in the stomach in order to facilitate proper digestion of food. If food is not properly broken down in the stomach, the body cannot absorb the nutrients it needs from the food we eat.
Is the message pretty clear? Drinking excessive amounts of soda can be an enormous health risk. Spin-off illnesses as well as those directly attributed to the consumption of excessive amounts of soda cost our health care system untold millions annually. You can easily improve your health and the health of your family by eliminating or severely restricting the amount of soft drinks you consume. Increase your intake of pure water to help unload some of the toxins your body has undoubtedly accumulated by drinking too much soda. (Tea is not water.) Make yourself healthier and reduce the burden on the public health system by stepping up your responsibility level for your family’s well-being. Treat your body well.