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“I don't know too many parents that want to feed their kids soda, but
high-fructose corn syrup is cheap. The price of soda in 20 years has gone down
40 percent while the price of whole foods, fruits and vegetables, has gone up
40 percent & obesity goes up right along that curve.”
~ Tom Colicchio
The soda debate rages on, and it’s
not about whether or not to personally drink it or not, but whether it should
be a banned substance, period. And then there is the pathetic joke that is calls
itself diet soda, possibly worse than the high-fructose corn syrup saturated,
diabetes causing ‘real’ soda version. You may not be able to find more harmful
chemicals in a Federal research lab than you can in a diet soda, with the aspartame
sweetener at the top of the list. At least regular soda doesn’t hide behind the
‘diet’ mask.
Look, every once in a while I drink
half a can of Coke, just for the nostalgia of it, but long ago I kicked my
Pepsi/Coke habit. And I certainly did have one, just as way too many of us now
do. I finally realized, and I hope this might help someone out there, that I
was as much addicted to the bubbles, or carbonation, as anything else. I found
that substituting any non-carbonated beverage left me feeling well, pun-intended,
flat. I discovered that mixing Pomegranate juice (1/3) and fizzy water (2/3)
gave me the fix I needed, in a much healthier bubbly cocktail than soda could provide.
And yes, that combination is a more expensive alternative for sure, as most
healthy options unfortunately turn out to be.
Studies, Studies, Studies
I browsed through more studies than
you’d care to know about, and what I found out is that based on WHO sponsored
the study, and perhaps what the MONEY people wanted to find out, the results were
conflicting at best. So let’s consider a few undeniable facts. The American
Medical Association suggests no more than 45 grams of sugar per day for males,
30 grams for females. One 12 oz. can of Pepsi contains 41 grams of sugar. You
do the math. In addition, we all know the best sources of our daily sugar quota
should be natural if possible, as in from fruits.
We also know, unquestionably, that
sugar cravings increase exponentially as we ramp up consumption. For example,
if you start out with a high sugar (or high carbohydrate, as processed carbs
turn to glucose in the bloodstream similarly as quickly as pure sugar)
breakfast, inevitably your glucose level spikes, and then crashes soon after,
accelerating cravings for more (sugar or carbs) in order to alleviate the crash
feeling. When this spike/crash, spike/crash scenario is repeated day-in and
day-out, our insulin levels, as well as our weight and cravings, rage out of
control. Obesity and diabetes, along with many other conditions inherent in
overweight individuals such as hypertension, heart disease and strokes, all can
be a side effect of abusing this sugared up beverage.
Look Better, Feel Better, Live Better
Regardless of whether soda ends up like the cigarette as a legal but
socially unacceptable habit, or if it continues to be available as an
acceptable addiction to those who choose it, for now, like it is with all
things, personal responsibility will dictate what place soda plays in your and
your families lives. Maybe more importantly than what place soda plays in your
life, please think about the ramifications for your kids. Bad habits ingrained
during the formative years are a bear to break later in life.
“According
to the USDA, 16% of calories in the typical American’s diet come from refined
sugars and half of those calories come from beverages with added sugar. Sodas
used to be an occasional treat, but now they are part of the culture.”
~ Michael Jacobson, PhD
PS: Knowledge is power, but
only when action is taken along with it!
