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Are soft drinks really harmful?

Submitted by Salamander on Sun, 2005-10-09 15:29. healthy food

How many people have ever told you that soft drinks are very harmful for your health? If it is harmful, how bad is it?
After reading some of the discussion articles people get confused as to what harms are caused by soft drinks and what harms are not. Very many people have blamed soft drinks for being one of the causes of obesity, tooth decay, caffeine dependence and bone weakening.
But are soft drinks really a cause of all those negative outcomes? Or maybe soft drinks are blamed only because there is nothing else to blame?

In the article How Soft drinks are harming American Healththe author says that:”…heavy soft drink consumption is associated with lower intake of numerous vitamins, minerals, and dietary fiber”. It is also contributing to the obesity and overweight problem. In the Liquid Candy Highlights “soda pop is Americans’ single biggest source of refined sugars, providing the average person with one-third of that sugar”. Soft drinks provide about 8-10% of people’s calories.

Soft drinks are said to cause tooth decay because they usually have acid as well as sugar in them. According to Soft Drinks and Health the average pH of soft drinks is 3.4. This acidity is strong enough to dissolve teeth and bones! If you put tooth into the cup with a soft drink it will dissolve in ten hours!

Caffeine, a mildly addictive stimulant drug, is added to most colas. The statement that childhood use of caffeine can lead to dependence later in life can’t be proved because there is no conclusive science to demonstrate this.

Phosphorus, a common ingredient in soda, appears to weaken bones by promoting the loss of calcium. With less calcium available, the bones become more porous and prone to fracture. The soft drink industry argues that the phosphoric acid in soda pop contributes only about 2 percent of the phosphorus in the typical U.S. diet. Exactly how soft drinks may contribute to bone weakening is not yet known. That is why it is hard to decide how harmful the soft drinks are for body.

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I don't know how HARMFUL

Submitted by Drunk Like Socrates on Mon, 2005-10-10 21:21.

I don't know how HARMFUL softdrinks are, but i do know that without steady consumption of them, it is very easy to lose excess weight. i quit softdrinks during my last spring break, and just drank water and juices. i lost 5 pounds in that one week, just giving up softdrinks- i had no other physical activity or anything. they may not be as harmful as studies make them out to be, but quitting soft drinks is definitely the healthier choice.

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The: Stop Drinking Soft Drinks Diet...

Submitted by How I learned t... on Fri, 2005-10-14 23:17.

Really? I stopped drinking soft drinks about 5 years ago. I don’t consume any type of soda or anything of the sort. I never noticed however that you can loose weight from doing just that. What I am going to guess is that there must be a direct connection between, your daily consumption and how much weight you loose after quitting soft drinks. When I used to drink soft drinks I remember rarely drinking and so when I completely stopped it had barely any effect on me. I didn’t loose a single pound… what a shame!

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Re: I don't know how HARMFUL

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Wed, 2006-02-01 08:26.

I was drinking at least two cans of Coke or Pepsi a day, sometimes more, and I would always drink it in restaurants, and usually eat out once a day.

I quit them completely about 2 or 3 months ago, and also quit adding sugar to tea (which I drink unsweetened in restaurants instead of Coke).

I made NO other changes to my diet or amount of excercize. I weighed myself tonight for the first time, and I have lost 15 pounds JUST FROM QUITTING SOFT DRINKS!

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decaying of teeth...wow!

Submitted by The RuRu on Mon, 2005-10-10 23:32.

I know soft drinks are bad for your health, but I never knew what was so bad about them besides the sugar content. Deacaying teeth and bones because of soft drinks seems a little weird, but I guess most of us don't really think about the long terms effects of drinking soda. I, personally drink diet soft drinks, which I'm sure aren't any better than the normal, but somehow I'm convinced splenda or one of those sweetners is not as harmful. I've heard there's now sodas with less sugar or no sugar and calories, but they're probably just as bad.

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They're Worse.

Submitted by Shutterbug on Tue, 2005-10-11 02:05.

I am somewhat addicted to Diet Coke and Diet Pepsi. They're actually just as bad for you as regular soda. I've been told that because it's not actual sugar in the soda that your body is tricked by the sweetener and it takes more cola to fill you up. Therefore you can drink more and overload your body on sugars without realizing that you are actually harming your body.

I've also heard that the artifical sweeteners can cause cancer and short term memory loss, but those may just be rumors.

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Ouch...

Submitted by Abstract Water on Tue, 2005-10-11 09:42.

Even if softdrinks don't actaully hurt you, they still are far from the best choice of drink. Even juice, which if often filled with extra sugars, is better if only because it has all those vitamins. And it doesn't have caffeine. And it only contains naturally occuring acids...

Okay, so maybe they are a lot better.

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soft drinks vs. canned teas

Submitted by Sushi Sampler on Thu, 2005-10-13 23:15.

Random retained fact from when I was in Knowledge Bowl last year: Canned teas (like Lipton or Nestea) are actually much worse in terms of tooth decay than most soft drinks are. Guess that's because of the amount of lemon used and artificial sweetener?

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Not to mention...

Submitted by Abstract Water on Fri, 2005-10-14 11:07.

Not to mention canned/bottled "tea" is just scary.

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I definially think doft

Submitted by Ritzy Charly on Tue, 2005-10-25 16:47.

I definially think doft drinks are bad. I remember about 3 years ago I went cold turkey on no more soft drink consumption and now my teeth are better then ever. Which definitally has improved my teeth so much. Also water is just so much better for everyone.

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Well...

Submitted by CurlyQ on Sun, 2005-11-06 20:27.

Yes, I can understand why health professionals are saying that soft drinks are some-what harmful. On the other hand, anyone can really make an argument for any type of food/drink with additives, sugar and caffeine in it. I'm sure that soda contributes to a person's obesity problem, but what about that whole chocolate cake that they ate with the soda as well?

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Good point

Submitted by Salamander on Sun, 2005-11-06 22:45.

That is actually a really good point. But I guess the reason is that not as many people eat cake after each meal and in between as compared to people who drink soft drinks after each meal.

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