STEALTH ATTACK BY KILLER SOFT DRINKS

Posted November 1, 2011 in Fitness News by Adele & Lisa Rancan

We can understand the attraction -- it fizzles and sparkles and tastes sweet -- who wouldn't love that? BUT … do you really know what’s in soft drinks?

It's the one thing I won't let in my house. And it’s not a stranger – you and I know them well and (some of us) even love them.

But as a rule, I won’t drink anything that comes in a can and my children don't drink them.

Some if us love a Diet Coke for the caffeine hit and the so-called zero calories, but are they really the no-evil friends that they’re painted as in the adverts?

A few things you should know before you crack open your next fizzly drink:

1. Regular soft drinks contain a lot of sugar. In fact, just one regular soft drink contains 10 teaspoons of sugar. Raised sugar levels can cause many health problems including obesity, type-2 diabetes, cancer and heart disease.

2. The carbonation in sodas contains phosphoric acid -- depleting the calcium in your body. Calcium is essential to bone mass and bone density. A deficiency can lead to osteoporosis.

3. Caffeine - which is in many soft drinks - stimulates the central nervous system and contributes to stress and insomnia. It can also further deplete the calcium in your body.

4. Studies have found that consuming one or more soft drinks in a day -- whether diet or regular -- can lead to a 30% chance of weight gain around the belly area.

5. Why not just drink sugar-free soft drinks? Here’s a few reasons to avoid the artificially-sweetened drinks:

Diet soda is usually "sweetened" with aspartame, sucralose or saccharin. These artificial sweeteners can pose a threat to your health.

Saccharin, for instance, has been found to be a carcinogen.

Aspartame has been linked to obesity because it stimulates the brain to crave for more sweets and carbohydrates.

Even though you may love the taste of soft drinks, whether they are sweetened naturally or artificially, you really need to avoid them as much as possible.

Plain old water will quench your thirst far more and is way better for you.