Keep Your Drink Just Give Me the Money: How Bad is Soda?

*Pink

Ok so we all know that soda, also known as a soft drink or pop, isn't the healthiest of beverages. It doesn't have extra vitamins or fiber or protein in it, but is it really all that bad? Unfortunately, yes. Even the sugarless, or "diet", varieties. And what is it that's so terrible about these delicious refreshers? Caffeine, carbonation, acid, and sweetner.

Caffeine: There's not much good about this ingredient. It's addicting. And a diuretic. A Johns Hopkins study found that the symptoms of caffeine withdrawal "include not only headache, but also fatigue, mild depression, muscle pain and stiffness, flu-like feelings, nausea and vomiting." It also found that in women, it can increase the severity of symptoms from PMS, and reduce fertility by up to 50 percent. As a diuretic, caffeine causes the body to pass more water than it retains. This leads to dehydration, which among other things can present itself as dry skin, constipation, and bladder infections.

Carbonation: The carbonation in soft drinks is made of carbon-dioxide--the air we exhale that is used by plants to make oxygen. Not only does the act of drinking carbon-dioxide infused water put bodily output back in, it fills the stomach with air, which can cause a bloated abdomen, discomfort, and gas.

Acid: The phosporic acid in soda has the same acidity as vinegar, and can quickly rust metal. This ingredient leaches calcium from the body and is linked to osteoporosis, tooth loss, peridontal disease and gingivitis. Teamed with the sugar present in soda, it also easily dissolves tooth enamel.

Sweetner: High-fructose corn syrup, the sugar found in soda, has a reputation of being the worst ingredient of all. Not only does it contribute to the breakdown of tooth enamel, as mentioned above, it contains so many calories that it is estimated that each soft drink may increase the risk of obesity 1.6 times. In addition to that, Dr. James Howenstein, author of A Physician’s Guide to Natural Health Products That Work, references a study that found that "the sugar from one soft drink was able to damage the white blood cells’ ability to ingest and kill bacteria for seven hours.”

And the sweetener in diet drinks isn't any better. Sacchrine has been found to increase the level of carcinogens in lab rats that consume the equivalent of one to two sodas per day. Aspertame produces methanol in the blood--about 56 milligrams per one liter of soda--which is basically poison. Several of these beverages consumed within a day's time can increase the level of methanol in the blood to many times the EPA limit.

It's recommended that soda be removed from your diet altogether. Convinced? If not, do yourself a favor and try to limit your consumption as much as possible.

Some other fun soda facts:

• To clean a toilet: Pour a can of Coca-Cola into the toilet bowl... Let the "real thing" sit for one hour, then flush clean.
• The citric acid in Coke removes stains from vitreous china.
• To remove rust spots from chrome car bumpers: Rub the bumper with a crumpled-up piece of Reynolds Wrap aluminum foil dipped in Coca-Cola.
• To clean corrosion from car battery terminals: Pour a can of Coca-Cola over the terminals to bubble away corrosion.
• To loosen a rusted bolt: Applying a cloth soaked in Coca-Cola to the rusted bolt for several minutes.
• To remove grease from clothes: Empty a can of coke into a load of greasy clothes, add detergent, and run through a regular cycle. The Coca-Cola will help loosen grease stains. It will also clean road haze from your windshield.
• To carry Coca Cola syrup (the concentrate) the commercial truck must use the Hazardous material place cards reserved for Highly Corrosive materials.

"Actually, I think all addiction starts with soda. Every junkie did soda first. But no one counts that. Maybe they should. The soda connection is clear. Why isn't a presidential commission looking into this? Or at least some guys from the National Carbonation Council." -Chris Rock