We have heard the many different studies on soft drinks and what it does to our bodies and the health benefits of not drinking it but what is really soda and why do we love it so much?
Well lets start with some history of Soda or Pop:
In 1767, the first drinkable, man made glass of carbonated water was created by Englishmen, Dr. Joseph Priestley. Three years later, the Swedish chemist, Torbern Bergman, invented a generating apparatus that made carbonated water from chalk by the use of sulfuric acid. Bergman's apparatus allowed imitation mineral water to be produced in large amounts.
To read more on the Soda History
A soft drink (also called soda, pop, coke, soda pop, or carbonated beverage) is a non-alcoholic beverage that typically contains carbonated water, a sweetening agent, and a flavoring agent. The sweetening agent may be sugar, high-fructose corn syrup, or a sugar substitute (in the case of diet drinks). A soft drink may also contain caffeine or fruit juice.
Products such as energy drinks, Kool-Aid, and pure juice are not considered to be soft drinks. Other beverages not considered to be soft drinks are hot chocolate, hot tea, coffee, milk, milkshakes, and schorle.
Soft drinks are called "soft" in contrast to "hard drinks" (alcoholic beverages). Small amounts of alcohol may be present in a soft drink, but the alcohol content must be less than 0.5% of the total volume if the drink is to be considered non-alcoholic.
Widely sold soft drink flavors are cola, lemon-lime, root beer, orange, grape, vanilla, ginger ale, fruit punch, sparkling lemonade, squash, and flavored water.
Soda is made up of carbonated water, fructose corn syrup, artificial sweetener or sugar and flavor mixes.
Web MD states:
In 2006, a panel of experts assembled by Popkin developed the first Healthy Beverage Guidelines, which recommended people should drink more water and limit or eliminate high-calorie beverages with little or no nutritional value.
Feb. 28, 2011 -- New research suggests that drinking sodas and other sugar-sweetened beverages every day may raise blood pressure, but a beverage industry trade group calls the study significantly flawed.
Sugar-sweetened beverages are the No. 1 source of added sugars in the American diet, and the research is among the first to link them to higher blood pressure.
The study found that the more sugary sodas and other sugar-sweetened beverages people drank, the higher their blood pressures tended to be.
Every extra sugar-sweetened beverage drank per day was associated with a 1.6 point rise in systolic blood pressure (the upper number) and a 1 point rise in diastolic pressure (the lower number).
The highest blood pressures were seen in study participants who drank the most sugar-sweetened beverages and also had the most added salt in their diets, study co-author Ian J. Brown, PhD, tells WebMD.
“We know that salt is a risk factor for high blood pressure,” Brown says. “But our findings suggest that sugar and salt together may be worse than salt alone.”
Risks Of Drinking Soda
- Soda has been known to comprise certain chemicals that make you feel dehydrated. This is the reason why, even after drinking lots of soda, you continue to feel thirsty.
- Every can of soda contains carbonic acid, which is a highly corrosive material. Hence, regular and frequent consumption of drinking soda can cause unimaginable damage to the human body.
- One of the prime side effects associated with the consumption of soda is that it is high in sugar content. This leads to the development of a number of health problems, like obesity and oral decay. Consumption of any form of aerated drink containing soda means that there is consumption of empty calories, which results in weight gain.
- There is high sugar content and too much fructose corn syrup in soda. Too much consumption of the drink can easily make you put on excessive weight..
- Excessive consumption of soda can result in high blood sugar, which can lead to faintness, rapid heart rate, and dehydration.
- Since soda contains too much sugar and acid, it can play havoc with your oral health. Not only does it dissolve the calcium out of tooth enamel, but can also cause a lot of cavities.
- Soda is also loaded with caffeine, which is a stimulant, the reason why it develops into an addiction soon. Consumption of excess of caffeine can cause irritability and restlessness.
- Caffeine removes calcium from our bodies. So, if you are drinking too much soda, you are also ingesting too much calcium, which ultimately will affect the strength of your bones.
- Irritability, restlessness, tension, insomnia, excitement and gastrointestinal disturbance are some other side effects of caffeine, which often result from high consumption of soda.
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