The ill effects of soda pop consumption in the U.S.

  • By Shelly Webb
  • March 25, 2010
  • 496
                        
When you’re thirsty what do you reach for? Any number of soft drinks, or water? According to research by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, too many people are reaching for soda and consuming too much of it on a daily basis. One big issue with soda is that it contains almost 17 teaspoons of sugar in every 20-ounce serving. The recommended amount of sugar consumption is five to nine teaspoons per day so one soda can easily put a person over the limit. Since first lady Michelle Obama declared war on childhood obesity a few weeks ago, more and more awareness is being placed on the consumption of soda in America and even the beverage companies are getting on board. According to a March 19 report in U.S. News, Pepsico announced that it will remove high-calorie sweetened drinks from schools for kids up to age 18 in more than 200 countries by 2012. Pepsi began selling beverages in schools in 2006. The company said they haven’t experienced a surge in sales over the past four years since being in the schools, and they aren’t expecting a huge decline from pulling out of schools either. Coca-Cola has stated that they will leave the decision to sell their product in schools up to the school officials in each district. Carol Denbow, a local registered dietician, of Pomerene Hospital, said soda can be a big contribution of empty calories to any diet, whether a child or adult. “Each regular soda (not diet) contributes many empty calories,” Denbow said. “Pop has an addictive aspect to it as well, so it is difficult to stop with just one. The bottom line is simple. If it is available, kids can drink many in one day and as a result gain unneeded weight.” In addition to empty calories and weight gain, soda can affect the way the body absorbs other needed minerals and vitamins. “Pop can limit calcium absorption, which children need for growing bones,” Denbow added. “All those sugar calories can crowd out healthy needed nutrition from other foods. Diabetes is another concern. Overloads of pop consumption (and other simple sugar foods) creates a high demand on the insulin system, which if genetically predisposed can lead to blood sugar imbalances and or pre-diabetes.” Soda not only creates problems in the realm of physical health, but it can also make an impact on dental health as well. Local dentist, Dr. Brad Welsh DDS, said that “too much pop will definitely cause tooth decay.” “In regard to tooth health alone, teeth that are exposed to pop for 1/2 hour and then cleaned afterward should cause little damage,” he said. “The issue with decay is when teeth are exposed to a carbohydrate (in this case sugar) and the amount of time the exposure occurs. The bacteria in the mouth that is responsible for decay produces acid as soon as it is exposed to sugar and that process continues for approximately 1/2 hour after exposure. The problem with soda is that most people have a tendency to sip, sip, and sip, over a long period of time, which can cause considerable risk for tooth decay.” Welsh said the caffeine that’s added to pop also causes cravings for more. When you add the cravings to the constant sipping of the soda, you have the answer to why heavy pop drinking is a major cause of tooth decay. With obesity on the rise, diabetes at record levels and the potential risk of tooth decay it’s clear why we should limit the intake of soda. But what if you really enjoy soda? Is there any “good” soda option? Well, Denbow believes some sodas are worse than others, but said there are no ‘healthy’ sodas. “It depends what you are trying to avoid as to which are worse for you,” she said. “There are a few sodas which only use sugar (not high fructose corn syrup) like Mountain Dew Throwback. Many diet sodas use NutraSweet, but Diet Rite does not use NutraSweet at all. I would not consider any soda as a “healthy” food. The amount we consume determines how much of a problem it is. The dietary guidelines for Americans tell us that 10 percent of our calories can be from simple sugars and still be considered a “balanced” diet. This would equate to one, 12-ounce soda per day (assuming that no other simple sugars were consumed in the daily diet.)” Denbow has long thought that pop machines are too accessible for kids and is pleased that Pepsi will pull out of schools completely over the next couple of years. “I believe that pop machines are too accessible,” she said. “The schools are getting better about that by limiting what can be bought during school hours. However, I think it would be best if they were not on-site at all.” Welsh said he sees parental control as an issue as well where kids’ diets are concerned. “We tend to see parental control over diet in kids diminish as early as age 12,” he said. “With an active growing adolescent sugar intake tends to increase. This is why we are seeing more encouragement these days in teaching kids to make healthy choices in their diet.” Although juice is a good option to soda as far as vitamins and minerals go, juice still contains sugar. Juice may be healthier for the body, but unfortunately, the impact it has on teeth is similar to that of soda. If you want a sweet drink though, juice is definitely the better option. “Juice does contain a different kind of sugar. However, we tend to not see a difference in the amount of acid bacteria being produced whether a person is exposed to either soda or juice,” Welsh said. “There is a difference, of course, in the fact that pop does contain phosphoric acid, which lowers the pH in the mouth quickly. Juices, in general, also are acidic in nature so I would venture that there is not a huge difference between pop and juice. That being said, obviously there is only carbohydrate nutritional value in pop while juice has many essential vitamins and minerals. All in all, there is a nutritional value to juice and none whatsoever to pop.”


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