Currently viewing the category: "soft drinks"

Sodas Make Ya Dumb!

By On · Add Comment · In diabetes, high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS), insulin resistance, omega-3 fatty acids, soda, soft drinks, sugar dysregulation

Duhhhhh….does soda make you fat? Don’t know…but it might make you dumb. So says a recent study out of the University of California, Los Angeles, which observed what happened when rats were fed a steady diet of high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS), the principle constituent of soft drinks.

Researchers trained 24 rats over a five day period to complete a complicated maze (Barnes maze test, feeding them standard rat chow. They then randomly assigned the rats into four dietary groups: half receiving HFCS as their main beverage source, and half receiving water. Each group was then split into two, those with added omega-3 fatty acids to their diet (rat chow) and those without, so that the four groups looked like this:

  1. high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) only
  2. high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS)  + omega-3s
  3. water only
  4. water only  + omega-3s
All four groups continued receiving powdered rat chow throughout (with or without the omega-3s). The results showed a few interesting things. First, although there was no difference in final weight or size of the rats, the HFCS groups preferred eating the sugar to the rat chow–they must have been American–although caloric intake stayed consistent among all the groups.

Second, although the rats were found to be in the same initial cognitive condition prior to their special diets, after six weeks the rats that were deficient in omega-3s showed a decline in memory, and thus a reduced ability to complete the maze. Hmmm…. And the results were even worse for the rats deficient in omega-3s and high in HFCS.

But even more interestingly is that the cognitive deficiencies (memory loss) were ameliorated by adding omega-3s to the diet. Whoa!… The researchers conclude that omega-3 deficiency led to a vulnerability of the rats’ brains to the high fructose corn syrup. Fascinating.
“The DHA-deprived animals were slower, and their brains showed a decline in synaptic activity,” said Fernando Gomez-Pinilla, a professor of neurosurgery at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. “Their brain cells had trouble signaling each other, disrupting the rats’ ability to think clearly and recall the route they’d learned six weeks earlier.”

The researchers believe that the lack of omega-3s caused the brain to become insulin resistant, which would increase the sugar concentration in the blood. This sugar dysregulation then, they think, disrupts the brain’s ability to process sugar, a necessary food source for the brain to process thoughts and emotions.

“Insulin is important in the body for controlling blood sugar, but it may play a different role in the brain, where insulin appears to disturb memory and learning,” Gomez-Pinilla said.

High-fructose corn syrup is commonly found in soda, condiments, applesauce, baby food and other processed snacks. The average American consumes more than 40 pounds (18 kilograms) of high-fructose corn syrup per year, according to the US Department of Agriculture.

“Our findings illustrate that what you eat affects how you think,” said Gomez-Pinilla.

“Eating a high-fructose diet over the long term alters your brain’s ability to learn and remember information. But adding omega-3 fatty acids to your meals can help minimize the damage.”

So the take home lesson here is two-fold: One, and for me the most important, is to make sure you are getting sufficient omega-3s in your diet. Because the typical western diet is high in omega-6s and low in omega-3s, then supplementing, in my opinion, is the best bet.

And two…HFCS is garbage! I’ve been saying it for over a decade, and nothing’s come along to alter my opinion. The typical American is both omega-3 deficient AND consumes too much HFCS. Think about that if you still can…

Coke and Pepsi to Remove Cancer Causing Ingredient

By On · Add Comment · In 4-MEI, anti-cancerous, birth defects, California, carcinogen, Coca-Cola Co., PepsiCo, Proposition 65, sodas, soft drinks

No secret that I am anti-soft drinks. Funny because I am not much anti-anything, believe it or not. But I don’t like sodas–not for me, not for my children, and not for others. It’s garbage. Liquid sugar. No nutritional value whatsoever. Ten teaspoons of sugar per can…need I go on?

Well, it appears as if Coke and Pepsi also contain a cancer causing ingredient, one that I know at least I was unaware of, called 4-methylimidazole (4-MEI), a major component of the caramel coloring the sodas sports.

According to recent statements, Coca-Cola and PepsiCo have decided to lower the amount of 4-MEI in their soft drinks to comply with California standards that relate to findings that high levels of the chemical are shown to cause cancer in laboratory rats. Nice.

Not that either company actually cares about the health and safety of their customers, but they would have had to place a warning label on their liquid sugar product which discloses that it contains a known carcinogen. And what do you think that might have done to sales?

Both companies are probably resting assuredly that very few of their addicted consumers will ever find out about the cancer causing agent that has been a part of their drinks for decades. Indeed both companies assure shareholders that the changes will go unnoticed by addicts (and those not reading this blog).

“We are NOT changing our recipe; or our formula,” Coca-Cola Company spokesman Ben Sheidler told AFP in an email. No just the toxic coloring. Bravo liquid sugar manufacturers.

“What we did do is direct our caramel suppliers to make a manufacturing process modification in order to reduce the level of 4-MEI in our caramel so as to meet the requirement set by the state of California’s Proposition 65.”

California voters passed Proposition 65 in 1986, and the law aims to protect state residents from “chemicals known to cause cancer, birth defects or other reproductive harm, and to inform citizens about exposures to such chemicals.” 4-MEI was listed as a known carcinogen under Prop 65 in 2011.
Now mind you, both Coca-Cola and PepsiCo deny any health risk whatsoever, despite their products containing up to five times more 4-MEI than California standards. And not without a fight: The companies actually lost a battle against the state of California that dragged on for three years. The soda manufacturer’s argument: Trace amounts of 4-MEI are not sufficient to cause cancer in people. 
So let me get this straight. California has found 4-MEI–a compound used as caramel coloring, not just in soda but in soy sauce, coffee, bread, molasses, gravy and some beers–to be a carcinogen. And these companies have wasted time and money fighting on the grounds that, “It’s just a little cancer causing…and only in lab rats.” Yes, rats are always catching cancer in the lab…dumb rodents. That has nothing to do with you or me. 
Listen up liquid sugar pushers: You know damn well that if the public ever found out that you have a known carcinogen in your product, even if in just trace amounts, not one person would buy it. Not one. That’s why you caved in, because you would have been forced to label it, and there’d go your cash cow. 
Like I’ve said before, I’m a capitalist to the core, but providing a product that has a questionable ingredient, and then trying to be deceitful about it–and that’s what non-disclosure is, deceitful–is atrocious. You can minimize the issue all you want to, but you know that justice is often carried out in the marketplace. And your response speaks volumes.

Hate to be the One that Tells You, but…

By On · Add Comment · In American Beverage Association, children, obesity, Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity, soda, soft drinks, sugar, teens

In my recent obesity debates, I noticed a disturbing trend among many proponents of fantastical new theories on obesity, which included some doctors: They were adopting a “obesity is far too complex to blame a singular (or few) product/action” position. As I remarked in an earlier post, I think this poorly thought out opinion only perpetuates the problem.  No less erroneous than the genetic theory of obesity, denying the obvious simply gives the obese person a reason to pull themselves, and their lifestyle habits, out of the equation. As a result, it ensures that obesity will remain a lucrative disease entity in need of a cure (à la cancer).

Case in point: In response to a recent report coming out of the Yale University Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity, that has showed soft drink manufacturers to be stepping-up advertising to children and teens, particularly blacks and Hispanics. The American Beverage Association, whose members include soft drink companies, disputed the study’s findings. Said the group’s Chief Executive Officer Susan Neely in a statement,

“This report is another attack by known critics in an ongoing attempt to single out one product as the cause of obesity when both common sense and widely accepted science have shown that the reality is far more complicated.”

Uh huh…listen up obesity enablers: Aspects of obesity may have some complexity to them, but how it originates physiologically in the individual isn’t complex. Any right-minded person not driven by profits or ego (doctors…) simply cannot deny that imbibing ten teaspoons of sugar (contents of one can of soda) will lead to metabolic and hormonal changes that ultimately cause obesity.  If you’re this person, forgive me but…you’re an idiot.

Soda Fountains and Fecal Bacteria

By On · Add Comment · In bacteria, coliform bacteria, E. coli, hygeine, soda fountains, soft drinks, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
This may not be news, but soda fountains have been found to be rife with fecal bacteria. Just another reason to bypass drinking that nasty stuff. This story is nearly two years old, but the heebie jeebies remain. I was reminded of this grossness, while researching another piece, and wanted to share my thoughts.

If you hadn’t heard the story when it broke January of 2010, here are the details of the study conducted in a region of Virginia:
  • 48% of beverages obtained from soda fountains contained fecal coliform bacteria, 11% contained E. coli (which are mostly harmless, but some can cause diarrhea, urinary tract infections, respiratory illness and pneumonia), and 17% had Chryseobacterium meningosepticum (which could sicken newborns or adults with weakened immune systems).
  • The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s drinking-water regulations require that all samples test negative for E.coli.
  • Many of the soda beverages from the dispensers fell below U.S. drinking-water standards, according to the findings.
  • It is premature, however, to draw broad conclusions about all soda fountains from a localized study.
  • The samples were contained in petri dishes and the bacteria multiplied within 48 hours, so much so that they became visible to the naked eye as 300 to 400 tiny dots.
  • Researchers were uncertain how the bacteria got inside the beverage machines, but very likely from unclean hands or rags used to wipe down machines.
  • National Restaurant Association and American Beverage Association both assured public that eating out and using soda fountains were safe.
  • A 1998 outbreak was linked to soda fountains after 99 soldiers in a U.S. Army base were hospitalized with gastroenteritis.
Okay, my thoughts: First, scientist have to practice caution with what they claim, so if they haven’t tested something in particular, they can’t make unsupported declarations about it. But I can! Fecal matter on soda fountains are probably from poorly washed hands. The only other explanation that it might be from the rags used to clean the machines is no great comfort. Either way, it’s unhygienic and disgusting.
Next, if soda fountains are contaminated, then so are the water dispensers. So I could easily say, just don’t drink the soda…but now were treading into deeper waters. If the drinking water also at risk, it really doesn’t make me feel comfortable. I guess bottled water is going to be in order. Cha-ching for the restaurants. Or maybe bring your own bottles…or, better yet, eat at home.

Finally, it’s true that this study was done in one small area in Virginia, but my guess is that if a nationwide study would be conducted, they might find similar results. You see, the problem is that soda machines have to be messed with (I worked in the restaurant biz for many years as a student)–the syrup needs to be changed, as does the carbonated water. Anything that needs to be handled frequently always has an increased risk. Further, soda machines are very often maintained by busboys and wait staff. Whereas kitchen employees may be extra cautious about hygiene, servers and bussers may not. And if it’s self-serve…ugh, even worse.

I am sure when the story broke, most restaurants heard the news and went through the extra-diligence to make sure cleanliness became godliness. But that was two years ago. Staffs turn over, and memories are often short; so whether or not the same hygiene is practiced today would be left to be seen. Saying that, I know that at most places where I’d worked hygiene was of paramount consideration.
My major message here is that sodas are nasty across the board. They are bad for your health, and when dispensed in a restaurant, they are at risk for contamination. Yuck! I am pleased that neither me nor my children drink that crap. I would advise you to stay away as well. Thought you’d want to know.

Diet Soda Linked to Stroke

By On · Add Comment · In diet soda, Northern Manhattan Study (NOMAS), sodium, soft drinks, stroke, weight gain

Put down that can of Diet Coke, dear reader.  It can be harmful to your health. So says a study conducted earlier this year, that showed diet soda drinkers to be at an increased risk for stroke.

Some believe that by drinking the diet variety of soft drinks, they bypass the harmful effects of sugar, thereby making a healthier choice in their beverage selection. But many of us have suspected that diet sodas have hidden harms, despite the inability of nutrition researchers to find them. Some recent studies, however, have shown that diet soda drinkers not only gain weight, but they do so even more than drinkers of regular soda. Doh! And now stroke.

Researchers followed 2,564 people in the large, multi-ethnic Northern Manhattan Study (NOMAS). They collected soda drinking habits and followed the subjects for 9.3 years on average. They found that people who drank diet soda every day had a 61% higher risk of vascular events than those who reported no soda drinking. Researchers accounted for participants’ age, sex, race or ethnicity, smoking status, exercise, alcohol consumption and daily caloric intake. And even after researchers also accounted for patients’ metabolic syndrome, peripheral vascular disease and heart disease history, the increased risk persisted at a rate 48% higher.

Researchers believe the reason for the increased stroke risk has to do with sodium intake. A separate study showed that an increased intake of sodium also increased the risk of ischemic stroke (when a blood vessel blockage cuts off blood flow to the brain). Diet sodas contain between 35 and 40 milligrams of sodium per can. Not a massive amount by any means, but when multiplied by the numbers that many individuals imbibe in one day, and the sodium intake starts to approach dangerous levels.

The second study showed that individuals who consumed more than 4,000 milligrams of sodium a day had twice the risk of experiencing a stroke when compared to individuals with an intake of less than the recommended limit of 1,500 milligrams of sodium per day. Only a third of participants met the current U.S. Dietary Guidelines for Americans that recommend daily sodium intake fall below 2,300 mg, or about a teaspoon of salt. Only 12% of subjects met the American Heart Association‘s recommendations to consume less than 1,500 mg a day. Average intake was 3,031 milligrams.

Well I’m sure you can imagine me shaking my head in contempt. I just don’t have tolerance for the liquid sugar habit picked up by the majority of Americans. If you can’t see the writing on the wall–sodas (both regular and diet) cause negative health consequences like obesity, diabetes, rotten teeth and now stroke–then so be it. But stop thinking that diet soda is a healthier alternative to regular soda, because it’s not.

The Real Thing

By On · Add Comment · In fast-food, habit, soda, soft drinks, water, weight loss
Spent the day in downtown L.A. fulfilling my civic duty. Jury duty called and I was promptly selected–aargh!

While having lunch in the local food court, I couldn’t help but notice a very interesting observation: about 90% of the people in my view were drinking soda. I am certain that I saw a couple hundred people, so that’s a heck of a lot of soft drinks. I counted a few water bottles, but mostly I saw people drinking out of waxy soda cups, the kind you typically find at fast food restaurants. True, it might have been water, but since I know the national soda consumption numbers, which are astronomical, I’m sure these people were drinking what most Americans choose–good ol’ fashioned candy pop.

I couldn’t help but think about the weight loss industry too; about how it’s booming, and about how promising its future looks. How many people in this country are trying to lose weight right now? How many of you reading this are?

Well I’ve got a real buzzkill for you: You are never going to lose weight if you don’t give up your sodas. I know, I know–eff you, Campos!–because people feel strongly about their soft drinks. Never have I received so much resistance when suggesting a habit kick than when suggesting people stop drinking soft drinks–not from smokers, not from heavy drinkers, not from heavy sushi eaters. Nope, soda drinkers beat them all. They come up with all kinds of reasons why everything but soda is bad for them. Soda is not that big of a deal. Yeah, right.

I used to drink soda, I get it. You can pound these things all day long. Some people nail six or more in 24 hours! That’s pure, unadulterated liquid sugar. No nutrients, no vitamins–pure calories, pure sludge. I’m telling you, you can watch every other thing you eat. You can work out seven days a week. You can get liposuction and a stomach staple. But if you keep drinking sugar, you’ll never lose weight. I’ve been there, done that. Believe me soda is the first thing you must kick if you’re ever going to drop pounds. Next is booze, but that’s another story (don’t worry, I’ll get to it one day).

Here is the scary thing: Most people I observed at the food court seemed to be employees of the legal court. I know because I followed a bunch of attorneys down there; figured they’d know the best place to grub. They did. But no way I could eat that way every day. However, as I clearly saw, many people in downtown L.A. do. I didn’t see many other places to eat in the area. Funny, but my pompous L.A. arse always assumes that we know better in this town, but clearly we don’t. I can’t even imagine what it’s like in other less health-conscious cities like Houston, Oklahoma City or Vegas.

So here’s the skinny: If you wish to lose weight, drop the sodas, man; it’s the only way. But if you love your sodas so much that you can’t kick the habit, then don’t be so hard on yourself–enjoy your coke and your smile, and just be content with the extra 20 pounds.

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