In this article Compiled by MSN Health & Fitness editors, read about dangers of soft drinks:
The average American drinks 18 ounces, or two full glasses, of soft drinks a day. In fact, according to one study, soda and other sugar-sweetened drinks have become the largest source of calories in the American diet, replacing white bread. The proliferation of soda tells the story: hundreds of different varieties are sold in the United States. While soft drinks are still king, sports drinks sales are rising on a yearly basis.
People may think they’re doing something healthy “by grabbing a bottle of Powerade instead of a can of Coke,” says Kara Gallagher, an assistant professor of exercise physiology at the University of Louisville and an adviser for Prevention. But at 10 calories per ounce, that Powerade is almost equal to a can of Coke, which has 12 per ounce.
“Unless you’re exercising vigorously, you don’t need sports drinks. They have a lot of empty calories, just like anything else,” Gallagher says.
Most people would agree that their love affair with the sweet drinks isn’t healthy, but no one would put it in the same class as a truly bad habit, such as smoking or drinking alcohol to excess, right?
Wrong. Scientists are beginning to do just that. The bulk of the research has focused on connecting the dots between consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages and weight gain But there is mounting evidence that our national sugary soft drink obsession also confuses the appetite-regulating hormones in the digestive tract, attacks the bones and encourages the organ breakdown that leads to diabetes.
