All of us remember the videos circulating on new channels in which reporters exhibited how fizzy drinks like cola work as effective toilet cleaners. They went to lengths to pour the drinks into toilet pots, resulting in cleaner pots, citing just how harmful it is for the body due to the presence of harsh chemicals in it.
Despite this and countless other efforts by the medical community and media, the regular consumption of artificially sweetened fizzy sodas has only gone up. According to the Household Consumption Expenditure Survey 22-23 released at the beginning of 2024 by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, the expenditure on beverages and processed food has doubled in India in the last two decades.
In yet another attempt to thwart the evergrowing consumption of artificially sweetened sodas, Swati Bathwal, Nutritionist, Dietician, and Diabetes Educator informed the OnlyMyHealth team about the health risks of consuming sodas daily. She said, “Daily consumption of soft drinks can cause a “Dia-besity” epidemic, as the availability of these drinks is a major contributing factor for the increasing cases of diabetes and cardiovascular diseases around the globe.”
What Happens If You Drink Soda Daily?
“Soft drinks have nothing else to offer except empty calories,” said Bathwal. She shared the level of sugar present in a bottle of an artificially sweetened soda:
- 600 ml cola has 16 teaspoons of sugar
- 600 ml sports drinks have 11 teaspoons of sugar
- 600 ml store-bought lemonade has 17 teaspoons of sugar
- 500 ml of store-bought iced tea has 7 teaspoons of sugar
- 600 ml of flavoured milk can have almost 18 teaspoons of sugar
Additionally, Bathwal shared, “These drinks have a type of sugar called high fructose corn syrup which is made from corn starch and has zero health benefits.” Here are some ways in which sodas are exceptionally harmful to your health and wellness.
Metabolic Disorders
Soft drinks have a direct link to fatty liver, diabetes, thyroid imbalance and Poly Cystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOD). Bathwal said, “The sugar used in commercially produced sodas gets stored in the liver as glycogen and fat, causing fat to accumulate around the organs leading to beer bellies and muffin tops.” This fat is called visceral fat and leads to insulin resistance.
Heart Health
The insulin resistance explained above is a major risk factor for high cholesterol. “Insulin resistance causes insulin to build up in the blood causing the liver to produce more cholesterol. This leads to high CRP (c-reactive protein) and ESR (Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate) levels in the blood, leading to inflammation,” explained Bathwal.
Also Read: Diet Soda May Not Be As Healthy Of An Alternative As You Believed: Study Links It To Liver Disease
Cancer Risk
“The high presence of preservatives, and artificial colours, flavours, and sugars are linked with 13-15 different types of cancer,” said Bathwal. She explained that soft drinks can lead to obesity, which is a major risk factor for breast cancer in women.
Obesity
Bathwal cited that numerous research has shown that regularly drinking artificially sweetened drinks and fizzy drinks increases the hunger hormone ‘Ghrelin.’ “High levels of this hormone make us hungrier and store food as fat. When we drink soft drinks, ghrelin levels don’t lower quickly and make us hungrier.” This is one-way soft drinks contribute to obesity.
Also, these drinks contain empty calories, that is they have extra calories with no nutritional value. “These sugars are stored in the liver as glycogen and fat. Regular consumption of such drinks can cause an ‘obesity epidemic’,” said Bathwal.
Rapid Ageing
The artificial sugars present in soft drinks reduce collagen in the body, which causes wrinkles, pigmentation, and age spots. Bathwal explained, “Collagen and elastin, these two proteins are the building blocks of your skin and are the most vulnerable to damage. These proteins help keep the skin firm, plump and bouncy. However, the sugars present in soft drinks make turn collagen and elastin stiff, dry and brittle and reduce their strength, causing premature ageing.”
Gout
“The high fructose corn syrup present in soft drinks causes high uric acid, which leads to the build-up of uric acid crystals in the joints. This condition is known as gout,” said Bathwal. She recommended that if you already have a high chance of developing gout, then you should completely abstain from soft drinks.
Also Read: Say Goodbye to Soda: Here Are 8 Healthy and Refreshing Alternatives You Can Try
Bathwal concluded that the ill effects of soft drinks and sodas do not end there. They have also been linked to dental problems, vaginal infections, cellulite, candida, high blood pressure and much more. She recommended that all of us should instead drink homemade drinks like herbal teas, lemonade, coconut water, iced tea, black coffee, vegetable juices and plain water. She suggested using stevia instead of sugar for your homemade decoctions.