Last year, I did some of my own research into pop and diet pop to find out what exactly was in them and what the ingredients might do to you. I mostly focused on Coke, Diet Coke, and Coke Zero, figuring they'd be the best examples to use.
The ingredients in the three drinks are as follows:
Coke
Carbonated water
Sugar
Caffeine
Sugar
Phosphoric acid v. Caramel
Natural flavoring
Sugar or High-Fructose Corn Syrup
Diet Coke
Carbonated water
Caramel color
Aspartame
Phosphoric acid
Potassium benzoate (to protect taste)
Natural flavors
Citric acid
Caffeine
Coke Zero
Carbonated Water
Acesulfame Potassium
Aspartame
Caffeine
Phosphoric Acid
Potassium Benzoate
Potassium Citrate
Sodium Benzoate
Sodium Citrate
Sodium Cyclamate
Sucralose
As it turns out, regular Coca-Cola has a very minimal amount of detrimental chemicals in it, with the caffeine and sugar being the most unhealthy components. However, the amount of sugar in one can of Coke amounts to nearly one's entire daily sugar intake. Of course, this is what makes sugared beverages statistically one of the largest determinants of obesity in North America.
However, regular Coke does share one other ingredient in common with the other two versions that adversely affects health. Phosphoric acid is strongly linked to a decrease in bone density, so regular drinkers of Coke (or any cola in general) are at risk for osteopenia or osteoporosis in their later lives. This is even made more urgent due to the fact that many North Americans are physically inactive and so their bones do not receive the regular stress and impact required to increase osteoblast activity to promote higher bone density.
Next, we get on to the chemicals found in diet-pop. Diet Coke and Coke-Zero both contain phosphoric acid, aspartame, and potassium benzoate. I assume that everyone already knows about the whole aspartame scare, so I won't get into that too other than to remind you that it's a likely carcinogen (cancer-promoting chemical). Continuing, potassium benzoate converts inside the body into a compound called benzene, which is a known carcinogen.
Coke-Zero alone gets even worse. In addition to everything listed above, it also contains the following: Sodium benzoate, which also becomes the carcinogen, benzene acesulfame potassium and sodium cyclamate, which are possible carcinogens as well.
To review:
Phosphoric Acid – Linked with low bone density, kidney disease, and kidney stones.
Aspartame – Likely carcinogen
Potassium Benzoate – Combines with Vitamin C to form benzene, a known carcinogen
Sodium Benzoate – Combines with Vitamin C to also form benzene
Acesulfame Potassium – Possible carcinogen
Caffeine – Dehydration; Other various effects
Sodium Cyclamate – Possible carcinogen
A lot of people, however, are willing to ignore these detrimental health effects for the sake of drinking diet-pop to help them lose weight. However, there are problems there as well.
Psychologically, consuming any artificial sweetener is going to do nothing to help a person break the addiction of sugar-flavoured things, and so they will continue to crave sweet, sugary food and drinks.
Physiologically, artificial sweeteners, even though they are essentially "fake" sugar, will still trigger an insulin response in your body to begin digesting glucose. When the body begins these insulin mechanisms and then realizes that there is no actual glucose coming in, it triggers a hunger response in order to MAKE you eat more to get it the glucose that it has prepared to process. So basically, sweeteners have high potential to promote overeating in general.
It can be a lot to take in, but it's very worth everyone's while to exactly know what they're putting into the systems. It's something to think about next time you're looking over at the soda-fountain.
The ingredients in the three drinks are as follows:
Coke
Carbonated water
Sugar
Caffeine
Sugar
Phosphoric acid v. Caramel
Natural flavoring
Sugar or High-Fructose Corn Syrup
Diet Coke
Carbonated water
Caramel color
Aspartame
Phosphoric acid
Potassium benzoate (to protect taste)
Natural flavors
Citric acid
Caffeine
Coke Zero
Carbonated Water
Acesulfame Potassium
Aspartame
Caffeine
Phosphoric Acid
Potassium Benzoate
Potassium Citrate
Sodium Benzoate
Sodium Citrate
Sodium Cyclamate
Sucralose
As it turns out, regular Coca-Cola has a very minimal amount of detrimental chemicals in it, with the caffeine and sugar being the most unhealthy components. However, the amount of sugar in one can of Coke amounts to nearly one's entire daily sugar intake. Of course, this is what makes sugared beverages statistically one of the largest determinants of obesity in North America.
However, regular Coke does share one other ingredient in common with the other two versions that adversely affects health. Phosphoric acid is strongly linked to a decrease in bone density, so regular drinkers of Coke (or any cola in general) are at risk for osteopenia or osteoporosis in their later lives. This is even made more urgent due to the fact that many North Americans are physically inactive and so their bones do not receive the regular stress and impact required to increase osteoblast activity to promote higher bone density.
Next, we get on to the chemicals found in diet-pop. Diet Coke and Coke-Zero both contain phosphoric acid, aspartame, and potassium benzoate. I assume that everyone already knows about the whole aspartame scare, so I won't get into that too other than to remind you that it's a likely carcinogen (cancer-promoting chemical). Continuing, potassium benzoate converts inside the body into a compound called benzene, which is a known carcinogen.
Coke-Zero alone gets even worse. In addition to everything listed above, it also contains the following: Sodium benzoate, which also becomes the carcinogen, benzene acesulfame potassium and sodium cyclamate, which are possible carcinogens as well.
To review:
Phosphoric Acid – Linked with low bone density, kidney disease, and kidney stones.
Aspartame – Likely carcinogen
Potassium Benzoate – Combines with Vitamin C to form benzene, a known carcinogen
Sodium Benzoate – Combines with Vitamin C to also form benzene
Acesulfame Potassium – Possible carcinogen
Caffeine – Dehydration; Other various effects
Sodium Cyclamate – Possible carcinogen
A lot of people, however, are willing to ignore these detrimental health effects for the sake of drinking diet-pop to help them lose weight. However, there are problems there as well.
Psychologically, consuming any artificial sweetener is going to do nothing to help a person break the addiction of sugar-flavoured things, and so they will continue to crave sweet, sugary food and drinks.
Physiologically, artificial sweeteners, even though they are essentially "fake" sugar, will still trigger an insulin response in your body to begin digesting glucose. When the body begins these insulin mechanisms and then realizes that there is no actual glucose coming in, it triggers a hunger response in order to MAKE you eat more to get it the glucose that it has prepared to process. So basically, sweeteners have high potential to promote overeating in general.
It can be a lot to take in, but it's very worth everyone's while to exactly know what they're putting into the systems. It's something to think about next time you're looking over at the soda-fountain.