Ever since I was a child, I enjoyed taking long walks and observing those around me – how they look, how they feel, what their habits are, and so on. It was a great exercise of getting the know how people really are.
Yesterday, as I was strolling on the streets, I noticed a few people holding “light” sodas. After a quick memory search, I realized that I had rarely seen regular sodas in the past years.
From my point of view, all the ads and experiments we see in favor of sugar-free drinks have shifted the consumers from a menace to a greater one.
Sodas have been vilified because of their large amounts of sugar (a 12 oz. can contains 40g of sugar). However, nobody brought into discussion that their acidic content is also a health wrecker.
The “light” counterparts contain no added sugar, but are still acid. Because the drink still has to taste good (so that it sells), the sugar needs to be replaced with other sweeteners, which are usually artificial.
While the body can easily recognize and process sugar, it can’t do the same with artificial sweeteners. Your taste buds (and brain) perceive the pleasant taste of the drink, but your body won’t correlate it to “carbs intake.” Therefore, your pancreas won’t activate or create insulin to balance the sugar in the blood, simply because there is no sugar.
Consuming such drinks on the long run will inhibit your pancreas to release insulin, leading to hormonal imbalance. This simply means that when you need to process sugar, your organism will react slower, and inefficiently, which puts you at risk of developing diabetes.
I personally prefer drinking water with mint or lemon, and teas. Nonetheless, I understand that not everybody enjoys them, even if it’s better for their health. If you find it hard to give up sodas or you want to give yourself a treat from time to time, a little less damage is done if you consume the regular version, and control the rest of the sugary foods intake.
Your health is in your hands!