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Negative Health Effects of Soda Drinks essay assignment
Referred to as soda pop, frank soda or soft drinks, carbonated beverages have been increasing in popularity as America’s favorite drink since the 1800s. Furgang (5) says that the U.S.’ love for the carbonated soft drinks has grown at an alarmingly increasing rate over the past one generation. From 1978, the males’ consumption of these drinks has tripled for the 12 to 29 year old, while it has only doubled for females in that age bracket. In the U.S., these drinks are usually less expensive than any other drinks. This explains why the sodas are so popular than all other carbonated drinks (Furgang 5).
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The drinks are found in vending machines, in restaurants, parties, at schools, sporting events and are also taking up a large space at the grocery stores. This paper will discuss the effects of consumption of sodas on human health. The paper will discuss in detail some of the most common diseases among those who consume the soft drinks. With supporting information from other researches done before, tooth decay, obesity, diabetes, pancreatic cancer, heart attack and stroke are some of the diseases that the paper will consider. All the data provided from other researches will be cited.
Since they first appeared, in 1600s, soft drinks were associated with well-being and health up to the twentieth century. This period marked the marketing, sale and consumption of soft drinks as medicinal “tonics”. However, today, soft drinks have no appreciable reputation. Rather than being associated with favorable health, they are now considered the worst junk food ever consumed. What changed the perception about the carbonated beverage? The changes introduced to their ingredients account for the highest percentage of the negative health effects they have and the growing change in attitude of the public towards them.
Tooth Decay
Taking sugars can contribute to tooth decay. This is because when bacteria enters and mixes with sugar in the mouth, acid is produced. If the acid attacks the tooth for twenty minutes or more, it causes plaque build-up on teeth and gum. Soft drinks have become one of the most significant causes of tooth decay for people of all ages. Acids and acidic sugars in soda drinks soften the tooth enamel, which leads to the formation of cavities in the tooth. For the extreme cases, softer enamel, accompanied with grinding of the teeth and improper brushing can lead to tooth loss. The sugar-free drinks, accounting for fourteen percent of all soft drinks, are less harmful. However, these sugar-free drinks are acidic and are still problematic to teeth. Consuming soft drinks over a long term has a cumulative effect on teeth enamel. As they live longer, people will be more likely to experience problems.
To curb this problem, people should learn to consume beverages with less sugar and acid such as milk, water and 100% fruit juice and encourage their children to do so. One should flush his/her mouth with water after consuming a soft drink in order to remove the vestiges of the drink that can prolong the exposure of enamel to acids. Soft drinks are harmful to ones health but by reducing the amount one drinks, practice of proper oral hygiene and seeking dentists’ and hygienist’s help can counteract its effects and enjoy better oral health.
Obesity
Taking soda, even the diet soda, could lead to obesity. According to Harlan(230), a single can of coke (12 ounce can) has an equivalent of about nine teaspoons of sugar. He further says that research shows that consuming more than two and a half sugar-sweetened drinks per day increases one’s risk of death, as a result of the heart disease. Those who consume sodas are at a two-thirds higher risk of getting type 2 diabetes than those who do not drink. Consumption of soda also leads to weight gain. One study found out that the more children drink sweet drinks, the quicker their Body Mass Index rises as they grow. In addition, human bodies do not process those calories from sodas the same way it processes from the whole foods (Harlan).
Heart Disease
Carroll says that, a study following more than two thousand five hundred New Yorkers for nine or more years, found out that people who used to drink diet soda daily had a sixty one percent higher risk of developing vascular events, including heart attack and stroke, than those who completely consumed the diet drinks.
Metabolic Syndrome
According to the National Institute of Health as reported by Newell ( 1), drinking soda adds calories and sugar to the diet, which raises the risk of developing metabolic syndrome, consequently raising the risk of stroke or heart attack. Metabolic syndrome is characterized by a waist line equal to or greater than thirty five inches for women or forty inches for men, when blood glucose is 100mg/dl in level or higher, if the triglyceride levels are equal to or higher than 135/85mm Hg. Another diagnostic factor is have useful levels of cholesterol, known as High Density Lipoproteins (HDL). Soft drinks are a known cause of this problem since those who drink any soda tend to consume an unhealthy diet of high fat and calories.
Diabetes
Daily consumption of a soda can also contribute to a high risk of suffering from diabetes. As warned by American Academy of Family Physicians as quoted by Newell ( 1), the caramel coloring and sweeteners added to soft drinks can decrease insulin sensitivity. If the body is less sensitive to insulin, its levels of blood glucose can raise leading to diabetes. Unlike the low-fat milk, or water, soda leaves the body not feeling full; meaning that taking a soda only adds calories to the body but does not curb hunger. These can lead to ingesting more calories, in turn increasing the risk of diabetes (Newell 1).
Cancer
Consuming sodas may also lead to one of the most fatal cancers, pancreatic cancer. The high level of soda sugar may increase the level of insulin in the body, which contributes to pancreatic cancer growth.
Summary
From the above explanations, it is clear that consumption of soda has many harmful effects on human health. It is evident that sodas can lead to terminal diseases such as diabetes and cancer, which are fatal to the human body. As stated above, the sugars contained in the drinks are healthy, as well as the preservative, benzoate, which inhibits the absorption of other minerals such as potassium. Other effects of the sodas include obesity, high blood pressure, heart attacks, stroke, tooth decay and eventually tooth loss and foul breath. However, this can be reduced by taking controllable amounts of soda each day and practicing more healthy eating habits. Some of the remedies mentioned in the paper are substituting sodas with low-fat milk, water and a hundred percent made fruit juices.
Conclusion
In conclusion, there are so many people who consume ounces of soda daily, a hugely popular soft drink, with extremely lethal effects. However, most of these people consume the drink to quench their thirst, not considering the adverse, negative consequences associated with its consumption. The above study compiles researches from other sources on the same and explains several effects of consuming the drink. The main question one can ask from this information is; why does this drink continue to ever-increase in popularity even with all the negative information about it from the books and other reading materials?
