Sodas are worse for your health than eating sugary junk foods and may even be worse for you than smoking. Soda is proven to be addictive and consumption has been clinically linked to increased blood pressure, high blood sugar, weight gain, kidney disease, heart disease, diabetes, depression, asthma, headaches, ear infections, joint and muscle problems, developmental delays, ADHD, heavy metal toxicity, yeast infections, urinary tract infections, candidiasis, other increased pathogenic activity, increased PMS symptoms, brain damage, liver toxicity, tooth decay, acne, mood swings, decreased fertility in men and women, and so much more!

In other words, drinking soda feeds infections, disrupts the gut microbiome and the metabolic processes, degrades cells, causes chronic illness, exacerbates virtually all chronic illness symptoms, and rapidly ages the body.

This is true for sugary sodas, diet sodas, and most energy drinks.

Recommended: How To Heal Your Gut

The Sugar in Soda

A 20-ounce bottle of Coke contains approximately 65 grams sugar which equates to about or 16 teaspoons of sugar. There are 39 grams of sugar in a 12 oz can of Coke, which is equivalent to about 10 teaspoons of sugar. Most sodas that aren’t artificially sweetened are made with high fructose corn syrup, so the teaspoons of sugar are just equivalents.

The American Heart Association recommends that Americans consume no more than five to nine teaspoons of sugar per day.¹ We contend that nine teaspoons of processed sugar are too much. Even one is too much. We don’t recommend any refined sugar.

A 20 oz soda has 2.5 servings. A standard serving size is eight ounces. There are 100 calories in one eight ounce serving of soda. These calories are void of nutrition. There’s an easy trick to figure out how many teaspoons of sugar a food has: divide the total sugar grams by four.

A 20-ounce bottle has 65 grams of sugar; 65÷4 = 16.25 teaspoons of sugar.

A can of coke has 35 grams of sugar; 35÷4=8.75 teaspoons of sugar.

If you’re trying to stick with the American Heart Association’s recommendations of no more than nine teaspoons of sugar per day you’re pretty much done after a can of soda.

Beverages are the most significant source of added sugars in the American diet.  The average American drinks almost 42 gallons of sweetened beverages a year. That’s about 39 pounds of sugar.²

Our genes are arranged within double-stranded molecules of DNA called chromosomes. At the ends of the chromosomes are stretches of DNA called telomeres. Telomeres protect the ends of chromosomes from deterioration and from fusion with other chromosomes. When chromosomes replicate, the enzymes that duplicate DNA cannot continue their duplication all the way to the end of a chromosome. Consequently, when a chromosome is duplicated it is also shortened. The telomeres act as disposable buffers at the ends of chromosomes, protecting the genes from being shortened. Over time, with cell replication, the telomere ends become progressively shorter.

Telomere length is positively correlated with lifespan, and shorter telomeres are associated with aging and an increased risk of age-related diseases. Sugar-sweetened soda consumption is associated with shorter telomeres. “Regular consumption of sugar-sweetened sodas might influence metabolic disease development through accelerated cell aging.” ³ The good news is that telomere length has been shown to increase with positive dietary and lifestyle changes.

Recommended: Holistic Guide to Healing the Endocrine System and Balancing Our Hormones

It’s Not Just the Sugar

Plain sparkling water is slightly acidic. We don’t believe these weak acids acidify the body significantly but the carbonation may cause some damage to the teeth’s enamel even without the sugar (diet sodas have been shown to cause tooth decay). There is also a theory that the phosphate used in some carbonated beverages inhibits calcium absorption. But neither of these issues compares to the damage sugar and artificial sweeteners do to the body.

Artificial colors and flavors in many soft drinks have been shown to cause hyperactivity in children.  Yellow 5 has been associated with irritability, depression, and insomnia. Caramel coloring produces a chemical called 4-methylimidazole (4-MEI). The chemical may increase the risks of developing cancer. But, again, these risks are nearly negligible when compared to the health impacts of the sweeteners.

Soda has also shown in studies to have mercury, lead, cadmium, chromium, and aluminum.^4,5,6

Diet Soda

Artificial sweeteners increase hunger and make it harder to enjoy healthier foods.

When we consume artificial sweeteners our brain thinks real sugar is coming into the body. We produce insulin to deal with the sugar that’s not there. When the sugar doesn’t arrive the insulin has nothing to store. Elevated insulin causes inflammation and depresses the immune system.⁷ Blood sugar temporarily drops but long-term use of artificial sweeteners raises blood sugar levels overall.⁸ They also alter gut bacteria, disrupt normal serotonin levels, slow metabolism, and they alter how the body responds to insulin and glucose, which can lead to glucose intolerance.^9,10

Studies suggest that drinking diet soda is associated with metabolic syndrome,¹¹ a mix of conditions that includes: high blood sugar, increased blood pressure, and ironically enough, obesity. This can lead to diabetes, heart disease, and stroke. Artificial sweeteners have been tied to Type 2 diabetes, Hypertension, Cardiovascular Disease, and cancer.^11,13

Soda Addiction

You can definitely compare the intense pleasure I get from a cold can [of soda] to having a cigarette.” – Wouter, People Explain How Soda Addiction Is Ruining Their Life

Recommended: Sugar Leads to Depression – World’s First Trial Proves Gut and Brain are Linked (Protocol Included)

Soda Facts

Soda May Cause Headaches and Migraines

Artificial sweeteners such as aspartame are listed as top migraine triggers by numerous medical authorities and migraine sufferers.” – Migraine Triggers: Artificial Sweeteners, (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7).

Caffeine and high fructose corn syrup are also common triggers for migraines.

Soda Messes Up Our Microbiome

Sugar (including dextrose, table sugar, and high fructose corn syrup) and artificial sweeteners have all been shown to disrupt gut bacteria, promote pathogenic activity, and increase the occurrence of yeast infections and urinary tract infections problems.

Soda and Diet Soda Are Making Us Fat

“The rise in soft drink consumption mirrors the national march toward obesity.” – Soda making Americans drink themselves fat

Obviously, sugar causes weight gain, but so does diet soda:

Several studies have proved conclusively that drinking diet soda is associated with weight gain.”

[…]

“Those who drank more than 3 of these drinks per day were more than twice as likely to become obese in the next 7 to 8 years.” – Here’s the Science That Explains Why Drinking Diet Soda Makes You Gain Weight

“And for another 8-year-long study between 1979-1988, participants who started out at a normal weight and drank an average of 21 diet beverages a week faced DOUBLE the risk of becoming overweight or obese by the end of the study, compared to people who avoided diet beverages completely.” – What drinking diet soda does to your body and brain

Soda Causes Diabetes

We all know sugar leads to diabetes and high-fructose corn syrup may even be worse (countries that use HFCS in their food supply had a 20 percent higher prevalence of diabetes than countries that did not use it ¹⁴). And artificial sweeteners fair no better.

A report published by the Washington Post stated that long-term use of foods and drinks containing artificial sweeteners are associated with a higher risk of Type 2 diabetes.

Diet Soda and Sugary Drinks May Lead To Stroke and Dementia

High-fructose corn syrup causes cholesterol and triglycerides levels to rise. High-sugar diets lead to diabetes. High cholesterol, high triglycerides, and diabetes increase the likelihood of strokes and dementia.

But diet soda drinkers have a higher risk of stroke and dementia compared with those who consumed conventionally sweetened soda, according to research published in the American Heart Association’s journal.¹⁵

Soda Vs. Smoking

According to this study, drinking a 20-ounce soda every day ages your cells as much as habitual smoking, an astonishing 4.6 years of aging at the cellular level.

The study, published in the Journal of Public Health, analyzed data from 5,300 Americans, ages 20 to 65: those who reported daily soda slurping were found to have significantly stunted telomeres. Telomeres, the little caps at the end of your chromosomes, are essential in regulating the lifespan of your cells, and shorter telomeres have been linked to shorter life spans, diabetes, and cancer.” – Is Soda Worse Than Cigarettes?

“Research indicates daily consumption of a 20-ounce soda (though the study didn’t say over how long a time period) correlated to nearly five years of increased aging. This is comparable to the effects smoking cigarettes have on aging.” – If You Would Never Smoke a Cigarette but Still Drink Soda, Read This

Soda Makes Us Older

Soda makes us age faster. It influences metabolic disease development through accelerated cell aging. If you’re not off soda yet, hopefully now you’re ready to kick the habit. Once you remove soda from your life your body will begin to feel much better, provided you don’t replace it with another bad habit. Waking up will feel better, going to sleep will be easier, moving will feel better, thinking will be clearer, joints will hurt less, wounds will heal faster, healthy food will taste better, allergies will lessen or disappear, and everything in your body will work better.

Recommended:

• Healthy Sugar Alternatives & More
• Detox Cheap and Easy Without Fasting – Recipes Included
• Stop Eating Like That and Start Eating Like This – Your Guide to Homeostasis Through Diet
• How to Make the Healthiest Smoothies – 4 Recipes

A study from Boston University’s School of Medicine discovered a link between consuming one or more sugary drinks a day and a decreased chance of getting pregnant. Fertility dropped in both women and men. Of the 4,000 women surveyed, those who consumed at least one sugary, soda-like drink daily experienced a 25 percent decrease in successful pregnancy attempts. The 1,000 men who were surveyed experienced 33 percent lower conception chances. The study also included sugary energy drinks. According to the lead author of the study, Elizabeth Hatch,

We found positive associations between intake of sugar-sweetened beverages and lower fertility, which were consistent after controlling for many other factors, including obesity, caffeine intake, alcohol, smoking and overall diet quality. Couples planning a pregnancy might consider limiting their consumption of these beverages, especially because they are also related to other adverse health effects.”

Related: Holistic Guide to Healing the Endocrine System and Balancing Our Hormones

A Usual Culprit

This is not the only time sugar has been linked to infertility. It’s notorious for disrupting hormones, making it difficult to maintain a healthy reproductive system. The most common cause of infertility, polycystic ovary syndrome, is aggravated by sugar consumption. Sugar is also linked to early menstruation in women, another hormone disruption.

Related: Sugar Leads to Depression – World’s First Trial Proves Gut and Brain are Linked (Protocol Included)

A Perfect Storm

Sugary soda and beverages are not the only product of modern life linked to decreasing fertility.  Pesticides, Ibuprofen, and endocrine-disrupting plastics like BPA have been linked to declining fertility rates in both men and women. Several governments from developed countries like Japan and Denmark have launched initiatives designed to increase birth rates, but one has to wonder if ad campaigns are enough to combat the aspects of modern life that will thwart those ambitions.

Sources:

• One or more soda a day could decrease chances of getting pregnant – Science Daily
• The infertility crisis is beyond doubt. Now scientists must find the cause – The Guardian
• How To Reverse The Number One Cause of Infertility – PCOS – Organic Lifestyle Magazine

The total number of cities in the United States that have voted to place a tax on beverages with added sugar like soda, sports drinks, and energy drinks grew from two cities (Philadelphia and Berkeley, CA) to six cities (San Francisco, Oakland, Albany, CA, and Boulder, CO) and one county (Cook County, which contains most of the city of Chicago). Relatively new to the United States, these “soda taxes” will or have also taken effect in France, Hungary, Ireland, Mexico, Norway, South Africa, and the United Kingdom. Much like tobacco taxes, the goal is to make the consumption of a key culprit (added sugars), which is associated with the rise of diabetes and other diseases, a less attractive choice. The effects of refined sugars on public health and healthcare costs are becoming one of the most important issues the world must face. But are taxes on sugary beverages the way to address it?

Do They Even Work?

Short answer: probably. Of all of the local governments that have passed a tax on beverages with added sugar, there is only one that has any actual data: Berkeley. That measure was passed in 2014, and it took effect in January of 2015. With Berkeley as the sample size, the numbers are promising. For minority and low-income residents in Berkeley (the population most likely to drink sugary drinks), consumption fell 21 percent once the tax was implemented. But those numbers are not the entire story.

While the increase in the price of soda likely deterred many regular customers, that wasn’t the only way the Berkeley community achieved its positive results. The first objective of the campaign is to raise awareness. The tax has been earmarked for community programs specifically designed to promote health education and diet awareness, like the Berkeley YMCA’s Diabetes Prevention and Reduce Obesity campaign and the Unified school districts gardening and nutritional education programs. As the Berkeley tax is applied to beverage distributors, not consumers, it’s possible the increased awareness campaigns are doing as much, if not more than the actual tax.

In looking at the results of the Berkeley sugary beverage tax, it’s easy to see why it’s succeeding. The tax raises awareness of the issue and the education delivers resources and strategies to make better choices. A small, progressively minded, and wealthy community like Berkeley has the infrastructure to implement this program. But the tax itself is not without issues.

Why It’s Problematic

What’s the biggest issue with a soda tax? The people enforcing it – if you can call government people. There are two hurdles to worry about that combine and amplify one other. Reason one? Any time things are taxed, governments begin to expect and rely on that money. The second question is whether the government agency that is regulating this tax and other similar taxes actually knows anything about health.

Seriously…Does It Work?

Short answer: yes. Long answer: yes. But we don’t know if it does work without the education. Education makes a difference. The low-income populations (or people likely to have less access to quality health education) are responsible for a large percentage of sugary beverage consumption. Replacing unhealthy choices with better alternatives will always create a more lasting impact on habits than merely raising the price of soda ever could. One way or the other, the world is waking up to the truth about sugar.

Sources:

• The Nation’s First Soda Tax Is Working. Can Its Success Last? – Bloomberg.com
• Frequently Asked Questions About Berkeley’s Soda Tax – berkeleyvsbigsoda.com
• Regular Soda Popular with Young, Nonwhite, Low-income – gallup.com
• Berkeley soda tax revenue to fund cooking, gardening programs in local schools – The Daily Californian

For most people, living a healthy lifestyle is no easy task. Being healthy involves a few hundred decisions every single day about what and where to eat, how to exercise, what medicines or vitamins are necessary, and so much more. Even talking about healthy eating isn’t easy. Food has so much associated context and culture that discussing a healthy diet can be as tricky as conversations about religion or politics.

Don’t think so? Put a vegan, paleo eater, and the average American in a room and watch them go to war over their food philosophies. It’s not that one person is right and the others are wrong; they each have a completely different belief about what constitutes a healthy diet.

In his book and recent documentary, In Defense of Food, Michael Pollan goes into great detail explaining how different foods (processed and unprocessed) affect the body and how “nutritionism” (a focus on individual nutrients rather than the food itself) has derailed our understanding of food. The result has been decades of focusing on fat, cholesterol, fiber, vitamins, antioxidants, or calories, which has left humans fatter, sicker, and more confused than ever.

The mantras “Eat less, exercise more,” “ Balance energy,” and “Everything in moderation,” have brainwashed generations of Americans into believing they can eat whatever they want as long as they exercise enough to “burn it off.” The problem is, this doesn’t work.

Last year, a conglomeration of beverage companies created a campaign called MyMixify to convince kids that they can “mixify” their lives by “balancing” some activity with a sports drink or sugary juice beverage. High-fructose corn syrup, the form of sugar found in most commercial sodas, sports drinks, and fruit drinks today, has been shown to have a detrimental effect on the liver and to increase insulin resistance and it is associated with type-2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome. Even zero calorie “diet” beverages have been shown to negatively affect the intestinal microbiome and raise blood sugar in the process.

By perpetuating the premise that a calorie equals a calorie, that a calorie from a nutritious vegetable is the equal of a calorie from high fructose corn syrup, processed food companies avoid any responsibility for the food they create, placing the blame squarely on the shoulders of the consumers. It’s not the highly processed, incredibly addictive, preservative and sugar-filled, artificially colored and flavored substances that are the problem, it’s that you are not running 10 miles daily to burn it off! “Don’t blame us!” they say.

Sorry, Coke and Pepsi, but you can’t out exercise junk food.

Quality Matters

Most people who change their diets from a standard American diet to paleo, vegetarian, vegan or similar diets see significant changes to their health largely due to the removal of processed foods. (If they actually stick with it, of course.) Those who change their diets but continue to eat processed foods, generally do not see the same benefits. The reason is that the human body does not treat all foods the same. Everything gets digested and responded to by hormones differently, depending upon the type of food, quality of ingredient(s), and composition of nutrients.

In his book, The Dorito Effect, author Mark Schatzker dives into the world of flavor and its impact on nutrition and our health. Flavor isn’t just a bonus; it actually tells us what’s in the food we’re eating. The fruits, vegetables, and even animals we’re consuming today are being bred for speed to market and shelf stability, not flavor. The results are foods that have less nutritional value and less flavor than foods traditionally raised. Taste a fresh tomato fresh from the garden, then taste one “fresh” from the grocery store. The difference is like night and day. One has grown into full ripeness on the vine and is bursting with life and flavor, the other was picked while still green, trucked across the country and treated with ethylene gas to “ripen” before it is brought to the store. It  has a mealy, cardboard-like texture and flavor.

So Which Would You Rather Eat?

Conversely, quality helps moderate the amount we eat as well. When was the last time you overate a plate of salmon or broccoli or eggs? Can’t recall? What about a bag of chips? Or a bottle of soda? Foods that are created to be devoured mindlessly like chips or soda are incredibly easy to over consume. They are high in “flavor” (mostly from chemical additives) but low in nutrition, so your body wants to keep eating, thinking that some nutrition has to be in there somewhere. Sadly, it isn’t. But with real food that is full of flavor and nutritional value, you don’t need to eat as much to feel full and satisfied because your body is actually receiving both a nutritious and delicious meal.

To bring this philosophy back to health and the daily decisions consumers make, a movement toward real food is growing in America. Enlightened consumers don’t want the Monsanto bred corn grain or factory farmed meats from the slaughterhouse. To put it simply, they want quality not quantity.

Michael Pollan’s take away from In Defense of Food is to follow these simple rules:

• Eat food.
• Don’t eat too much.
• Eat mostly plants.

Whatever your dietary preference, we couldn’t agree more. Whether you’re paleo, vegetarian, vegan, low carb or just want to be healthy, these are words to live by.

While tracking calories may be a part of your healthy lifestyle, focusing only on calorie counts will not create a healthier life. Obsessing over one aspect of a food isn’t healthy. Instead, focus on quality whole foods (non-processed foods) and enjoy. Your body will take care of the rest!

So What To Do Now?

When cooking at home, it’s quite easy to regulate what goes onto your plate. When dining out, however, do you really know what’s going on behind the curtain? In order to extend this real food philosophy to the dining world, Tasteful App (available on iOS and Google Play) ranks restaurants based on the quality of their ingredients and the benefits for certain types of diet. So no matter where or how you’re eating, you can make truly healthy decisions.

Related Reading:

• Fitness vs. Health – Letter from the Editor
• Detox Cheap and Easy Without Fasting – Recipes Included
• Healthy Sugar Alternatives and More
• 8 Steps to Health

Many of our favorite junk foods increase the risk of weight gain, cardiac arrest, stroke, and other diseases. Diet sodas appear to be an easy way around unhealthy calories while still allowing you a familiar indulgence, but don’t let yourself be fooled. Diet sodas contain a chemical cocktail that drives your metabolism crazy and increases your risk of disease.

If you’re regularly guzzling down diet sodas, here are seven reasons why you seriously need to quit today. I’ll also give you a few practical solutions to help ditch the habit.

Cravings

All diet sodas contain artificial sweeteners. These sweeteners trick your brain (momentarily) into thinking it is about to receive sugary calories. But when the calories are not received, your brain sends signals that you need food, resulting in food cravings.

Weight Gain

Food cravings make it difficult to balance the pleasure centers of the brain, thus increasing your vulnerability to the next high-calorie sweet treat that crosses your path. That’s a tough psychological battle to win.

Chronic Illness

Aspartame, an artificial sweetener found in over 6,000 food products including diet sodas, has been found to trigger or worsen chronic illnesses including brain cancer, diabetes, Alzheimer’s, and multiple sclerosis. Aspartame should be considered an enemy of the State!

Corrosion

If a diet soda (search youtube.com for this one) can be used to clean a corroded battery and remove rust, imagine what it’s doing to the lining of your stomach, esophagus, and teeth.

Kidney Decline

A Harvard Medical School study found that women who drank more than two diet sodas per day had a 30% decline in kidney function compared to women who do not drink diet soda.

Dehydration

Diet soda is in no way a replacement for water. Caffeine and sodium found in most diet sodas make you thirsty and cause frequent urination. The average person would rather pay a little extra at the vending machine for another diet soda instead of drinking a free glass of water. This causes a cycle of headaches, fatigue, dry mouth, constipation, and hot flashes — each one a symptom of dehydration

Poor Metabolism

A Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA) study linked diet soda to a 36 percent higher risk of metabolic syndromes that cause your metabolism to function at unfavorable speeds. If you want a metabolism that can keep pace with the Indy 500, avoid diet sodas.

So how do you ditch the diet soda habit? Replace it with water. The human body is more than 60 percent water, yet most of us still don’t drink enough of it. Here are a few practical solutions to drinking more water:

Add a Lemon: Yes, water is sometimes tasteless and boring. Try adding a lemon, mint or an orange slice to liven it up a bit, or experiment with a fruit-infused water.
Spice it Up: Not only are cayenne (red) peppers a super healthy seasoning, they will also have you reaching for a cold glass of water during dinner.
Keep it on You: Buy a clear 74- ounce container and keep it in plain sight at all times. Challenge yourself to drink the entire container over the course of the day.
Remember the Savings: Restaurant water is free — why pass up on the savings? Plus most restaurants use a filtration system on their tap, so it tastes even better.

Diet soda can lead to several serious health problems. Replace it with water for a healthy alternative. What’s your best tip for quitting?

Further Reading:

• 4 Reasons To Never Drink Soda Again
• Diet Soda Aspartame Linked To Premature Deaths In Women

Sources:

• Can’t seem to shed weight – no matter how hard you try – or after dieting, you always gain it all back? Here are 5 simple steps to fix this – ReinventingAging
• Associations of Sugar and Artificially Sweetened Soda with Albuminuria and Kidney Function Decline in Women – PMC
• Diet Drink – Wikipedia
• Diet Soda Intake and Risk of Incident Metabolic Syndrome and Type 2 Diabetes in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA) – PMC

(DrFrankLipman – Frank Lipman) In 1946, there was a famous ad that read “more doctors smoke Camels than any other cigarette.” In 1976, Coke’s slogan was “Coke adds Life!” Fast forward a few decades, and we all know better. Both of those ads, however amusingly anachronistic they may now seem, fooled a lot of people and helped damage the bodies of millions of people, the only upside being that now at least, there’s a warning label on cigarettes. I think Coke should have one too. A few years back former Mayor Bloomberg got close by banning sales of super-sized sodas in NYC, a move applauded by all of us in the health community. Not surprisingly, soda manufacturers fought the measure, hoping to shout down health and safety concerns, but the word got out and finally, soda’s getting the bad rap it so richly deserves. With this in mind, just in time for summer, I want to remind you to eliminate soda and soft drinks, sugared or diet, from your life and your family’s. Here are 4 simple reasons to make your soda break-up a no-brainer:

1. They Do a Number on Your Body

There is no conceivable benefit to drinking soft drinks, and their health drawbacks are legion. For starters, they significantly increase diabetes risk and put you at higher risk for cancer, not to mention the added bonus of increased heart attack and stroke risk for daily diet soda drinkers. If that weren’t enough, the phospohoric acid in soft drinks contributes to tooth and bone weakening by facilitating calcium loss. Osteoporosis anyone? A “Coke and a smile?” I don’t think so.

2. There are Toxins in Every Sip

I get it. It’s hot. You’re thirsty and you’re thinking a Coke would taste good on a hot summer day. But would it be as appealing if you took a moment to consider the toxins floating around in that bubbling brown witches brew? Though the actual recipe is a closely guarded secret, there are several alarming ingredients whose damaging effects on your health should stop you in your tracks. Among them: benzene, a known carcinogen; the preservative sodium benzoate which can damage your DNA; high fructose corn syrup, which in addition to encouraging diabetes and obesity, can contain traces of mercury. Add to that the recent questions that have been raised about the presence of 4-methylimidazole (4-MeI) in Coke and Pepsi – which has been shown to cause cancer in lab rats – and perhaps your ice cold soft drink might be better described as a hot mess.

3. The Can isn’t Doing You any Favors Either

Would you like some gender-bending endocrine disruptors with your drink? Then you’ve come to the right place because perennial favorite bisphenol-A (BPA) comes free in every can! So what’s a little BPA between friends? Well, for the soda makers, it means continued profits. For you, however, it can mean ingestion of a chemical which interferes with your hormone function and has been linked to breast cancer, prostate cancer and neurological problems in lab animals. How’s that Coke tasting now?

4. Sodas are Unkind to the Earth

Soda production isn’t a very clean or green business. Between the chemical needed to produce this junk, the fuel needed to transport it, and the tons of plastic bottles created to contain it, one has to question if it’s worth it, just to get a hit of health-destroying, liquid sugar. Take it a step further and consider that even though you may be a rigorous recycler, your bottle may well wind up in the water and polluting the ocean. Bottom line: don’t be part of the problem – just let soda go.

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is calling for a municipal ban on the sale of sugary drinks of greater than 16 ounces

Mayor Michael Bloomberg has banned smoking in New York City as well as Trans-fats in restaurants. He had forced chain restaurants to put calorie counts on menus, and he got sugary soft drinks out of city and school vending machines.

Now, with his continued efforts to curb obesity and lower the cost of health care in New York, Bloomberg is calling for a municipal ban on the sale of sugary drinks of greater than 16 ounces.

The ban applied defines the drinks to be barred that contain more than 25 calories per 8 ounces. This does not include diet sodas.

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg spoke to MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell responding to the many critics of his extremely controversial big ban, “The idea is you tend to eat all of the food in the container. If it’s bigger, you eat more. If somebody put a smaller glass or plate or bowl in front of you, you would eat less.”

Even progressive liberal comedian-pundit John Stewart is clearly not a fan of the proposal.

The ban would outlaw the sale of sugary drinks 16 oz or more in restaurants and vending machines (including those at gas stations), but you would still be able to purchase large bottles at stores. And of course, the six pack will still be an option is well.

I have mixed emotions about this ban. Soda consumption is one of the most significant contributors of a wide range of disease.

(Image courtesy of The Daily Mail)

But personally, I would rather see our government attempt to educate people as opposed to controlling people. Most people are still unaware of not only of how much sugar is in soda, but also, how bad sugar really is for us. And I would also like to see artificially sweetened foods, including diet soda, banned. Also, as far as laws are concerned, I would much prefer restrictions placed on advertising such as those commercials that try to convince us that Sunny Delight is good for your kids, or that high fructose corn syrup is perfectly healthy “in moderation.”

What do you think of New York’s proposed ban on large sodas?