When I saw Coca-Cola’s new anti-obesity ad, my jaw dropped wide open. Yes, you read that right… Coca-Cola is on a new mission to fight the obesity epidemic now, in what I call a desperate attempt to prevent declining sales. The sad part is that some people will actually believe their nonsense. In the advertisement they try to make a case that there is room for Coca-Cola products in people’s “healthy” diets.
Coca-Cola is promoting the introduction of new low calorie beverages and using the failed logic of “a calorie is a calorie” to convince people who need to lose weight to keep Coca-Cola products around in their diet. But you know what? A calorie isn’t a calorie – when it’s made up of chemicals that affect how much you eat and the way your body metabolizes those chemicals.
So I’m here to break that down for you and detail out why Coca-Cola’s low calorie beverages will not fight obesity – and if anything – the reliance on low calorie chemical-filled drinks just perpetuates the problem even more. Proving in fact, that these drinks will continue to be linked to the increase in obesity.
If you want to see the full advertisement video…it is at the bottom of this post…but I don’t recommend watching it (unless you want to get a good laugh) because it deserves no more attention and I want you to focus on the truth that I am about to share with you now.
(And when you see this advertisement being played during the Super Bowl coming up – I suggest you yell loudly at the TV, like I plan on doing.)
Quotes from Coca-Cola’s Anti Obesity Advertisement:
“For over 125 years, we have been bringing people together”
Really?? How? By selling a products to adults and children that are linked to diabetes, heart disease and obesity? Hmmm…. What do you call spending millions of dollars against the consumer’s right to know – i.e. GMO labeling – Is this bringing people together? If anything – it makes you an enemy company people should boycott.
“We’ve created smaller portion control sizes for our most popular drinks and we’ll have then in about 90% of the country by the end of this year”
A smaller can of poison will not solve obesity. Thank you.
“No matter where they come from, including Coca-Cola and everything else with calories. And if you eat and drink more calories than you burn off, you’ll gain weight”
This is faulty logic and I’ll show you why in just a minute…
Across our portfolio of more than 650 beverages we now offer over 180 low and no calorie choices and most of our full calorie beverages now have low or no calorie versions. Over the last 15 years, this has helped reduce the average calories per serving across our industries products in the US by about 22%”
This is where I want to take a closer look at exactly which low calorie beverages Coca-Cola is referring to… here are some examples and the ingredients these low calorie beverages include:
Artificial Sugars – Linked to Obesity and a Myriad of Diseases
Sure you can save some calories drinking beverages with artificial sugars, but you won’t reduce your risk of obesity or getting a tumor.
If someone is trying to lose weight, the consumption of artificial sweeteners is not the solution and will not work as long term strategy. Artificial Sweeteners are proven to stimulate your appetite, increase carbohydrate cravings, and promote fat storage and weight gain.
That’s right – consuming artificial sweeteners actually increases your appetite. Think about it – when someone consumes something that is sweet, but it has little to no calories – their brain receives a signal to want more calories because their body is not actually getting any energy (i.e. enough calories) to get satisfied. So that person keeps looking for gratification elsewhere and ends up craving more.
The fact that Coca-Cola and other food industry giants are getting away with this “orchestrated deception” is unbelievable and then to say developing low calorie beverages using these artificial sweeteners is actually going to help the obesity epidemic? Seriously? Who are they kidding?
Furthermore, there are more dangerous side effects from artificial sweeteners, especially aspartame, which is considered one the most dangerous substances allowed in our food supply. Aspartame is found in Powerade, Diet Coke, Coke Zero, Diet Dr. Pepper, Fanta Light, Fuze, Minute Maid Light, etc.
Over 10,000 complaints have been filed with the FDA on this substance since 1980 and has actually never been proven to be safe before it was approved for use in our food supply. Aspartame is linked to diabetes, auto-immune disorders, depression (which can cause you to eat more – once again), birth defects, and several forms of cancer.
“Erythritol” found in Vitamin Water Zero is a sugar alcohol the body does not easily digest and is linked to diarrhea, headache and other intestinal disorders.
Acesulfame Potassium or acesulfame K is the one of main sweeteners in Minute Maid Fruit Falls – which is a low calorie beverage aimed at kids – and Monster Zero for example. According to the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) it is anything but safe. CSPI reported the safety tests of acesulfame-K that were conducted in the 1970s were inadequate. Specifically, two rat studies suggest that the additive might cause cancer, but these studies were never addressed by the FDA before they approved the substance to also be used unregulated in soft drinks. In addition it is mentioned that large doses of acetoacetamide (a breakdown product of this sugar) have been shown to affect the thyroid in rats, rabbits, and dogs. As you might know – the thyroid gland – regulates the endocrine system, which is responsible the metabolism.
If Coca-Cola wanted to really improve their offerings – they would immediately eliminate artificial sugars from their products.
Natural Flavors – Trick Consumers To Drink More
By producing zero or low calorie drinks that taste like the “real thing,” Coca-Cola is “hijacking” your taste buds one by one. Food scientists can engineer natural flavors to cause the inability to stop eating or drinking. All of the Coca-Cola products listed above have added natural flavors. These flavors scientists synthesize trick your mind into wanting more and more. They don’t want you to have the full essence of the strawberry or real coconut – they want you to only experience the best 1 millionth part of the taste – so you get “addicted” and keep having to go back for more and more, searching continuously for gratification – eating more of that product which in turns fills Coca-Cola’s pocket, as well as other big food companies.
This is an industry trick that is used in so many products – beyond drinks – but is the most prevalent in low calorie beverages. In a few versions of Coca-Cola’s product Zico – a coconut water – they have to use natural flavors to cover up the fact that they are getting coconuts from all over the world, that taste different, which they then process into “concentrate.” The coconut water is heated down to syrup and then reconstituted with water. To keep the flavor consistent – they have to add back in natural flavors and what you end up with is an inferior product that is a mix of several different species of coconuts that have lost their original integrity, taste and nutrition.
Artificial Colors – Attract Adults and Children to Unhealthy Drinks
Adding artificial colors into food, actually contributes to the obesity epidemic by attracting children (and adults) to fake sweetened drinks that provide almost zero nutrition. This is another marketing ploy by Coca-Cola to target more people to get addicted to their products.
Additionally – it’s important to note – the caramel coloring that Coca-Cola and other soda giants like Pepsi use – is completely artificial – not the stuff you make at home by cooking sugar. This caramel color is manufactured by heating ammonia and sulfites under high pressure, which creates carcinogenic compounds. A high dose of this known carcinogen is proven to cause liver tumors, lung tumors, and thyroid tumors in rats and mice.
When The Center for Science in the Public Interest released a study last year found dangerous levels of caramel coloring could be contributing to thousands of cancers in the US, it prompted Coca-Cola and Pepsi to quickly change their formulas so they didn’t have to include the cancer warning label on their products in California.
Regardless of the reformulation – many of Coca-Cola’s products still contain this caramel coloring – even if it’s in a lesser amount. How small of a dose of poison are you willing to take on a regular basis?
Overconsumption of Caffeine – Causes Addiction and Adrenal Fatique
The reason why so many of Coca-Cola’s low calorie drinks contain caffeine – is because they want you to become addicted. The stimulation you get from the caffeine, along with the taste of something sweet – keeps you coming back for more and more. One of the most alarming drinks on the market is “Monster Zero” which can directly affect how your adrenal glands function and lead to persistent exhaustion. What happens when people are exhausted all the time? They stop moving… and likely gain weight.
Right now, Monster energy drinks is being sued by multiple families because it is suspected to have caused death of their loved ones. Despite these lawsuits and the recent FDA report about the dangers of energy drinks, Monster continues to be on the market.
Genetically Modified Organisms or GMO’s – Linked to Obesity
Every single one of Coca-Cola’s products here are likely to have GMO’s. That’s because they have a hidden corn based product – like sorbitol, fructose, aspartame, maltodextrin, or citric acid. And why in the world would they have spent millions fighting GMO-labeling in California, if their products weren’t full of them!
A study published in the International Journal of Biological Sciences shows that GM food is indeed contributing to the obesity epidemic. The study found that GM corn fed to mice led to an increase in overall body weight of about 3.7 percent, while also increasing the weight of the liver by up to 11 percent.
The American Academy of Environmental Medicine (AAEM), reported studies that show GMOs responsible for faulty insulin regulation and therefore advise their patients to have GMO-free diets.
Preservatives – Accelerate Aging and Acidify The Body
Preservatives like sodium benzoate are in almost all of Coca-Cola’s products. The Mayo Clinic reported that this preservative may increase hyperactivity in children. Also, when sodium benzoate combines with ascorbic acid (vitamin C) benzene can form a carcinogen and kill DNA cells, and accelerate aging.
Preservatives cause accelerated aging because they acidify the body. Dr. Jameth Sheridan (D.H.M.) Doctor of Holistic Medicine, states that it takes 36 glasses of water to re-alkaline your body after drinking just one diet soda. 36 glasses! Wow.
When your body is in an alkaline state your chances of developing disease is significantly lower than a body in an acidic state. This is because our bodies are made of up of billions of cells that are naturally alkaline according to it’s ph balance. When we consume more acidic foods (i.e. many of Coca-Cola’s low calorie drinks) vs. alkaline foods this upsets the balance and leads to all sorts of trouble for our bodies and the organs that regulate our metabolism and weight.
Bisphenol A (aka BPA) in Cans – Linked to Obesity
After reviewing the results of over 3,000 children and teens who had high urine BPA levels and high body mass index, a very recent study determined that BPA is linked to childhood obesity. BPA has already been banned in baby bottles – however, kids across the country are still drinking Coca-Cola products tainted with this environmental toxin.
Coca-Cola has downright refused to eliminate BPA from it’s products and even defends the use of this metabolism destroying compound on their website.
Fructose & Fruit Juice From Concentrate – Too Much Sugar For the Body To Process
You’ll find crystalline fructose in Vitamin Water Zero, which is made from (genetically modified) corn starch which is 20% sweeter than sugar. Fructose is processed by the body differently than other sugars – and is linked to fatty liver disease, cirrhosis, coronary arterial disease and obesity.
Coca-Cola claims that they have helped remove soda from schools by replacing them with juices. (This not entirely true – they actually fought the removal of vending machines in schools). Nonetheless, these juices are mainly comprised of fruit juice concentrates and do little if anything to solve the problem of obesity.
Consuming fruit juice concentrate on a regular basis actually overloads sugar in the liver, which increases the risk of diabetes, heart disease and obesity.
For instance, Minute Maid fruit juice might contain several ounces of straight fructose, with none of the fiber, pulp, or living enzymes that help the body properly digest the sugar.
A Cola Cola sponsored smoothie bar using real whole fruit in schools would be a MUCH better solution – just a thought.
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In summary, at the end of Coca Coca’s advertisement they invite you to….
“To learn more, and visit coke.com/comingtogether”
Ha! That’s funny. When pigs fly! That’s the last place anyone should go to learn about solving obesity.
If you know a friend or family member who still consumes Coca-Cola products – especially these “low or zero calorie” beverages – please share this article with them.
You could be their hero!
Wishing you lots love, health and a longer life than this tortoise.
Food Babe
Well done, Food Babe! Coke needs to be called out on this. So many companies are trying to mask what they really are in order to jump on the healthy bandwagon, and people need to be informed that artificial sweeteners among other questionable ingredients a healthy drink do not make. A nutrient-filled calorie is not the same as an empty calorie. There’s so many issues with all of this, and you covered them nicely.
Excellent article, Food Babe! I cite your work DAILY to my patients, friends, and colleagues. As a strong proponent for the cannabis movement, I have found that we are targeting the same “illnesses” that currently plague our society. Millions of dollars are spent, drowning the public in false claims, pseudo truths, and empty promises. I’m so glad to have your research, philosophy, and tenacity in my pocket – anytime I come across an individual with hard questions. As I feel overwhelmed trying to push the envelope for cannabis science, technology and understanding – I am constantly motivated by your ability to target the giants with a sling-shot of truth! Thanks for the hard work, love! 🙂
Great post! I appreciate and look forward to reading about your research and thoughts! Keep up the good work!
Damn these companies are nasty. I thought Zico was natural. I never bought it but was going to give it a try since it is coconut water. I would have caught it if I read the label. I’ll have to go with RAW ORGANIC coconut water.
Be careful Coke, Pepsi, General Mills, Kellogg’s, Kraft, etc. they are all getting into the natural and organic brands and WEAKENING the organic standards. These companies (and people who work at them) are on the wrong side of history.
My aunt was telling me about a food drive at her child’s daycare and people brought a lot of Similac. I thought of all the poor children being fed GMOs.
Take back your life, grow your own food, and educate yourself and if others listen great… but first YOU!
I love the “and people that work for them” comment. Who do you work for? Some people are in need of a job to support their families. Don’t like it? Don’t eat it. No one is forcing you or anyone else to buy these products.
Very true, Scott. Sometimes people on a crusade to save the world don’t think about the ramifications, and who they have to step on to reach their goals.
SCOTT R. and Linda -^^ sorry, but if your idea of poisoning people” because people need to feed their family” is justification for poisoning a population, then i don’t care about your “family”, nor who we have to step on! No one is forcing anyone to eat anything, however – that is the incredible importance of labeling – i can’t avoid toxins, if the Corporations can get away with not labelling,hiding them, and using different Company names!
on reading the article carefully it mentions that in few versions of Zico, concentrate is used. Zico makes flavoured drinks that has the coconut water concentrate. However they also claim to have a natural product that is 100% natural coconut water. I got these from costco and the nutritional info does not list any other ingredient than natural coconut water. Do we believe this ? 🙂
Some valid points but this article needed a major editing overhaul. “Loose weight”? Ugh.
Agreed! It’s a shame to have something as simple as a misspelling of a common word to besmirch one’s credibility!
I love how the NY Times continues to be one of the top newspapers in the country, however they have typos every single day. Thanks for pointing mine out, it’s corrected.
Jeez lighten up. This is a blog not a major national news outlet. Food Babe writes entries with the purpose of educating people about food, and she writes a lot of them in addition to her full time job and other responsibilities. She doesn’t have editorial staff on hand to go through with a fine tooth comb and edit little mistakes. You being so quick to judge doesn’t besmirch her credibility, it makes you two (Alexa and Serina) look like internet trolls with nothing better to do than point out tiny mistakes instead of applaud Vani’s valiant efforts to change America’s food industry.
The terrible grammar exhibited in the article undercut everything she is trying to say, and makes the article untrustworthy to anyone not familiar with her work. A little editing and proofreading would go a long way toward making the blog more credible.
Thanks Vani! Great article. I know what you’re trying to relay and that’s all that matters to me.
You have a lot of good resources and information here – thank you for that. And Food, Inc. shared your article on Facebook, which is awesome exposure for you, so congratulations! If I might make a suggestion, please spend some more time proofreading or get someone to help you. We are in an information and misinformation war, in which companies are paying millions of dollars to fund studies with skewed conclusions. If you want to be believed and cited, the typos and errors won’t help with that. Keep on fighting the good fight!
I buy my kids the Honest Kids drinks once in a while for lunch boxes. I thought organic meant gmo-free….can you explain why these drinks are on the list? They seem so innocent. Thanks for all you do!
Hi Jillian – sorry for the late response…Organic does mean non-GMO. Honest kids does not contain GMOs but they do have natural flavors and preservatives. Look again at the chart in the post and you can see what is checked off. https://foodbabe.com/2011/12/01/chemical-warfare-with-natural-flavor/
I can’t believe somebody says this stuff. For years I could never find this kind of information re the bad health effects of diet sodas. Way to go, Food Babe!
A calorie is a calorie. The ”research” referenced is always from the
áu naturale group…not from canonized medicine.
What she obviously does not know is that when ”rats” or ”mice” are
given various chemicals to test the effect on bodily functions and health….they are given hundreds if not thousands of the dosage a humanoid would eat/drink in any given period.
There are a very large number of chemicals….in other foods, drinks, lotions, makeup, and toiletries in general….that would harm us IF…IF taken in the quantities given to test animals. This scaring of America is deplorable with its falsities. Drinking fruit juice???……poor choice for anyone….the fibers are gone and the calorie content per serving far, far exceed what one would get just eating the dumb orange in the first place.
There have been NO valid studies that show that aspartimine has
ANY connection to a cancer, or strokes or brain damage or Parkinsons’s
or anything. Coincidents occur. True scientists know how to
make conclusions….most on here, do not.
Coke owns Odwalla and Simply Orange, I am sure you will find something wrong with those products as well. People like you don’t want to find any good with major corporations. Many of the products you mentioned, although not perfect, provide people with affordable lower calorie beverages which will help with obesity. Not everyone can afford to drink 100% organic beverages with no preservatives. The health risks of obesity is far worse than the FDA approved ingredients you mention.
“People like you don’t want to find any good with major corporations. Many of the products you mentioned, although not perfect, provide people with affordable lower calorie beverages which will help with obesity.”
Dave…are you an ostrich? Because you must have your head in the sand if you can read this article and turn around and say these concoctions are going to help people loose weight! Experts have been telling people for YEARS that fake sweets makes the body crave real sweets, and many of the fake sweets are toxins (read POISON) in and of themselves. Ignoring the fake sugar debate did you just choose to forget the other aspects of these drinks that make them harmful not healthy. Caramel color, genecticly modified organisims, perservatives, to list just a few. Perhaps you should take your head out of the sand and SEE what is going on instead of making sweeping, generalized statements “People like you don’t want to find any good with major corporations”. Just because the FDA approves something that doesn’t make it safe. “On September 30, 2004, the drug company Merck recalled its popular pain reliever Vioxx from the market because it was found to increase the risk of blood clots in patients. The FDA has estimated that as many as 27,000 patients may have died.” Oh my!!! An FDA approved product produced by a “major corporation” that is responsible for thousands of deaths.
oops! lose not loose
” Not everyone can afford to drink 100% organic beverages with no preservatives.”
Last I checked, water was free.. or at least included in your monthly bills…
And then we are told not to drink our city water, because it contains chlorine and flouride. So what then?
A simple PUR or Britta filter will remove chlorine, a reverse osmosis filter will pull fluoride.
Well said David!!!
It’s called post-marketing surveillance. After phase II trials — which looks at side effects, the drug appeared to be safe. Thank God we have people devoted to sound, statistically proven evidence that allows us to go back and recall unsafe products like Vioxx. Now please, someone, send me the link to the documents of the randomized, controlled clinical trials that show that these chemicals cause cancer, cause obesity, increase cravings… they’re ALL CORRELATIONS AND NOTHING SCIENTIFICALLY PROVEN!!!!
“are you an ostrich?” I LOVE THAT! I’m recycling the phrase and using it all the time now. I’m reading this particular blog because I was trying to see if FoodBabe said anything about Odwalla since I was happily snacking on one I got from Earthfare and I look down – first ingredient – Isolated Soy Protein… my heart sinks. And then I see this guy saying – what can we eat and now I’m distracted since Dave does appear to have his head in the sand. He should really stop bothering to read this site or any others if he wants to remain ignorant.
I know a great affordable lower calorie beverage, water!!
One doesn’t NEED low calorie versions of this crap. Filtered water is more affordable and can be flavored with a bit of REAL fruit or spice -even organic is cheaper than a can of diet whatever.
That’s what will really fight obesity -avoiding ALL this crap.
Love you, FB!
You must have failed high school math. Because anyone with the most basic rudimentary math skills can figure out the cost of a decent filtration system and its maintenance is much greater than a cheap carton of diet Pepsi.
what do you recommend for healthy sweeteners?
Good question. Was wondering that myself. I’ve been using Truvia, at the suggestion of a friend who is much more health conscious than I am. Hoping it is the smarter choice…
Any non-refined sweetener is going to be better for you, and cause less significant spikes in blood sugar: Raw honey, maple syrup, agave nectar. Truvia is an isolated extract of the Stevia plant. I believe it is still sold in this country as “dietary supplement” because it has not yet been approved by the FDA as a food ingredient. It has been used in Japan for decades.
Thanks, Renee. 😉
Foodbabe,
Re the GMO in the USDA honest kids drink. Waft do you mean by your reply above?
“Yeah… that stupid 5% loop hole is terrible in my opinion.”
Are you saying USDA does allow GMO’s?
Disregard FB. I totally understand now. Loopholes stink, but no surprise.
I am breastfeeding and horribly addicted to diet cherry pepsi…..i feel so guity about feeding my daughter Aspartame!!! I am looking for something similar with caffiene that would be a safer substitute…also, it is really starting to make me sick it seems everything is full of poision- what CAN we eat and drink?? how can we stop monsanto?
Hi, Katie!
I drink unsweetened iced tea to replace the Diet Soda. It’s not as yummy, but it helps!
Well done for breastfeeding! (not many people do these days) 🙂 I would recommend Water, Freshly squeezed orange juice or apple juice, cranberry juice, organic herbal or fruit teas or if you really love cherry soda make your own with a black cherry concentrate from the health store (you only need a tiny bit) and carbonated water. Hope this helps 🙂
You are not addicted to Cherry Pepsi, diet or otherwise. There is nothing addictive in it. You are allowing yourself to blame someone else (in this case, Pepsico) for your lack of willpower in giving up things you crave. One of the big differences between European people and consumers from the States (and probably a contributory factor in our diets being different / certain additives being banned here) is that we largely take responsibility for what we put in our mouths, and if we don’t want to eat something, we just don’t do it. We also don’t allow our children to eat McDonalds’ and Coke and then have the audacity to blame the companies that make them for our inability to feed them healthily.
What foodbabe says about artificial sweeteners enhancing your appetite may be true, but that doesn’t mean you have to eat more just because you feel like doing so. Take responsibility, America!
Great article. Now I know what not to ever buy.
I like the helpful info you provide in your articles. I
This article had some wonderful information and I learned a lot, but I had a hard time reading it because of all the typos and grammatical errors. Please proofread before you publish!
I haven’t read all the comments on here BUT I just watched the video and there is NOT ONE OBESE PERSON IN IT!!! I recommend that everyone read the book “Coke Machine”…it’s a very eye opening look at how they really operate especially in “developing” countries. I was in Mexico 2 years ago and Coca Cola was more expensive than Dasani (I know it’s a Coke product, but it’s WATER!) they are taking advantage of the fact that many people there do not have access to clean, healthy water to drink, and instead are making their water products MORE expensive than their toxic “soda” products, it’s really disgusting and despicable…
woops! Coke was LESS expensive than Dasani (their water product)…I got so worked up!
Hi Food Babe – I enjoy your posts immensely – I’m offering my editing & proofreading services at $50 an article.
A smart mind, can read over,typos, and still get the information.If your proof reading, then your not really getting the gist, and you all sound pompous.
So disturbing on so many levels.
I’m diabetic and drank Pepsi all my life until I was diagnosed and had been drinking Coke Zero ever since. I do find I am pretty addicted to it, but I’m certainly willing to switch to something else. However, it would be nice if you provided some suggested alternatives (besides water).
First things first this isn’t a communist country so quit putting ideas in peoples minds the government is already trying to control people its a free country if people want to be overweight let them that’s their choice they have free will to spend their money where ever they want taxes and laws are one thing but people should be able to spend their money how ever they want!!
Ps go get a real job
If people are fooled into thinking that products that have multiple disease-causing chemicals in them are Healthy, bedazzled as they are by slick advertising teams that earn a lot of money from hoodwinking people into buying nasty products then surely you should be thanking this person for bringing these issues to your narrow-minded attention. All she is doing is exposing the truth and you harangue her for that? YOU don’t have to read the article nor do you have to pay attention to it but other people who are not aware of the dangers of these food products may be grateful that they have been informed!
and by the way what is your definition of a “real job” is it slaving away in an assembly line at a factory bringing home barely enough to pay the rent? Or standing up for the people and trying to make a difference in this food-controlled, mind-controlled slave-like system we are in?? Just go back to sleep…
Of course it’s not a communist country . . . corporations could not be considered persons in the eyes of the law if it were. But companies should have some moral obligations, shouldn’t they? Also, this blogger has just as much right to express her views as anyone else, thanks to the first amendment.
Now on to your main point . . . certainly anyone has the right to be as obese as they want but they do not have the right to expect everyone else to foot the bill for their additional healthcare costs if they are unwilling to try living a healthy lifestyle. No judgment here, just fact: Obesity creates chronic illness, increases healthcare expense, shortens life span and reduces quality of life – particularly at its end. I know this first-hand. I was obese and unwell. I am now at the right weight and I am well.
Finally, your comment about getting a real job was nasty. Are you and adult?
In the fall of 2010, I quit fake sweeteners. Prior to that, I drank 24-36 ounces of Diet Pepsi or Diet Coke a day. It took a full year and a half to quit craving it. I fought the urge every day. I am so happy to have it out of my life. I feel much better.
You articulate very well, what I believe! Thanks!
Not that anyone is going to care, but Monster is not owned by Coca-Cola, it is a separate company altogether. Dr. Pepper and it’s products are also not owned by Coca-Cola, and I’d venture that the Dr Pepper Snapple Group doesn’t appreciate being treated as though it does not exist, although maybe in this case they’re happy to let Coca-Cola take the heat.
I see that while you include Monster and Dr Pepper as Coca-Cola products when they are not, there is no mention of Odwalla and Simply Juices which are Coca-Cola products and all natural. I guess if there is nothing bad to point out about them it isn’t worth mentioning that they are products Coca-Cola offers as well.
They aren’t all natural. I’m sitting here looking at my Odwalla Bar and some of its natural and some of it isn’t…. so I’m sure they’ll wind up getting sued for misrepresentation as well. Maybe Vani just missed it, who knows.
fill a glass with ice, then fill with half water and half juice. (key is to put the juice in last, so it stays on top, do not mix) use less and less juice over time and eventually you will have a fairly healthy inexpensive drink with just the right amount of natural sweetness. cheers.
…”kill DNA cells” ? All cells contain DNA, but DNA cells? Need a proofreader.
Needs a science background…
I’ve done personal medical for over 12 years in many areas including the artificial sweeteners and BPa. My information and knowledge base comes from medical researchers and other respected people in the medical field.I am affiliated with. I fully understand the dangers of many chemicals in our foods and beverages. Majority of the US population is blind to the dangers. They feel that nothing has happened yet so why change. Many lack the intellectual capacity to realize one day soon they will pay the price.
Your articles should be wake up calls for people. the few who listen may beat the odds but others will one day be baffled by their sudden illness as will their doctor as they split a diet soda in a bottle made with BPa. The chemist who discovered the formulation for aspartame did not want it marketed as the chemical was unstable. that’s why diet soda has an expiration date, it turns into a toxin.
Here are two links to a site that will change the way you view diet sweeteners for good, both are from a doctor who almost lost her life to aspartame.
http://www.sweetpoison.com/aspartame-side-effects.html
http://www.splendaexposed.com/
Good article. There was recent data about bromine in the aspartame which is what bonds to the iodine in our body and leaves us without any iodine needed for a healthy thyroid – this is partly why everyone is now having thyroid issues. The other point I wanted to make is the article seems to bash the good with the bad. The zico coconut water and honest kids are not as harmful as implied in my opinion. The chart goes further by leaving off healthier drinks like regular Sprite and only lists Diet Sprite. Is regular Sprite the most healthy drink ever – of course not water is better but if someone has room for those empty sweet calories regular Sprite is a pretty OK choice in my opinion. Especially when you can find versions made with real sugar that they do sometimes. In closing, I like to make my own drinks – got a CO2 can at a local welding shop refills are cheap – use fresh lemon juice and lime juice from my juicer plus either brown sugar or agave or white sugar if the others are not available. I usually add koolaid blue raspberry lemonade mix and about 1/2 cup of sugar and it makes a very delicious carbonated drink home made healthier because you have control of the ingredients (agave being low glycemic – brown sugar better because all the molasses minerals haven’t been removed) and natural lemon lime flavors etc make this a real popular one at my house.
You lost me with the koolaid, but the idea of a homemade soda drink is nice.
George, I’ve heard from other sources too that Zico isn’t the best option when it comes to coconut water. Also, you think soda’s healthy because it has “real” sugar, really? Lastly, brown sugar is just as bad as white refined sugar! I would consider Palm sugar, very healthy alternative
http://www.fitday.com/fitness-articles/nutrition/healthy-eating/myth-or-fact-brown-sugar-is-better-than-white-sugar.html#b
Brown sugar contains all the minerals (molasses) which are removed when they convert brown raw sugar to refined white sugar. So no white and brown sugar are not the same.
Koolaid (especially blue raspberry) makes an excellent syrup if you simply sweeten with healthier sweeteners like maple syrup, honey or agave and limit or exclude the sugar (brown or whatever) you are way ahead of the game.
If you add a pinch (half teaspoon) of quality salt (like Himalayan salt – again with those silly minerals) you will find it is more like a Gatorade and wont require carbonation to be as refreshing. I prefer it carbonated and we just call it the blue soda which is clearly more healthy than anything from the store.
It’s bedtime for me and I don’t have much time or energy to look into this in depth at the moment, I agree that the beverage mix you mentioned might be healthier when compared to the really unhealthy stuff at the store, but I have a hard time believing that any kind of “koolaid” would be a truly healthy choice. And as far as I understand they just add molasses back to white sugar to come up with brown sugar. Contrary to popular belief, I’ve learned and truly believe that brown sugar isn’t healthy. However I do agree with some of the healthy and natural items you mentioned, such as creating a natural Gatorade with pink Himalayan sea salt, and using agave, maple syrup, etc as sweeteners. If you haven’t tried palm sugar, I would recommend it. It has similar taste to brown sugar but is very low glycemic, I really love it!
Do some research on agave – it is NOT healthy!
Loved your article, you gave all possible references which most others do not. Wish you had also included links to natural alternatives to all juices, lemonades, home made fresh soda and others.
What would you suggest to drink in the way of kids drinks or adult “soda” like drinks?
Hi Courtney, try 100% fruit juice watered down with some sparkling water to give it fizz. Also fruity iced teas unsweetened or with a small amount of sweetener are delicious. Good luck!
People have a choice. Nobody is pouring this stuff down their throats.
“Coca-Cola is promoting the introduction of new low calorie beverages and using the failed logic of ‘a calorie is a calorie’ to convince people who need to loose weight to keep Coca-Cola products around in their diet. But you know what? A calorie isn’t a calorie – when it’s made up of chemicals that affect how much you eat and the way your body metabolizes those chemicals.”
I would accuse you of being a poet but generally speaking I expect poets to be able to spell ‘lose.’ While I agree with the notion of a healthy lifestyle your understanding of food metabolism is horribly lacking and border-lining on repeating the same inaccurate and tired rhetoric that gets recycled in the “organic” communities. A calorie is a measure of energy and a food calorie, 1000 cal, is most definitely a calorie. The remainder of your sentence trails off into meaningless metabolic nonsense. Unless you’ve figured out a way to violate the laws of conservation of mass and energy and barring very rare metabolic disorders, the energy requirements of maintaining a living being at 99F and its life functions are tightly distributed in the population. The “logic” of a calorie is a calorie is sound but people don’t want to hear that their problem is with the amount of food they consume; they want to externalize their problems and rationalize the way to a leaner body by adding [something healthy] to their diet. It’s all complete nonsense. Your article is a load of bunk.
Typos are so much fun, they bring out the best in people!
Okay, okay, I quit!!! You almost had me with last weeks post, (was waiting to run out of my stash) will go cold turkey starting tomorrow!!
THANKS for the reality check!!
I never even thought that Zico coconut water was anything but a good replacement to gatoraide to hydrate. I’m nursing a very hungry 9 1/2 month old and am constantly drinking plain old H2O but I do sometimes feel like I need to replenish and will down a litter of coconut water…Zico coconut water. I purchase from Trader Joe’s and never thought twice about it being bad. Thanks for doing what you do, I will now look for another natural boost to hydrate
I no longer drink diet soda (or any soda), but when I drank it regularly I did a lot of research on the side effects. Your article is interesting, but lacking serious science to back it up. There’s no solid scientific evidence that artificial sweeteners make you gain weight, for example. Similarly, there’s no solid evidence that they cause cancer. Very little research has been done on the long-term effects of GMOs, so you’re lacking support there as well. I could go on and on, but you seem to be writing based mainly on anecdotal science. You’re certainly not alone in doing this, but surely spreading unproven information because it serves your own agenda isn’t a good thing. I gave up diet soda because I didn’t want to risk these things being true, not because I could find any proof that they are.
People continually amaze me, although I do not know why this should be.
Are stupid typos more important than the information? Information given to you to make you think for yourselves and not be “blind consumers”?
Is incorrect grammar more important than the very real possibility that what you consume can be harmful ?
Do you really think that all food and beverages companies care about your health BEFORE the bottom line “$$$$$$$$”? It costs less to use the nasty ingredients so there is more PROFIT .
For me personally, engineered natural flavors, genetically modified, chemical food colors, artificial sweeteners etc. , all raise a RED flag.
So, if you choose to look for typos, grammatical and spelling errors, “have at it!”
I choose HEALTH and the right to investigate, question and research!!!
Aspartame is much more dangerous than believed. I drank a bottle of diet orange soda which was so good I drank the whole 2 liter bottle within a few days and within a few days my heart started jumping all over my chest. It was a very scary experience, and I vowed to never drink a diet drink again, or to use anything else with aspartame. It took almost a year for my heart rate to normalize again.
Heh – by your logic, if you were allergic to tomatoes and had a tomato, then all tomatoes are “much more dangerous than believed.”
Why single out Coca Cola, when it is all soft drink companies. Actually, the end result will be the same.
If you would like to read up on why Diet Soda is NOT bad for you backed up with real science check out Examine.com’s article on Diet Soda.
http://examine.com/topics/Diet+Soda/
It is backed up with 62 citations mostly from pubmed.
Here’s a quick explanation from the site,
“There is currently no good evidence that diet soda is bad for you (i.e. causes weight gain or health complications). Even the topic of diet soda causing food overconsumption is mixed literature. The worst side-effect of diet soda is potentially poor dental health.”
What about MIO water enhancement?
Hi Barb – They are owned by Kraft and the ingredients are terrible!
http://blog.fooducate.com/2013/01/28/mio-fit-water-enhancer-from-terrible-to-worse/
then do not become addicted to the products. use is not abuse. moderation is key in this society we now live in not like in the farming days where you grew your own garden.
I didn’t know vitamin water zero was bad for you and have been drinking alot of them!! Is there anyway to reverse, or detox that bad chemicals that maybe in my body?
Food babe-what water filter do you use?
Thanks!
Food Babe uses a 4 stage filtration system in her house.
http://www.amazon.com/Reverse-Osmosis-Water-Filter-System/dp/B000ALDQY6
Wow! That means she’s wasting 3-4 gallons of water for every gallon she uses!
Excellent post! I agree 1,000%! I have never been a fan of artificial sweeteners especially, and you just gave me more reason to dislike them. My mom is highly allergic to them, so that is another thing you can add to your list – allergy! I think the headaches, stomach aches, body aches, etc. that most people get are due to an allergy to these chemicals and they don’t even realize it! I know that the less of these and the less preservatives I have, the better I feel, too.
I have Fibromyalgia, and the biggest key to my well being is my diet. Preservatives and artificial flavors, colors, etc. play havoc on my system. I am to the point that even a little bit causes anything from IBS to migraine to body aches. Trust me, it is more than enough to keep me away!
Thanks for writing this! I have shared it along, and hope it will help others!
Glad you enjoyed the post and thanks for sharing your story!
Love the article, but I didn’t quite catch why burning more calories than you consume is unhealthy. I’ve tried to look up ‘calorie deficit’ but I always found that they either praised it or said it wasn’t a big deal… Can anyone send an article telling me how it’s unhealthy?
Today artificial sweeteners and other sugar substitutes are found in a variety of food and beverages marketed as “sugar-free” or “diet,” including soft drinks, chewing gum, jellies, baked goods, candy, fruit juice, and ice cream and yogurt. ^*:`
Catch ya later
<http://www.healthmedicine.co/index.php
Another great take on Coca Cola’s marketing BS:
http://www.humansarenotbroken.com/the-coca-cola-solution
https://www.facebook.com/thecrownchoice
Very well said. I recently posted on my Facebook about what Diet Coke did to the paper cup when it was left for the whole weekend. I was in a complete shock when my husband sent these photos to my phone. I was an addict to Diet Coke and now I just cannot drink it anymore.
I recently had a business trip to Atlanta and visited World of Coca Cola. There are only two people who know the secret formula of Coca Cola. I think the formula would better be kept secret. We would all be horrified to know what’s really in it.
Was looking for a soda alternative, so started drinking La Croix Lime Water. Should I be concerned with their natural flavor?
Hi! Food Babe avoids natural flavor.
https://foodbabe.com/2011/12/01/chemical-warfare-with-natural-flavor/ Just try plain sparkling water with a squeeze of lime. Better for you and I think it tastes better too.
LaCroix states on their website that their natural flavors are derived from the natural essence oils of the fruit. Not all “natural flavors” are from beaver anus!
I’d personally love to be anywhere near a beach!