http://news.independent.co.uk/health/article2586652.ece

“A new health scare erupted over soft drinks last night amid evidence they may cause serious cell damage. Research from a British university suggests a common preservative found in drinks such as Fanta and Pepsi Max has the ability to switch off vital parts of DNA.

The problem – more usually associated with ageing and alcohol abuse – can eventually lead to cirrhosis of the liver and degenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s.”

Hi Rachel–

Simon commented on this a day or two ago and I put it up on the in-the-news section of our website.  I need to pull the actual research to see what it’s all about.  I have a tendency never to fully believe these things as reported in the press.  But there are so many health benefits to avoiding soft drinks that any news that drives people away from them is valuable.

Cheers–

MRE 

Of course the whole thing seems a waste of time, since Pepsi tastes so much better than Coke in the first place.

Kaz–

Caffeine is certainly more dangerous than sugar in the short run at equivalent doses.  But we don’t take them in equivalent doses.  A shot of espresso contains about 80-100 mg of caffeine, which is less than one fiftieth of the dose of sugar contained in one level teaspoon.  If one adds a couple of teaspoons to the espresso, the sugar content is 100 times that of the caffeine.

As to the taste difference between Coke and Pepsi…it’s obviously an individual thing.  Back during the days of the famous Pepsi challenge – the one that drove Coca Cola into coming out with its own HFCS version called New Coke – I took the test at least 20 times (this was before I had had my low-carb brain transplant) and chose Coke each time.

Cheers–

MRE 

The new and improved list. 

Btw, my aunt has a neighbor who is diabetic. She said Splenda causes muscle cramps or pain, or something like that. I couldn’t argue the point, since I was unsure. Thoughts?

Hi Michael–

I’ve never heard of Splenda causing muscle cramps or pain, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t happen.  It could be what’s called an idiosyncratic reaction.  Or it could be a potassium deficiency.  Often when people drop their carbs – as they do if they switch to Splenda – they have a diuresis and get rid of a lot of potassium in their urine.  A low potassium can certainly cause cramps and muscle pains.  Maybe you should suggest that this person try it again with a potassium supplement this time.

Cheers–

MRE 

Coca-Cola/Pepsi-Cola : 10.5 g/100ml
Lemonades (Orangina, Fanta, Geyer et al)
: around 10 g/ml
Ice-Tea : ~7 g/100ml
Apple juice : ~7 g/100ml
Pineapple juice : 10 to 12 g/100ml
Orange juice : 12 to 14 g/100ml
Grape juice white : 16 g/100ml
Grape juice red : 18 g/100ml

I thought I had the top score with red grape juice but I found in the grocery store in Luxemburg imported English products (there are quite a lot Englishmen in Luxemburg) and found a drink called Barley water that contained a whopping 23 grams of carbohydrate for 100ml.

Hi gallier2–

Thanks for the list.  For those unfamiliar with the metric system, 100 ml = about 3 1/2 ounces.

Cheers–

MRE 

Hi Karen–

I’m sure that many moms wouldn’t have a problem bringing home six 6-packs for a group of kids hanging out at the house; most moms probably wouldn’t give it a moment’s thought.  But if you told these same moms to instead just open a 5-pound bag of sugar, pour it into a plate, and tell the kids to ‘come and get it,’ most would feel that such a thing would be intrinsically unhealthful and wouldn’t do it.  Yet the soft drinks are merely sugar in disguise.  They seem so harmless.  They’re anything but, especially now that they’re made with HFCS.

Cheers–

MRE 

Cheers,
Anna

Hi Anna–

They absolutely are!

Cheers–

MRE