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What not to drink
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How many unhealthy drinks are in this picture?
Answer: All of them!
At some point, we've all said it: water doesn't taste very good. Maybe it's because of the chlorination that makes municipal systems put out something akin to a swimming pool, or maybe it's because of the high lime content in some rural areas. Plus, more and more reports are being produced monthly on natural water tables that have been infiltrated with carcinogens and other types of toxins.
It's a good thing that we live in a culture addicted to convenience, right? Look at all the choices we have when it comes to drinking not-water! And hey, there's even "purified, filtered" water right here in its own cute little bottle!
Hold your horses there, amigos. Let's thing about this a little more carefully. Even superficially good choices like fruit juices or the new "vitamin water" trend can carry with it some serious threats to your overall healthy lifestyle. Here's a list of the biggest violators of your well-being:
Soda Pop - Also known as "cola", "pop", "soda", or in some areas as "coke", carbonated beverages like Coca-Cola, Pepsi, and Dr. Pepper are probably the number one culprit in some of the greatest epidemic-level health threats we face as a society. Obesity (or at least a serious difficulty with weight loss), diabetes, heart disease, and a plethora of other problems can stem from Soda Pop's use of high-fructose corn syrup, food dyes, processed caffeine, and more. And don't think that "going diet" is going to give you even a little bit of relief. While good public studies are hard to come by (follow the money to explain that one), there are a number of people who believe they have plenty of good reasons not to trust aspartame, Splenda, or saccharin. And then there's that whole carbonated issue, but that's the topic of another discussion.
The verdict: Step away from the soda pop. No matter how tasty you think it is, it doesn't love you back.
Energy Drinks - Golly, where to begin? Energy drinks, on the average, begin in the "bad for you" category where soda pops leave off. Instead of just being empty calories, though, there are tons of ingredients that not only give us pause but directly endanger our health. They've been shown to produce serious addictive properties related to high levels of caffiene, present the danger of taurine overdose (a very easy thing to do with energy drinks), and generally all around trick your body into doing more than it naturally should. And it's not like this is news. There's something else on the market that reputedly does the same thing and sometimes has similar results: methamphetamines. Sure, some people may externally seem to tolerate energy drinks better than others, but that doesn't mean much. Damage is still occuring. If you want your liver, especially if you drink, to continue being your friend, think twice before popping a Red Bull.
The verdict: Avoid! Whether you're an active athlete or an armchair quarterback, energy drinks have no serious benefit for you.
Kid Drinks - Some of the things in this category include Kool-Aid, Hawaiian Punch, and Capri Sun. All you really need to do is read the label. Did you know that a good portion of the children diagnosed with ADHD could be relieved of most if not all symptoms if they just cut out the Red Dye 40? And then of course there's the whole high-fructose corn syrup thing, which has been widely discussed. Even if you use regular sugar, you're still not doing your kids any favors by feeding them mix and package drinks: white sugar is treated with chlorine, and that creates an addictive response since the body doesn't recognize it as real food.
The verdict: Just don't do it. Don't do it to yourself or to your kids.
The Alternatives
- When shopping for fruit juice, read the labels and make sure that you're getting unadulterated juice. As much as possible, go organic, just for that extra piece of mind.
- Try tea instead of coffee for a morning jolt, and sweeten it with a local honey or even agave nectar.
- Instead of filling up our landfills with empty plastic bottles, consider getting filtration systems such as Brita or Pur filters, or even have a Reverse Osmosis system installed. Rental from companies like Culligan normally only run about $25 per month.
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