Sugary Soft Drinks

[audreyh1]

Fruit juices are just as bad. Many store fruit juices have added sugar of HFCS.

 

[RetiredAndFree]

There are some wonderful protein bars with a gram or less of sugar that get me through the afternoon.

Can you share which brands of protein bars are that low in sugar? I've not been successful in finding any to date, and have turned to raw nuts instead, which aren't always as convenient to cart along as a wrapped bar is.

I likewise gave up sugar some months ago, and feel much, much better for it.

 

[Jack_Pine]

I like the Atkins bars. Low carb and they taste good and 1g sugar. Sure they have something else in them someone would find objectionable, but they are just a treat once in awhile for me.

 

[ERD50]

I really don't care for sweet things so much, so I rarely have a soft drink - maybe a couple a year. Occasional sweet dessert, but I lean more towards dark chocolate rather than sugary things.

But this made me curious, maybe I'll do a real detailed monitor of what I eat for a few days and calculate the sugar content. I dropped my ritual of a daily banana about a year ago, some good stuff in there, but a lot of sugar. Didn't miss it (and it's a pain to try to keep just-right-ripened bananas on hand), but didn't seem to lose weight ether. A few almonds are satisfying, and almost no sugar.

-ERD50

 

[Corporateburnout]

I like the Atkins bars. Low carb and they taste good and 1g sugar. Sure they have something else in them someone would find objectionable, but they are just a treat once in awhile for me.

I used Atkins bars for a while until my dietician recommended against it. She claims that the artificial sweeteners and sugar alcohols such as Maltitol have a negative affect on blood glucose and at times cause digestive problems.

 

[Midpack]

Preaching to the choir here, but astonishing how much more sugar Americans (and others) eat on average nowadays compared to long ago. I am pretty careful, and not big on soft drinks or processed foods, but I think I might be surprised if I tracked more carefully. See attached link for full infographic (abbreviated attached).

How Much Sugar Are Americans Eating? [Infographic] - Forbes

IIRC 9.5 teaspoons is the same as 38g/day. One soda/day can easily exceed that.

 

[Chuckanut]

As part of my plan to reduce my consumption of carbs I had to get rid of sugar. Now if I want something sweet/carby I make sure it is good stuff - high quality chocolate, a slice of homemade apple pie, etc. I have found that simply eating real food and keeping my carb count to about 100g a day works well. I let my body self regulate and it seems to know what to do. Amazing!

 

[jowi]

I used Atkins bars for a while until my dietician recommended against it. She claims that the artificial sweeteners and sugar alcohols such as Maltitol have a negative affect on blood glucose and at times cause digestive problems.

Oh, yeah, they can give digestive problems. OMG one day several years ago I had this little tin of sugar-free candies (not sure what the name was). I was reading a book and I kept taking one after another. Next thing I know I'm in SEVERE pain (gas cramps) all through my abdomen. I could not lay or stand up I was on my hands and knees on the floor in pain. Honestly, other people (for better or worse) would have been on their way to the ER for this pain. I waited it out and it passed (no pun intended, lol!) Never again! I learned my lesson!

As for the occasional soda. I do indulge if I feel like it. I don't buy it for home and don't always have it when at a restaurant, but at the movies I do admit to love a Cherry Pepsi with my popcorn. Everything in moderation. Speaking of your body 'self-regulating' - yes, it does. Even if you have a bad thing now and again, you can't add up the calories and say, "This will make me this much fatter in a year" because we DO self-regulate. And if all else fails and the automatic self-regulation doesn't work, then the good old "My jeans feel tight" effect starts up, and we watch it closer for awhile.

 

[Mulligan]

2 cups of coffee, then a Dr. Pepper 10, and I am ready for the day...Water the rest of the day.


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[nash031]

Before we, as a country, go off the deep end and say that sugar is the root of all evil (as opposed to saturated fat, trans fat, and whatever else has been The Problem over the last 50 years), let's mention a few things:

- Your body generally requires sugar to function. Your muscles, liver, and brain require glycogen which is most easily produced directly from glucose.
- Not all sugars are created equal: HFCS, fructose, table sugar, etc., are not as easily converted to glycogen as dextrose/glucose and even maltodextrin.
- If you are physically active (we're talking strenuous or long duration activity, not walking your dogs!), there is a half-hour or so window after your workouts where you SHOULD take in simple sugars like dextrose/glucose.
- Juice is not as bad as soda. From a sugar perspective, absolutely it's bad. But soda, Gatorade, Vitamin Water, Monster, iced tea with sugar, coffee with sugar are almost completely empty nutritionally (yes, even Diet Coke with Vitamins). Juice will have naturally occurring vitamins (usually C). Juice is NOT the best way to get those vitamins, but juice does not equal soda in the heirarchy of dietary evil. It's a step below it, at least. "Juice drinks" are another matter entirely.

- The general rule everyone should follow is to get the most "bang for your caloric buck." This means avoiding nutritionally empty calories as much as possible, including: soda, juice, beer and liquor, bread, pasta, "whole grains," candy (sugar), etc., when your body doesn't need it. (Whole grains, breads, pastas, etc. are nutritionally empty in that your body can't absorb the vitamins contained therein nearly as well as it can from fruit or vegetables.) If you're not exercises strenuously/extensively, there is little utility for simple sugar in your diet. Fat is actually a far better option, particularly from foods with other nutritional value (avocados, butter on vegetables actually helps your body absorb nutrients, etc...)
- I drink water, coffee (I do add cream, no sugar, for the filling fat in the morning), wine periodically, and post-workout I make a home-brew recovery drink based in OJ with glucose and protein. This meets my needs as a serious athlete, and not many require that OJ/glucose/protein mix... otherwise, I avoid other liquid calories throughout the day.

- Does one coke a day make a marked difference nutritionally? Yes it does. For the metabollically average person, that 140 (completely empty) calories makes up almost 10% of your daily intake, yet does not fulfill any nutritional need, thus it does not sate your appetite at all. Chances are, you are taking in 140 extra calories every day.
(The rough rule for weight gain is 3000 extra calories creates a pound of bodyweight.)

- None of this mentions the effect of taking in 50g of sugar in a short period on your insulin tolerance, etc, and how that affects your appetite and perceived need for even more sugar.

People are right to "avoid" soda (and sugar) in general. That does not mean you have to "eliminate" them. Moderation in all things is the right answer. The question is, is "one per day" moderation? No, it's not. IMO, soda should be considered a "treat" just like cookies, cheesecake, Super Vanilla Mocha Latte with extra whipped cream, etc., and consumed accordingly.

My $0.02 only... it's your life to live!

 

[Midpack]

Good post, but I wasn't suggesting we should "eliminate" sugar or anyone "going off the deep end." I agree with "moderation in all things," but I myself did not realize just how much sugar is in soda, or processed foods - and I thought it might interest others. I don't drink soda often, and processed foods even less often, but I will probably curtail both even further. YMMV

And it was interesting to read about the 'low fat' guidance missteps (and how sugars replaced fats in a big way), special interests & politics in foods, the calorie in-calorie out oversimplification, the correlation between sugar intake and obesity/diabetes, etc.

 

[iam21177]

I only have pop when I'm mixing it with whiskey, and that's even not that often.

Same goes for little containers of Yoplait/Dannon/etc yogurts! Turn the grams into teaspoons. The "whip" version is the same container, but 4 oz rather than 6 oz (they put air into to make it whipped), so just as many grams of sugar as well but in less product.

 

[Major Tom]

I have to say I've always been amazed at USA's love affair with soft drinks. "Big Gulp" OMG!

Shortly after moving to the US, I remember walking into a 7-11 and being impressed with the 44oz super-tanker that you filled with the soft drink of your choice, before sealing off the top with a couple of plastic clips. The thing was huge!

 

[SVHoper]

Low sugar protein bars: At 160 calories, 2g sugar; 17g fiber, I find QuestBar chocolate peanut butter to be the most satisfying 160 cal I could find. (I have not tried other flavors, but they vary in calories and sugar alcohol content.)

They are not cheap compared to other bars, but make a cheap meal replacement.

If I cut out my other 150 calorie treat (kettle chips), I would probably lose weight

I don't like the taste of any artificial sweetener and never trained myself to water, so was happy when I found flavored seltzer water (safeway brand is soda cost). I find zero calories, zero sweetener lets me enjoy a refreshing drink.

 

[aja8888]

I like Coke Zero and many of my retired friends drink Diet Coke. Many of us friends in TX worked in chemical plants and refineries at one time so we have no fear of drinking stuff that comes from smelly, leaking pipes.

My friend's mother just passed away last week at 103 after playing bridge with friends then taking a short nap (which turned out to be a real long nap). She liked tea and drank Pepsi occasionally. She also ate food that contained sugar. Maybe if she didn't she would have still been here?

I'm not so sure having occasional soft drinks is so bad as if it was the population of the U.S. would be declining rather than increasing. Also, there is sugar in most foods and alcoholic beverages, including wine (which I used to make - lots of sugar is used to ferment into alcohol.

 

[Amethyst]

Although I don't drink sugary soft drinks, I love sweets and chocolate, but was getting early-stage gum disease and decided to cut back 90% on sweet foods. (The remaining 10% = small glass of liqueur, and a few cookies, piece of chocolate, or a muffin once a week).

I lost a couple pounds and improved my gum health, which are gratifying results, but honestly haven't noticed any difference in how I feel from when I was eating sweet stuff daily. Was hoping to get a rush of new vitality, such as other people always seem to report when they cut out sugar, but it hasn't happened. Then again I'm pretty vital most of the time, LOL.

Amethyst

 

[Chuckanut]

And it was interesting to read about the 'low fat' guidance missteps (and how sugars replaced fats in a big way), special interests & politics in foods, the calorie in-calorie out oversimplification, the correlation between sugar intake and obesity/diabetes, etc.

Very true. We made the logical mistake of thinking that removing something 'bad' from a food then made it 'good'. Not true. It just made it less bad. (Assuming it was 'bad' to start.)


Of course there is mounting evidence that removing naturally occurring fats from foods and replacing them with sugar (to restore taste and desirability) was in reality making the food 'bad'. In some cases we took a relatively good food (like whole milk yogurt) and made it into bad food (sugary non-fat yogurt.) But, that's another story.

And don't get me started on sugar substitutes.

 

[Mulligan]

Shortly after moving to the US, I remember walking into a 7-11 and being impressed with the 44oz super-tanker that you filled with the soft drink of your choice, before sealing off the top with a couple of plastic clips. The thing was huge!

Major, you are bringing back the good ole days to me 15 years ago or so. I could drink a couple of those a day with the full sugared Pepsi and not a gain a pound....Along with the big grab bag of chips too. Sadly those days are gone and they are on my personal food ban list.


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[RetireAge50]

I used to drink super big gulps and half a dozen home made chocolate chip cookies no problem. Now down to 12 ounce Coke and 1 or 2 cookies.

I am currently 1.5 pounds over my drivers license weight when I was 16. Guess I better cut back further.

My grandma was also sweet tooth and she is almost 100 years old.

 

[nash031]

Good post, but I wasn't suggesting we should "eliminate" sugar or anyone "going off the deep end." I agree with "moderation in all things," but I myself did not realize just how much sugar is in soda, or processed foods - and I thought it might interest others. I don't drink soda often, and processed foods even less often, but I will probably curtail both even further. YMMV

I definitely wasn't intending to respond directly to anyone, except the assertion that one soda per day wasn't a big deal. So, please don't take my monologue as an affront on your opinion! Most people need to reduce their sugar intake, but as we all know in this country moderation/compromise/middle-road is not done well. Our bodies do need some sugar, but we should seek out that sugar as it occurs in nature: in fruits, specifically. We should avoid added sugar as much as possible.

 

[nash031]

I'm not so sure having occasional soft drinks is so bad as if it was the population of the U.S. would be declining rather than increasing. Also, there is sugar in most foods and alcoholic beverages, including wine (which I used to make - lots of sugar is used to ferment into alcohol.

A 5oz glass of red wine contains up to 90 calories. Most people drink one a day on average which is not insignificant. If you start drinking 12oz of wine a day (as a single can of coke), yes, expect to gain some weight and have health issues. If you drink a "big gulp (64oz)" of wine every day, you're probably an alcoholic and have more to worry about than the hundreds of calories IMO!

That said, there are antioxidants galore in red wine, so it is not nutritionally empty. It's probably in line with juice in that regard, but much lower in sugar. Much of the calorie content in red wine comes from the alcohol as the residual sugar is usually very low (unless you're talking port...).

There are literally no redeeming nutritional qualities in soda that you can't get elsewhere (specifically, caffeine is likely good for you in moderation: drink unsweetned coffee or tea; I personally wouldn't touch a diet soda since it contains stuff I can't identify).

 

[Mulligan]

I used to drink super big gulps and half a dozen home made chocolate chip cookies no problem. Now down to 12 ounce Coke and 1 or 2 cookies.

I am currently 1.5 pounds over my drivers license weight when I was 16. Guess I better cut back further.

My grandma was also sweet tooth and she is almost 100 years old.

I was a bean pole in high school, but I'm about 12 pounds over that. If I was 1.5 pounds over my HS weight like you, I would be returning to the Big Gulp days immediately. No health issues, but vanity issues keep me from them now. I don't want to get fat.


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[MBAustin]

The only time I drink a sugary soda is for medical reasons - when recovering from an upset stomach or prepping for colonoscopy. Canada Dry ginger ale is my favorite, with Sprite or 7up next.

I'll have a Diet Coke a few times a month, but otherwise like some others mentioned, I drink zero calorie sparkling water when I feel like something more than tap water (generally in the afternoon). Perrier, San Pelligrino, or HEB Central Market Italian when I feel like splurging, otherwise store brand cans (with grapefruit or lime essence).

 

[AnIntentionalRoad]

I tend to drink water with lemon, Lecroix, decaf coffee, sometimes Izzy, and anything I can use as a mixer.

Maybe once a month I'll have a coke at a FF restaurant if I don't trust the look of their tap water. I rarely buy bottles water unless I am doing an outdoor activity and need to carry water with me (and I forgot my bottle).

I've lost 25 lbs since ER in Aug 2012. Most of that I attribute to not eating out most meals anymore and having a more active lifestyle.

Life is good! Cubicles kill.

 

[audreyh1]

Those Izze sodas have over 28g sugar which is still prett high. They tasted incredibly sweet to me. I tried cutting them with sparkling water but then all I could taste was the grape juice filler.