Are you a soda drinker? If not, good for you. But I would bet that you still consume the nasty ingredients through juices and candy. Everything is okay in moderation, but what is moderation when it comes to pop and juice?

   The worst part about consuming pop and juices is the sugar and acids. The main acids in soda are phosphoric and carbonic. According to the National Institutes of Health (www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov), phosphoric acid is mostly made up of salts and other phosphates. It’s able to destroy metals and break down substances. Carbonic acid is what’s used to create the carbonation. no evidence to suggest this acid does you any harm, but no good either. The acids create an acidic environment in your mouth and stomach, leading to tooth decay and gum disease. The acid-sugar combination is what is so addicting about pop.

   Sugar is significantly more addictive than cocaine and nicotine. Even though sugar addiction isn’t considered a disease, it certainly exists and is probably more prominent in you than you realize. It takes about thirty-two cups of water to balance out one twelve-ounce can of cola. However, most people only drink an average of 3.9 cups per day (according to www.ars.usda.gov) and an average of about two cans of pop per day (according to www.nih.gov). Doing this constantly is going to catch up with you.

   The sugars from pops and juices are often unnatural, and they cause incredible harm to our bodies such as obesity, poor blood sugar, tooth decay, heart disease, and more! The good kinds of sugars, which fulfill the crave you get for sugar just the same, come from fruits and vegetables. These sugars have many positives compared to the former such as lowering the risk of heart disease and multiple different types of cancers, as well as increasing energy and mood. 

   If you wouldn’t go to a hospital and put these ingredients into your bloodstream, why do you allow yourself to absorb it in a different way? Just because the government approves these poisons doesn’t mean you should trust these big corporations to do what’s best for you.