Restaurants that refill your cup every time you empty it might not be offering you such a great deal after all — not when you count the calories that you consume from the beverage bonanza. For instance, each large glass of commercial iced tea contains about 180 calories. One refill brings you to 360 calories — more than six oreo cookies.
It’s easy to ignore the calories in drinks for the simple reason that drinks tend not to fill you up. One reason so many diets fail may be that dieters don’t restrict the liquid calories they consume. Although sugary and alcoholic drinks can make you fat, they don’t necessarily make you feel sated, so you just keep drinking while eating, taking in almost as many liquid calories as you do calories from food.
In fact, studies show that while food calories “register” in the brain, limiting the amount of food you desire, liquid calories somehow don’t register. As you eat solid food, nerves in the stomach and intestine release regulators that tell the brain you’re full, while hunger hormones (called ghrelin) become suppressed. But liquids move more quickly through the digestive system and fail to trigger the same signals.
“When the number and type of calories are the same, the calories in liquid form won’t suppress ghrelin as effectively as if the same calories were in solid form,” explains Dr. David E. Cummings of the University of Washington.
As I’ve written before, overall caloric consumption has been steadily increasing over the past three decades, with a concomitant increase in obesity rates. By 2003, the average person consumed 523 more calories on a daily basis than the average person consumed in 1970 — and beverages account for about half of those added calories! Consider that drink portion sizes have increased from an average of 13 ounces to 20 ounces. Look at the explosion of high-calorie sweet drinks — especially coffee drinks — the lattes and cappuccinos that so many of us unthinkingly down daily. Consider all the sports drinks and flavored vitamin waters that seem so innocent — but that add plenty of calories and not much else. (The Center for Science in the Public Interest has a current suit filed against Coca Cola for making “unsubstantiated and deceptive” advertising claims that Vitamin Water offers health benefits.) Think about the fact that red wine has become standard daily fare in many households that eschewed wine a few decades ago. It’s not just about soda anymore.
When people drink more, they usually don’t compensate by moderating the amount of food they eat, according to a 2007 study. The study found that when served an 18-ounce drink, subjects drank more than when served 12 ounces — in other words, they drank what was given to them no matter the size and no matter what type of drink it was — and they ate the same amount of food no matter the calorie-count or volume of their beverage. Similarly, the Harvard Nurses’ Study of 50,000 women found that when subjects drank one sugar-sweetened beverage per day, they didn’t regulate their food intake to compensate, but rather, consumed an average of 358 extra calories daily and gained a significant amount of weight.
Here are some calorie facts about popular drinks:
A bottle of vitamin-water contains 125 calories
An 8-oz glass of red wine has 170 calories
A 16-oz café latte has 260 calories
A 12 oz fruit smoothie has 300 calories
A Starbucks frappuccino contains 470 calories.
Of course, not all liquid calories are created equal. Some drinks, particularly sodas and sports drinks, add not only calories, but typically also deliver nasty amounts of sugar, sodium, high-fructose corn syrup, artificial colorings and preservatives, pesticides (a 2008 study in the UK found that soft drinks contained 300 times the level of pesticides allowed in tap water), phosphoric acid, chemical additives such as benzene (known to cause leukemia), and caffeine. The cumulative effect of drinking such beverages extends far beyond expanding the waistline — soft drinks expedite the development of diabetes, cancer, osteoporosis, hypertension, kidney disease, and so on.
While diet sodas may look like a better deal with their zero-calorie offerings, the dangerous artificial sweeteners they contain have been linked to a host of malignant conditions including breast cancer, lymphoma, shrunken thymus glands, enlarged liver and kidneys, miscarriages, Parkinson’s, fibromyalgia, lupus, seizures, memory loss, and tremors. They offer you nothing nutritionally, plus, as I’ve written before, they ultimately make you fatter than their sugared counterparts, in spite of the lack of calories.
Fruit and vegetable juices, on the other hand, contain over 100 calories a glass, but if they’re freshly squeezed and organic, they’re a boon to your health, a marvelous way to get nutritious calories. And fruit smoothies, while laden with calories, fill you up because of their thickness, so they don’t necessarily have the same fattening effect as, for instance, a mocha latte or even a glass of lemonade made from concentrate (with a startling 791 calories per 12-oz glass). A smoothie can be a satisfying lunch, but not so much a glass of lemonade.
Ultimately, it’s best not to drink with meals at all since excessive liquids dilute your digestive juices and enzymes. But when drinking between meals for hydration, pure water is best — especially if you’re watching your weight. The point is that it pays to remain aware of what you drink and in what quantity you drink it if you want to remain svelte and healthy. Keep in mind it only takes 12 extra calories a day to add one pound a year — a frightening concept if you’re having a 470-calorie frappucino every day.
Jon Barron
Common Chemicals Linked to Infertility
Your cookware and cleaning supplies could make it harder for you to have a baby.
Researchers have found chemicals called perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) might be linked to delays in getting pregnant. PFCs are everywhere — in Teflon cookware, shampoos, floor wax, food wrapping, carpet treatments and other cleaning products. PFCs are also present in air and water in the form of industrial waste from chemical plants.
The new study looked at more than 1,200 women when they were six to 12 weeks pregnant. If they reported that it took them longer than 12 months to get pregnant or if they used drugs designed to increase their chances of conceiving, they were considered to have infertility — this is a generally accepted definition of infertility by experts in the field.
One kind of PFC, called PFOS, increased the odds of infertility anywhere from 70 to 134 percent. Another PFC called PFOA was linked to a 60 to 154 percent increase in the chance of infertility.
Sources:
Human Reproduction January 28, 2009
Statistics shows that Americans drink more soda than ever before. They account for more than 25 percent of all drinks consumed in the United States. More than 15 billion gallons were sold in 2000 — about one 12-ounce can per day for every man, woman and child.
But here’s some information that may keep you away from opening the can:
1. Extra pounds
Soda is a significant contributor to obesity. Drinking a single can a day of sugary drinks translates to more than a pound of weight gain every month. And diet soda is just as likely to cause weight gain as regular, or even more — it may sound counterintuitive, but people who drink diet soft drinks actually don’t lose weight. Artificial sweeteners induce a whole set of physiologic and hormonal responses that actually make you gain weight.
2. Liver damage
Soda damages your liver. Consumption of too many soft drinks puts you under increased risk for liver cirrhosis similar to the increased risk faced by chronic alcoholics.
3. Tooth decay
Soda dissolves tooth enamel. Soft drinks are responsible for doubling or tripling the incidence of tooth decay. Soda’s acidity is even worse for teeth than the solid sugar found in candy.
4. Kidney stones and chronic kidney disease
Colas of all kinds are well known for their high phosphoric acid content, a substance that changes the urine in a way that promotes kidney stone formation. Drinking one quart (less than three 12-ounce cans) of soda per week may increase your risk of developing kidney stones by 15 percent.
5. Diabetes
Anything that promotes weight gain increases the risk of diabetes. Drinking soda also stresses your body’s ability to process sugar. Some scientists now suspect that this may explain why the number of Americans with type 2 diabetes has tripled from 6.6 million in 1980 to 20.8 million today.
6. Heartburn & acid reflux
Heavy consumption of soda is a strong predictor of heartburn. Many carbonated beverages are very acidic. They also deliver a lot of air in the form of carbon dioxide, which can cause distension of your stomach. And that distension appears to be associated with more reflux.
7. Soft drinks = Soft Bones = Osteoporosis
Soft drinks containing phosphoric acid are definitely linked to osteoporosis (a weakening of your skeletal structure) because they lead to lower calcium levels and higher phosphate levels in your blood. When phosphate levels are high and calcium levels are low, calcium is pulled out of your bones.
8. Hypertension (high blood pressure)
Experts have reasons to believe that overconsumption of soda leads to an increase in blood pressure. It doesn’t matter if the soda is regular or diet.
9. Heart disease
Heavy soda drinkers are more likely to develop risk factors for heart disease. Research shows that drinking more than one soft drink a day is associated with an increased risk of developing metabolic syndrome — a group of symptoms such as central obesity, elevated blood pressure, elevated fasting blood sugar, elevated fasting triglycerides, and low levels of HDL or “good” cholesterol. Having three or more of the symptoms increases your risk of developing diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
10. Impaired digestion (gastrointestinal distress)
Gastrointestinal distress includes increased stomach acid levels requiring acid inhibitors, and moderate to severe gastric inflammation with possible stomach lining erosion. Drinking sodas, especially on an empty stomach, can upset the fragile acid-alkaline balance of your stomach and other gastric lining, creating a continuous acid environment. This prolonged acid environment can lead to inflammation of your stomach and duodenal lining.
Sources:
Squidoo January 23, 2009
Please, please, please…if you are a client of mine, a friend or family member, or just reading this blog: stay away from artificial sweeteners like the plague. Splenda IS a artificial sweetener, regardless of what the commercials say.
Read this newest tidbit about Splenda and then if you would like to read more click the link at the end. I always love Dr. Mercola’s take on Splenda and artificial sweeteners.
James Turner, the chairman of the national consumer education group Citizens for Health, has expressed shock and outrage after reading a new report from scientists outlining the dangers of the artificial sweetener Splenda (sucralose).
In animals examined for the study, Splenda reduced the amount of good bacteria in the intestines by 50 percent, increased the pH level in the intestines, contributed to increases in body weight and affected P-glycoprotein (P-gp) levels in such a way that crucial health-related drugs could be rejected.
According to Turner, “The report makes it clear that the artificial sweetener Splenda and its key component sucralose pose a threat to the people who consume the product. Hundreds of consumers have complained to us about side effects from using Splenda and this study … confirms that the chemicals in the little yellow package should carry a big red warning label.”
Sources:
Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health Part A 2008;71(21):1415-29
Read more about the dangers of Splenda
Serves 4
2 cups water
1 cup brown basmati rice, rinsed
pinch sea salt
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup walnut pieces
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
Bring water to a boil in a medium-sized cooking pot. Add rice and salt, turn down the heat to low, cover, and cook, covered, for 15 minutes. Remove the cover and add the cranberries and walnuts on top of the rice (do not stir). Replace the cover and continue to cook 15 to 25 minutes longer, until all the water has been absorbed by the grain. Remove from heat, add parsley, and fluff with a fork. Cover and allow to sit for 3 to 5 minutes off the heat before serving.
Did you know that Vitaminwater has over 33 grams of sugar? That is over 8 teaspoons of sugar! People, stop reading the label claims and start reading the ingredient labels of EVERYTHING you eat or drink. It isn’t enough anymore to just read how much sugar is in something because of the use of Splenda, just read the ingredient label and if any form of sugar, artificial or real is in the list, choose something else…. no high fructose corn syrup, sugar, evaporated cane juice, sucrose, fructose, malitol, sorbitol, splenda, aspertame, etc.
We are the fattest nation hands down and getting fatter and more sick instead of skinnier and healthier. This lawsuit is a nice turn in the right direction, but the bottom line is each individual person needs to be responsible to read their own labels and make good choices….if there wasn’t consumers buying the product, there wouldn’t need to be a lawsuit. Our bodies need pure, filtered water and nothing else….us adults need to become the example to our younger generations and be parent enough to not give in to them because we know what is best for them. <stepping down off soap box now…>
A class-action suit contends that Coca-Cola is illegally marketing its “Vitaminwater” line as a healthy product. The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) is one party to the suit, which cites California consumer-protection laws.
According to the suit, “Vitaminwater is not a healthy beverage. Rather it is sugar water — just like soft drinks — with a few added vitamins.”
The suit cites the labeling of Vitaminwater with flavors such as “defense,” “rescue,” “energy” and “multi-v” as proof of its health claims. The suit asks that California consumers of Vitaminwater be awarded actual and punitive damages.
Sources:
Advertising Age January 15, 2009
RSS