Think Before You Drink

A recent study from Johns Hopkins University shows that the beverage choices Americans make are really getting us into trouble. Alcohol? No, we’re talking about sugar! Americans are consuming dramatically more sugar sweetened beverages than 20 years ago, including soda, sweetened teas, fruit drinks, and sports drinks. Especially alarming, the average young adult (between 20-44 years of age) gets 289 calories every single day from sugar-sweetened drinks! That’s no small contribution, considering that you’d have to run about 3 miles – every day– just to burn off the calories.

While this study tracked trends in beverage consumption, and not the health effects, several prior studies have shown links between sugar-sweetened beverage consumption and obesity and type 2 diabetes. So it’s best to avoid sugar-sweetened beverages altogether, as they provide nothing in terms of nutrition besides empty calories.
And talk about an easy and simple change to help drop a few pounds. Simply choosing a 20 oz bottle of water instead of a 20 oz Coke would save you 250 calories. If you made it a habit to choose that way every day for a year, you could lose 26 pounds without making a single other dietary or activity change.

If sports drinks are part of your workout routine, you might want to rethink your beverage choice. Unless you are engaging in strenuous activity for more than 90 minutes, there’s no need for Gatorade, Powerade, or any other beverage besides water. If you’re working out to attain a leaner physique, consider that drinking a 32 oz bottle of Gatorade during your workout three times a week can make a 10 pound difference in your weight over a year. Yes, even though they sell it at the gym juice bar, even if your favorite rock star drinks Rock Star. Don’t undo all your hard work! It’s just sugar water. Better steer yourself over to that water fountain instead!