Health benefits of drinking soft drinks?

[Mr Rayon]

What are the health benefits of drinking soft drinks? I've heard that soft drinks are high in phosphorus and because of this many farmers have given their hens carbonated soft drinks as some claim that it makes the egg shells harder and hence more resistant to cracking during transportation when being sold in a market. But are there any other health benefits?

 

I'm also confused whether the phosphorus in soft drinks is actually a good think. I've done a bit of research and according to some sites it causes de-calcification of bones. How is this possible? I thought phosphorus was good!

 

What are the health benefits of drinking soft drinks?

Edited November 1, 2010 by Voltman

[CaptainPanic]

Do we compare "drinking soft drinks" to drinking:

- water

- beer

- milk

- nothing at all

- fruit juices

- the same mixture of sugars, additives and fruit extracts as the soft drinks, but without the CO2 gas dissolved in it?

- something else

 

And what other diet (food) do we assume the basic diet? I guess the number of vitamins, calories, minerals (etc) in the food are also important for the question. After all, it all ends up in the same digestive system.

 

I just ask, because this discussion will inevitably become a comparison to something else. I admit that this response is a little bit lame... but the easiest answer to the question is: the health benefit is that you do not die from dehydration.

[CharonY]

Also, with regards to "but XXX is good for your health": it all boils down to concentration. Soft drinks are generally extremely rich in simple sugars and/or high fructose corn syrup, which is not very healthy.

[dragonstar57]

Also, with regards to "but XXX is good for your health": it all boils down to concentration. Soft drinks are generally extremely rich in simple sugars and/or high fructose corn syrup, which is not very healthy.

but the human sense of taste must have evolved to like sugar for some reason

[CharonY]

Yes, but also our metabolism is not evolved to be surrounded by so much of it.

[zapatos]

Also, with regards to "but XXX is good for your health": it all boils down to concentration. Soft drinks are generally extremely rich in simple sugars and/or high fructose corn syrup, which is not very healthy.

In what way is it not healthy?

[Sisyphus]

In what way is it not healthy?

 

Mostly because it's "empty" calories that don't make you feel full.

[zapatos]

Mostly because it's "empty" calories that don't make you feel full.

Ok, I guess I was reading into the statement the implication that it was unhealthy, as opposed to just not being of any benefit.

[Mr Skeptic]

In what way is it not healthy?

 

High concentration sugar will raise your blood sugar levels, which can be deadly or just plain nasty (just ask a diabetic about the effects). If you eat a lot of candy quickly you will feel sick sick sick. Also, I'm pretty sure rapidly changing your blood sugar levels increases your odds of getting diabetes. Also, sugar is fermented by bacteria on your teeth into acids which locally remove calcium from your teeth (cavities), whereas normally the sugar would be eaten with a fruit that could at least brush off your teeth a little. There's probably another reason, eg I've heard something about the rate that fructose can be processed is limited.

 

That, and they're "empty calories".

[mississippichem]

Yes. Soft drinks do have a high phosphorus content, but most of that is phosphoric acid.

 

 

Phosphoric acid increases the solubility of hydroxylapatite crystals which give the tooth enamel its rigid hardness. This is a result of the common ion effect(see John Cuthber post #16):

 

[ce]Ca_{10}(PO_{4})_{6}(OH)_{2}_{(s)} + 8H^{+}_{(aq)} -> 10Ca^{2+}_{(aq)} + 6HPO4^{2-}_{(aq)} + 2H2O_{(l)}[/ce]

 

The other unfortunate fact is that in aluminum alloy canned soft drinks, phosphoric acid chemically leaches small amounts of Al(III) off the sides of the can. Al(III) salts have been linked, though somewhat controversially and not definitively, to Alzheimer's disease(see mississippichem post #17).

 

But I must admit that I love Coca-Cola. Hey, at least I know what I'm getting into.

 

EDIT: by myself for accuracy and general stupidity

Edited November 2, 2010 by mississippichem

[CharonY]

In what way is it not healthy?

 

Again, it is a matter of concentration. Sugar can be an effective energy source, however overindulgence coupled with insufficient exercise can lead to a number of adverse effects. E.g. links have been established with obesity and type II diabetes. The reason is simply that our metabolism is not adapted to the consumptions level that are now possible.

[StringJunky]

In what way is it not healthy?

 

http://rheumatic.org/sugar.htm

[zapatos]

High concentration sugar will raise your blood sugar levels, which can be deadly or just plain nasty (just ask a diabetic about the effects). If you eat a lot of candy quickly you will feel sick sick sick. Also, I'm pretty sure rapidly changing your blood sugar levels increases your odds of getting diabetes. Also, sugar is fermented by bacteria on your teeth into acids which locally remove calcium from your teeth (cavities), whereas normally the sugar would be eaten with a fruit that could at least brush off your teeth a little. There's probably another reason, eg I've heard something about the rate that fructose can be processed is limited.

 

That, and they're "empty calories".

It still doesn't sound to me like sugar is unhealthy. I know sugar can result in unhealthy spikes in diabetics, but I'd say it is being diabetic that is the problem, not the sugar. (Similar to exercise being unhealthy is some with heart disease.) I can also feel sick if I eat plums too quickly. From what I can find online I'd say the jury is out when it comes to increased blood sugar levels increasing the odds of getting diabetes. And I'd say not brushing your teeth is the unhealthy practice, not the eating of sugar, although I'm not sure about this one.

 

Couldn't most things be considered potentially unhealthy?

 

http://rheumatic.org/sugar.htm

Sounds like we should all be dead by now. And look how bad exercise is...

 

CHICAGO, IL – Scientists at Loyola University have proved what many of us have suspected all along – exercise is bad for your health.

 

Dr. Harold Crampe of Loyola University and his colleagues spent six months studying the effects of exercise, comparing a group of men aged 20 to 50 who walked or ran at least 3 times a week with a control group of men in the same age range who spent the same time on the couch, watching TV.

 

Dr. Crampe says they were surprised by their findings. "You have a 4000% higher risk of being hit by a car or other motor vehicle, if you're out running," he says, "and some of the other risks are even higher."

 

Runners and walkers were nearly 3 times more likely to be attacked by dogs, 5 times more likely to sprain or break a limb, and nearly 50 times more likely to be struck by lightning.

 

"You're even 12 times as likely to be mugged," says Dr. Crampe.

http://buffetoblog.wordpress.com/2006/03/30/exercise-is-bad-for-you-new-study-shows/

 

Examining 2,000 runners after completion of the Los Angeles marathon demonstrated that immune systems may be suppressed enough to significantly increase our chances of contracting infections and developing illnesses. The study found that 13% of the runners who participated in the marathon developed an illness in the following week. The combination of increased volume and intensity of the exercise left an significant impact on the participants and as a result, many of them contracted infections as a consequence of impaired immune function.

http://www.science20.com/erin039s_spin/too_much_exercise_bad_you

 

 

Other studies have shown an increased risk of arthritis in middle-aged female ex-athletes, and another reported that long-term weight-bearing sports activities like jogging, squash, hockey, badminton and aerobics are linked to arthritis. Two other Swedish studies have shown that high participation in all kinds of sports increases the risk of arthritis of the hip in both sexes.

http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/could-exercise-be-bad-for-you-634211.html

 

 

Despite its benefits, exercise can produce harmful free radicals and a new study is set to find out just how bad it is for you and what can be done to minimise the damage.

http://machineslikeus.com/news/exercise-may-be-bad-you

 

Again, it is a matter of concentration. Sugar can be an effective energy source, however overindulgence coupled with insufficient exercise can lead to a number of adverse effects. E.g. links have been established with obesity and type II diabetes. The reason is simply that our metabolism is not adapted to the consumptions level that are now possible.

Ok

[Mr Rayon]

Yes. Soft drinks do have a high phosphorus content, but most of that is phosphoric acid.

 

 

Phosphoric acid increases the solubility of hydroxylapatite crystals which give the tooth enamel its rigid hardness. This is a result of the common ion effect:

 

[ce]Ca_{10}(PO_{4})_{6}(OH)_{2}_{(s)} + 8H^{+}_{(aq)} -> 10Ca^{2+}_{(aq)} + 6HPO4^{2-}_{(aq)} + 2H2O_{(l)}[/ce]

 

The other unfortunate fact is that in aluminum alloy canned soft drinks, phosphoric acid chemically leaches small amounts of Al(III) off the sides of the can. Al(III) salts have been linked, though somewhat controversially and not definitively, to Alzheimer's disease.

 

But I must admit that I love Coca-Cola. Hey, at least I know what I'm getting into.

 

So, the phosphoric acid in soft drinks is healthy? How does it cause de-calcification of bones?

[mississippichem]

So, the phosphoric acid in soft drinks is healthy? How does it cause de-calcification of bones?

 

No, I was saying the phosphoric acid slowly dissolves one's tooth enamel; not a good thing. I don't know about the de-calcification of bones. It makes chemical sense, but I don't see how the phosphoric acid would come into direct contact with bone. Then again, I don't know much about how the body metabolizes phosphoric acid.

Edited November 2, 2010 by mississippichem

[John Cuthber]

The common ion effect would decrease the solubility of enamel.

Most drinks are acid and could leach the teeth; cola tends to be more acid than fruit juice based drinks.

Aluminium phosphate is rather insoluble.

If the tins were not varnished on the inside then they would corrode rather rapidly and be unusable.

[mississippichem]

The common ion effect would decrease the solubility of enamel.

 

Yeah, of course [self face-palm], don't know what I was thinking there...obviously it wasn't chemistry.

 

from wikipedia:

 

Many consumers find the taste of a drink from a can to be different from fountain drinks and those from plastic or glass bottles. In addition, some people believe that aluminium leaching into the fluid contained inside can be dangerous to the drinker's health. Scientific consensus is that aluminium plays no role in the development of Alzheimer's disease.

 

Aluminium cans often contain an internal coating to protect the aluminium from beverage corrosion. Despite this coating, trace amounts of aluminium can be degraded into the liquid, the amount depending on factors such as storage temperature and liquid composition. Chemical compounds used in the internal coating of the can include types of epoxy resin.

 

A professor casually mentioned the Al(III) salts/ Alzheimers thing to me a few weeks ago (outside of class). I'm so going to call him on that.

 

I would like to know how soluble aluminum phosphate is though. Anyone got a [ce] K_{sp} [/ce] for it?

Edited November 2, 2010 by mississippichem

[lemur]

I can also feel sick if I eat plums too quickly. From what I can find online I'd say the jury is out when it comes to increased blood sugar levels increasing the odds of getting diabetes. And I'd say not brushing your teeth is the unhealthy practice, not the eating of sugar, although I'm not sure about this one.

I agree that people are too quick to assume that fruit is natural and therefore automatically healthy. Still, there may be some nutrients in fresh fruit that are not in concentrated corn-syrup. Many fruit juices do not seem that much healthier than soda, imo, except for maybe the vitamins/anti-oxidants.

 

Add to the list of problems with sugar that it stimulates growth of yeast and who knows what else in your bodies tissues and membranes. Personally, I feel much healthier drinking water regularly to flush out whatever is in my kidneys and rehydrate tissues without saturating them in sugar.

 

Also, the more accustomed people get to drinking sweet liquids, the less capable they are of enjoying the taste of water. This, in turn, causes them to avoid water, which is needed to flush the waste products from digesting all that sugar they are drinking whenever they're thirsty.

 

 

[CharonY]

For AlPO4 it was around 9.8*10^-21.

Edited November 2, 2010 by CharonY

[John Cuthber]

"This, in turn, causes them to avoid water, which is needed to flush the waste products from digesting all that sugar they are drinking whenever they're thirsty."

The waste products from the metabolism of sugar are water and CO2.

How much water do you think it takes to flush those out?

 

"Also, the more accustomed people get to drinking sweet liquids, the less capable they are of enjoying the taste of water."

Water, pretty much by definition, has no taste to enjoy.

[dragonstar57]

people don't really know whats healthy

they just make blanket statements and make some graphs and go on fear monger campaigns