PHARMACIST: When soft drinks harm softly

The festive season is here and there’ll be parties everywhere. One important aspect  of every party is the drinks. You can be sure that people will be guzzling down bottles of Soda on Christmas and New Year.

However, it is very important to realize the side effects of these drinks towards one’s health. October last year, scientists issued a warning over fizzy drinks, claiming that they cause a death toll of 184,000 adults every year.

They’re full of sugar, chemicals and generally have zero nutritional value; Fizzy drinks are something that people have been warned against on countless occasions, even though they look very appealing.

And it’s not just the ‘full-fat’ versions. Diet fizzy drinks can also have extremely harmful effects to the body Fizzy Drinks are risk factors for Cancer. There have been many studies that have looked at the links between various types of cancer and fizzy drink consumption.

Drinking just two sugary soft drinks a week increases the amount of insulin the pancreas produces and can double the risk of developing pancreatic cancer.

Drinking just one fizzy drink a day could increase a man’s chance of developing prostate cancer by around 40 per cent and a woman’s chance of developing breast cancer as well.

The study showed that some chemicals used to color soft drinks have been known to cause cancer.

Fizzy Drinks are said to have effects on the heart among other organs. Scientists in America found a strong link between the proportion of daily calories from foods laden with added sugars (like fizzy drinks) and death rates from cardiovascular disease.

They claimed that drinking three cans a day could triple a person’s risk of heart disease. This is a phenomenal increase in risk.

Sugar-laden drinks have been proven to increase cases of Type 2 diabetes. A study conducted between 1990 and 2000 estimated that the increased consumption of sugar-sweetened drinks contributed to 130,000 new cases of diabetes.

 This not only includes sodas but also energy drinks that are full of sugar. Fizzy drinks have been found to increase a person’s waist line up to three fold in comparison with those who do not consume fizzy drinks.

A study from 2009 found that sugary drinks can cause fatty liver disease and drinking just two cans per day could eventually lead to liver damage. It is important to note that the increased risk of diabetes also causes an increased risk towards liver and renal failure alike

Fizzy drinks have also been linked to violent behavior. A study carried out on teenagers found a link between drinking fizzy drinks, violence and the likelihood of them carrying a weapon. The researchers found that even teenagers who drank just two cans a week were more aggressive towards their friends and those who drank five or more cans a week were also more likely to have drunk alcohol or smoked at least once in the previous month.

This could also be because of the fact that fizzy drinks alter the protein in the brain leading to hyperactivity. This does not bring concrete proof as to whether soda can be a stepping stone for smokers and drunkards. However, it does bring to light certain effects that sodas have on a child’s upbringing in terms of health.

Pregnant women were warned against drinking diet fizzy drinks after a study taken in Denmark on 60,000 women. Those who drank artificially sweetened soft drinks, whether fizzy or still, were found to be more likely to give birth prematurely.

Hence, if you care about your health and wellbeing and are in no hurry to age quickly, you should definitely reduce and eventually stop taking these very sugary fizzy drinks.

A better option would be fresh fruit juice which is not only cheap and healthy but also  very tasty.  Tanzania is full of fresh fruits Grab an orange, juice it and enjoy the festivitie celebrations.  Happy Boxing Day   today.