Health News
by Jason Bosley-Smith, CSCS, Live Well @ LifeBridge
Did you know that a 20-ounce soda has about 17 teaspoons of sugar and over 200 calories? While many of us focus on food when we think of controlling calories, how often do we stop and think about our drinks? Empty calories and high doses of sugar are found in many drink options, stifling our goals of healthy weight maintenance.
Poor drink choices are ones that contain a lot of extra calories without very many vitamins and minerals. Choosing these types of drinks regularly can keep you from maintaining a healthy weight. Beware of sport drinks, sodas and fruit-flavored beverages. These types of drinks contain large amounts of added sugar and are packed with calories without many nutrients. Diet sodas are also problematic as they contain artificial sweeteners that our bodies do not readily recognize, leaving us hungry or thirsty for more.
Drinks and Diabetes
A recent study published in Diabetes Care indicates that soft drinks sweetened with sugar may be contributing to the rise in cases of type 2 diabetes, as these drinks add significant quantities of calories and carbohydrate to the diet. Since these drinks contain large amounts of rapidly absorbable carbohydrates, they may induce a fast and dramatic increase in both glucose and insulin concentrations, compared to drinks made with no sugar or a sugar substitute. If you are diabetic or looking to prevent diabetes, cautiously monitor your sugar and calorie intake of these types of drinks.
Think Before You Drink Tips
1. Drink water throughout the day. Carry a water bottle with you and refill it often.
2. Trade large cream and sugar-filled coffees for lower calorie versions. Downsize your large, calorie-packed mocha latte for a medium coffee with an artificial sweetener like Stevia.
3. If you drink fruit juice, ensure that the label reads ?100% juice? and not ?fruit beverage? or ?fruit drink.? Limit your daily intake of fruit juice - experts recommend getting no more than 4 ounces of fruit juice each day.
4. Switch to plain tea (green, white, black) or plain coffee. An additional bonus? Teas contain high quantities of antioxidants.
- Students In 2 Appalachian Ohio High Schools Help Reduce Classmates' Consumption Of Sugary Drinks, A Bane In The Region
In a region where sweet-tea and soda is more popular than water, student-led groups in Appalachian Ohio were successful in reducing the amount of sugary drinks students consumed, reports The Ohio State University's Center for Clinical and Translational...
- Penny-per-ounce Tax On Sugar Drinks Could Save $17 Billion, Cut Consumption And Prevent Disease And Death, Academics Say
More than $17 billion in medical costs over 10 years could be saved if sugared drinks were taxed at 1 cent per ounce, and it would prevent 95,000 cases of coronary heart disease, 8,000 strokes and 26,000 premature deaths, say researchers at Columbia University...
- Drink Bottles, Cans Must Now Show Calorie Content On Front
In an effort to educate people about how many calories they're sucking back, the front labels of packaged beverages in bottles or cans of 20 ounces or less must now show the total number of calories they contain. "Beverage containers traditionally...
- Just Say No To Liquid Calories
By Dr. Madelyn Fernstrom Why do we always hear so much about ?cutting liquid calories? for a healthier diet? It?s because most of these sources contain loads of calories without any nutritional benefit. Liquid calories are a hidden source of sugars (and...
- The Truth About Fruit
By Dr. Madelyn Fernstrom Fruit is one of nature?s perfect carbohydrates ? filled with fiber, water, and nutrients. With naturally-occurring fruit sugar (fructose), it?s also referred to as ?nature?s candy,? perfect for taming a sweet-tooth. Nowadays,...
Health News
Choosing Healthy Drink Options
by Jason Bosley-Smith, CSCS, Live Well @ LifeBridge
Did you know that a 20-ounce soda has about 17 teaspoons of sugar and over 200 calories? While many of us focus on food when we think of controlling calories, how often do we stop and think about our drinks? Empty calories and high doses of sugar are found in many drink options, stifling our goals of healthy weight maintenance.
Poor drink choices are ones that contain a lot of extra calories without very many vitamins and minerals. Choosing these types of drinks regularly can keep you from maintaining a healthy weight. Beware of sport drinks, sodas and fruit-flavored beverages. These types of drinks contain large amounts of added sugar and are packed with calories without many nutrients. Diet sodas are also problematic as they contain artificial sweeteners that our bodies do not readily recognize, leaving us hungry or thirsty for more.
Drinks and Diabetes
A recent study published in Diabetes Care indicates that soft drinks sweetened with sugar may be contributing to the rise in cases of type 2 diabetes, as these drinks add significant quantities of calories and carbohydrate to the diet. Since these drinks contain large amounts of rapidly absorbable carbohydrates, they may induce a fast and dramatic increase in both glucose and insulin concentrations, compared to drinks made with no sugar or a sugar substitute. If you are diabetic or looking to prevent diabetes, cautiously monitor your sugar and calorie intake of these types of drinks.
Think Before You Drink Tips
1. Drink water throughout the day. Carry a water bottle with you and refill it often.
2. Trade large cream and sugar-filled coffees for lower calorie versions. Downsize your large, calorie-packed mocha latte for a medium coffee with an artificial sweetener like Stevia.
3. If you drink fruit juice, ensure that the label reads ?100% juice? and not ?fruit beverage? or ?fruit drink.? Limit your daily intake of fruit juice - experts recommend getting no more than 4 ounces of fruit juice each day.
4. Switch to plain tea (green, white, black) or plain coffee. An additional bonus? Teas contain high quantities of antioxidants.
- Students In 2 Appalachian Ohio High Schools Help Reduce Classmates' Consumption Of Sugary Drinks, A Bane In The Region
In a region where sweet-tea and soda is more popular than water, student-led groups in Appalachian Ohio were successful in reducing the amount of sugary drinks students consumed, reports The Ohio State University's Center for Clinical and Translational...
- Penny-per-ounce Tax On Sugar Drinks Could Save $17 Billion, Cut Consumption And Prevent Disease And Death, Academics Say
More than $17 billion in medical costs over 10 years could be saved if sugared drinks were taxed at 1 cent per ounce, and it would prevent 95,000 cases of coronary heart disease, 8,000 strokes and 26,000 premature deaths, say researchers at Columbia University...
- Drink Bottles, Cans Must Now Show Calorie Content On Front
In an effort to educate people about how many calories they're sucking back, the front labels of packaged beverages in bottles or cans of 20 ounces or less must now show the total number of calories they contain. "Beverage containers traditionally...
- Just Say No To Liquid Calories
By Dr. Madelyn Fernstrom Why do we always hear so much about ?cutting liquid calories? for a healthier diet? It?s because most of these sources contain loads of calories without any nutritional benefit. Liquid calories are a hidden source of sugars (and...
- The Truth About Fruit
By Dr. Madelyn Fernstrom Fruit is one of nature?s perfect carbohydrates ? filled with fiber, water, and nutrients. With naturally-occurring fruit sugar (fructose), it?s also referred to as ?nature?s candy,? perfect for taming a sweet-tooth. Nowadays,...