Given the flurry of bad press that high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) has had of late, Jones Soda Co. has taken the move to switching sweeteners in its soft drinks.
HFCS is being shown the door; sugar is being ushered in instead. So reports SeatttlePI.com.
How intriguing. While this certainly is an interesting move, it doesn’t really address the larger issue here, which is that sugars of all kinds, in excess, could, over time, cause health problems galore. And we’re not just talking about obesity. We’re talking about heart disease, cancer, diabetes, etc.
OK, I’ll be blunt: If I had my druthers, people just wouldn’t drink empty-calorie soda. Period. But, hey, let’s face it, I’m fantasizing bigtime here.
So, if you had to have a refined sweetener used in soda, yeah, I’ll admit, that I’d prefer pure sucrose over high fructose corn syrup. (Research shows that HFCS is processed differrntly in our bodies and could lead to a number of health woes.)
Let me repeat, however: You do NOT need soda. There’s no RDA for that empty-calorie sugary concoction.
Now, I personally do like sweet drinks from time to time. In fact, my favorite sweet drink of all is natural herb tea, which contains no added sweeteners at all. (Today, I was yearning for a sweet beverage so I had some stevia tea, made straight from the herbs. It’s naturally sweet and quite tasty.)
Listen, I am NOT advocating drinking soft drinks (whether they contain sugar or HFCS), but if you do absolutely positively insist on having one, make sure to pace yourself — in other words, have a good meal first (you know, protein, quality carbs like veggies, healthy fats, etc.). Then sip the soda — and if you can, toss out half of it.
Then at least contemplate the role soda plays in your life. In short, do what I call "sugary soul searching." You may find that you really don’t "need" soft drinks after all.