{"id":11281,"date":"2020-10-31T10:00:06","date_gmt":"2020-10-31T15:00:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.osfhealthcare.org\/blog\/?p=11281"},"modified":"2020-10-30T16:01:39","modified_gmt":"2020-10-30T21:01:39","slug":"improve-your-health-during-no-soda-november","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/improve-your-health-during-no-soda-november\/","title":{"rendered":"Improve your health during No Soda November"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Too much sugar in your diet?<\/p>\n

Talk to a primary care provider
\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Unless you\u2019ve been living alone and completely off the grid for the past 50 years, you surely have heard this: Added sugars in soft drinks are bad for you.<\/p>\n

Actually, added sugars in any food or beverage can harm you. Too much sugar contributes to a pile of health problems, including obesity, diabetes and heart disease.<\/p>\n

But when it comes to overloading your system with sugar, nothing is more effective than a regular soda. Think of it as a sugar bomb attack on your body.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s crazy. You think it\u2019s just a drink, it can\u2019t be that bad. It\u2019s harmless,\u201d said Rebecca Baumann, MD<\/a>, a cardiologist for OSF HealthCare Cardiovascular Institute<\/a>. \u201cYou\u2019re thirsty, so you drink. Before you know it, you\u2019ve consumed as much sugar as in a whole box of donuts.\u201d<\/p>\n

She does not exaggerate. One 20-ounce bottle of regular soda \u2013 and be honest, who drinks just one? \u2013 contains about 65 grams of sugar. That\u2019s the same amount as you would consume eating six glazed donuts.<\/p>\n

Added sugar has no nutritional value<\/h2>\n

Sugar plays an important role in our daily function. Your body converts the sugar you eat and drink into energy.<\/p>\n

Your body gets sugar from two sources. Natural sugars are found in produce such as whole fruits and vegetables, as well as dairy products such as milk and cheese. Added sugars range from what you drop into your coffee, tea and cookie recipes to ingredients in food coloring, preservatives and candy \u2013 and, of course, the sweeteners in soda and even so-called sports drinks.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou get all the sugar you need from natural sugars, along with all the other nutrients that are in those foods,\u201d Dr. Baumann said. \u201cAdded sugar has no nutritional value. And it adds up a lot more quickly.\u201d<\/p>\n

The American Heart Association recommends limits of 6 teaspoons (about 24 grams), of added sugar per day for women, and 9 teaspoons (about 36 grams) for men.<\/p>\n

It doesn\u2019t take much to reach those limits. One glazed donut contains 10 grams of sugar. A single-serving packet of cocoa mix packs 20 grams. And a 12-ounce can of cola pours about 39 grams into your body.<\/p>\n

Dangers of too much sugar<\/h2>\n
\"infographic<\/a>

Download<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

All that sugar adds up to a lot of potential health problems, starting with obesity. Added sugars pack a lot of calories. More than 70% of Americans are considered overweight, in large part due to added sugars.<\/p>\n

\u201cToo much sugar overworks your pancreas, which eventually gives up and stops making enough insulin,\u201d Dr. Baumann said. \u201cIt also causes liver disease, which can eventually evolve into cirrhosis. Non-alcoholic\u00a0fatty liver disease, or NAFLD, can result from excessive fructose consumption. NAFLD, hypertension and diabetes are all interlinked and part of what we refer to as \u2018metabolic syndrome.\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cDiabetes<\/a> and hypertension are both extremely common risk factors we see with atherosclerotic disease \u2013 hardening of the arteries. Your heart is affected. Your entire cardiovascular system is affected. Added sugar is a major player.\u201d<\/p>\n

Make a plan to eliminate added sugar<\/h2>\n

One of the best things you can do for your health is eliminate \u2013 or at least greatly reduce \u2013 your intake of added sugars. One way to do that \u2013 and to see positive results \u2013 is cut back on soft drinks.<\/p>\n

The American Heart Association endorses a campaign known as No Soda November. Take it as a challenge. If you need incentive, consider this: Replacing just 12 ounces of soda with 12 ounces of water each day, you\u2019ll cut more than 50,000 calories in a year. That\u2019s 15 pounds.<\/p>\n

If stopping cold turkey is too much for you, work out a plan to taper off throughout the month. Make your goal to be soda-free by the time November ends.<\/p>\n

The tough part is reducing your body\u2019s craving for sugar.<\/p>\n

One way is to eat fresh fruits and vegetables. Guacamole and humus are healthy, too. These kind of foods provide natural sugar, which the body absorbs slowly.<\/p>\n

Diet sodas, watered down juices and green herbal teas can help you get started, but be careful. They might have other consequences.<\/p>\n

For example, many artificial sweeteners<\/a> are actually sweeter than table sugar and will increase the desire for sweets. Some even interfere with fat metabolism and lead to weight gain. Studies have\u00a0 shown a significantly increased risk of developing metabolic syndrome or diabetes in people who drink artificially sweetened beverages every day.<\/p>\n

\u201cWater is the best, but substitutes can help you taper down gradually,\u201d Dr. Baumann said. \u201cChocolate milk can contain a lot of sugar, but is much better than soda, as it also contains several other important nutrients. And you can gradually cut back on the amount of cocoa powder.<\/p>\n

\u201cUsing flavored powders in water can also help you gradually reduce the amount of added sugar or sweetener. Over time, you can lose your taste for sugar and your craving will decrease. That\u2019s the state you want to reach, where you simply don\u2019t want it anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Soft drinks saturate your body with added sugars, contributing to obesity, diabetes, hypertension, heart disease and other health problems.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":85,"featured_media":11326,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[129],"tags":[26,2,806,655],"coauthors":[912],"class_list":["post-11281","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-miscellaneous","tag-diet","tag-health-tips","tag-infographic","tag-osf-cardiovascular-institute"],"yoast_head":"\nImprove your health during No Soda November | OSF HealthCare<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Soft drinks saturate your body with added sugars, contributing to obesity, diabetes, hypertension, heart disease and other health problems.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/improve-your-health-during-no-soda-november\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Improve your health during No Soda November\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Soft drinks saturate your body with added sugars, contributing to obesity, diabetes, hypertension, heart disease and other health problems.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/improve-your-health-during-no-soda-november\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"OSF HealthCare Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"http:\/\/www.facebook.com\/osfhealthcare\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2020-10-31T15:00:06+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/one-hand-offers-another-a-soda-while-the-other-gestures-rejection.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"675\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Kirk Wessler\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:title\" content=\"Improve your health during No Soda November\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:description\" content=\"Soft drinks saturate your body with added sugars, contributing to obesity, diabetes, hypertension, heart disease and other health problems.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:image\" content=\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/one-hand-offers-another-a-soda-while-the-other-gestures-rejection.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@osfhealthcare\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@osfhealthcare\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Kirk Wessler\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/improve-your-health-during-no-soda-november\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/improve-your-health-during-no-soda-november\/\",\"name\":\"Improve your health during No Soda November | OSF HealthCare\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/improve-your-health-during-no-soda-november\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/improve-your-health-during-no-soda-november\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/one-hand-offers-another-a-soda-while-the-other-gestures-rejection.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2020-10-31T15:00:06+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/bbcfadf7d37885247c75afc4eb7ce56e\"},\"description\":\"Soft drinks saturate your body with added sugars, contributing to obesity, diabetes, hypertension, heart disease and other health problems.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/improve-your-health-during-no-soda-november\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/improve-your-health-during-no-soda-november\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/improve-your-health-during-no-soda-november\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/one-hand-offers-another-a-soda-while-the-other-gestures-rejection.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/one-hand-offers-another-a-soda-while-the-other-gestures-rejection.jpg\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":675,\"caption\":\"One hand offers another a soda while the other gesture rejection\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/improve-your-health-during-no-soda-november\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Improve your health during No Soda November\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"OSF HealthCare Blog\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/bbcfadf7d37885247c75afc4eb7ce56e\",\"name\":\"Kirk Wessler\",\"description\":\"After being a writer for OSF HealthCare for three years, Kirk Wessler retired in January 2022. A Peoria native and graduate of Bradley University, Kirk's experience included working for newspapers in Missouri, Texas and the Peoria Journal Star. Kirk and his wife, Mary Frances, have five sons, four daughters-in-law and nine grandchildren. Kirk plans to spend his retirement on the golf course, mastering the guitar and traveling.\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/author\/kwessler\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Improve your health during No Soda November | OSF HealthCare","description":"Soft drinks saturate your body with added sugars, contributing to obesity, diabetes, hypertension, heart disease and other health problems.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/improve-your-health-during-no-soda-november\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Improve your health during No Soda November","og_description":"Soft drinks saturate your body with added sugars, contributing to obesity, diabetes, hypertension, heart disease and other health problems.","og_url":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/improve-your-health-during-no-soda-november\/","og_site_name":"OSF HealthCare Blog","article_publisher":"http:\/\/www.facebook.com\/osfhealthcare","article_published_time":"2020-10-31T15:00:06+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1200,"height":675,"url":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/one-hand-offers-another-a-soda-while-the-other-gestures-rejection.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Kirk Wessler","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_title":"Improve your health during No Soda November","twitter_description":"Soft drinks saturate your body with added sugars, contributing to obesity, diabetes, hypertension, heart disease and other health problems.","twitter_image":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/one-hand-offers-another-a-soda-while-the-other-gestures-rejection.jpg","twitter_creator":"@osfhealthcare","twitter_site":"@osfhealthcare","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Kirk Wessler","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/improve-your-health-during-no-soda-november\/","url":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/improve-your-health-during-no-soda-november\/","name":"Improve your health during No Soda November | OSF HealthCare","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/improve-your-health-during-no-soda-november\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/improve-your-health-during-no-soda-november\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/one-hand-offers-another-a-soda-while-the-other-gestures-rejection.jpg","datePublished":"2020-10-31T15:00:06+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/bbcfadf7d37885247c75afc4eb7ce56e"},"description":"Soft drinks saturate your body with added sugars, contributing to obesity, diabetes, hypertension, heart disease and other health problems.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/improve-your-health-during-no-soda-november\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/improve-your-health-during-no-soda-november\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/improve-your-health-during-no-soda-november\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/one-hand-offers-another-a-soda-while-the-other-gestures-rejection.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/one-hand-offers-another-a-soda-while-the-other-gestures-rejection.jpg","width":1200,"height":675,"caption":"One hand offers another a soda while the other gesture rejection"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/improve-your-health-during-no-soda-november\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Improve your health during No Soda November"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/","name":"OSF HealthCare Blog","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/bbcfadf7d37885247c75afc4eb7ce56e","name":"Kirk Wessler","description":"After being a writer for OSF HealthCare for three years, Kirk Wessler retired in January 2022. A Peoria native and graduate of Bradley University, Kirk's experience included working for newspapers in Missouri, Texas and the Peoria Journal Star. Kirk and his wife, Mary Frances, have five sons, four daughters-in-law and nine grandchildren. Kirk plans to spend his retirement on the golf course, mastering the guitar and traveling.","url":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/author\/kwessler\/"}]}},"modified_by":"Wilma Matheney","featured_image_url":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/one-hand-offers-another-a-soda-while-the-other-gestures-rejection.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11281","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/85"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11281"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11281\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11340,"href":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11281\/revisions\/11340"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11326"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11281"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11281"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11281"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=11281"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}