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<\/a><\/p>\nIt might seem surprising that a non-radioactive, tobacco-less, industrial waste-free product could cause cancer.\u00a0 Sure, it makes you fat and gives you cavities, but cancer?\u00a0 The theory is that the mega-doses of sugar contained in these beverages trigger our bodies to release higher levels of insulin, the hormone that regulates sugar levels.\u00a0 Insulin is created in the pancreas and triggers pancreatic cells to divide.\u00a0 Each time a cell divides, the chances of its offspring developing a cancer-causing mutation increase.\u00a0 So more sugar causes more mutations in pancreatic cells, which leads to more pancreatic cancer.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s the theory, but the research into the link between soft drinks and pancreatic cancer is contradictory\u2013some studies confirm a link, some studies refute it, and some studies go so far as to find that even fruit juices are linked to pancreatic cancer.\u00a0 This particular Singaporean study was well-designed and its conclusion is believable.\u00a0 It is not, however, as dire as headlines make it sound.<\/p>\n
While the study did find that soft drinks increased the rate of cancer, let\u2019s look at that increase.\u00a0 The people who didn\u2019t drink soft drinks had a rate of about 3 in 10,000 cases of pancreatic cancer per year.\u00a0 The 85 percent increased risk this study found means that soft drinks increase the annual rate of pancreatic cancer among soda drinkers to about 5 in 10,000.\u00a0 Not particularly dramatic.\u00a0\u00a0 Furthermore, the researchers did not find that fruit juice, which contains about as much sugar as soft drinks, was linked to pancreatic cancer.<\/p>\n
So, should you stop drinking soda?\u00a0 Yes, but not because of the risk of pancreatic cancer.\u00a0 You should mostly stop drinking soda, as this video<\/a> shows, because it\u2019s just incredibly disgusting how much sugar there is in a can of coke.\u00a0 Don\u2019t let nutrition labels deceive you, \u201ccarbohydrates\u201d means sugar, and a \u201csingle serving\u201d is sometimes\u00a0only two-thirds of what\u2019s in the can.\u00a0 So a Coca-Cola Classic label<\/a> advertising 27 grams of carbohydrates per serving actually contains about 40 grams of sugar in a 12 ounce can.\u00a0 That\u2019s\u00a0the equivalent of ten of the sugar packets you\u2019d put in your coffee.<\/p>\n Replacing sodas with fruit juice doesn\u2019t solve the problem.\u00a0 Even completely natural fruit juice, made from pesticide-free fruits picked by free-range hippies with the dawn\u2019s pure dew still glistening on their skins, contains about as much sugar as soft drinks.\u00a0 A single glass of fruit juice combines the sugar from several fruits, usually without the fiber that helps make whole fruit so healthy.\u00a0 And despite that, manufacturers still add sugar.\u00a0 Their labeling can be confusing: fruit juice means 100 percent of the contents come from fruit, while fruit drinks, fruit beverages, and fruit cocktails contain added ingredients\u2013usually sugars and fortifiers.\u00a0 A juice box (8.45 ounces) of unsweetened apple juice contains 25 grams of sugar.\u00a0 That\u2019s about the same amount in an identical volume of Coca-Cola Classic, 28 grams of sugar.<\/p>\n I was surprised to find the American Academy of Pediatrics has a policy on fruit juice (and on trampolines and ATVs!\u00a0 Sounds like some fun committee meetings).\u00a0 They state children under six months shouldn\u2019t drink any fruit juice, children from six months to six years should drink less than six ounces (the volume of half of a can of soda), and children older than six years should drink less than twelve ounces of fruit juice a day (the same volume as a full can of soda).\u00a0 They worry that the amount of sugar in fruit juices can contribute to childhood obesity, as well as malabsorption syndromes, chronic diarrhea, and cavities.<\/p>\n Ironically, sports drinks and vitamin water, which are\u00a0marketed specifically for their health benefits, aren\u2019t much better when it comes to sugar content.\u00a0 That bottle of Gatorade (602g) you drink after kickboxing class contains 32 grams of sugar\u2013about eight of the sugar packets you\u2019d add to your coffee.\u00a0 No wonder it\u2019s so hard to lose weight at the gym.\u00a0 For a typical workout, water and a healthy diet give you all the hydration and electrolytes you need. You\u2019re shooting yourself in the foot if you\u2019re trying to lose weight through exercising, and then drink a sports drink afterwards.<\/p>\n Similarly, vitamin water is actually sugar water. \u00a0Sure, there are a few sprinkles of additional vitamins, but that\u2019s like the parsley that comes on the side of the jumbo burger deluxe with French fries.\u00a0 You don\u2019t need those extra vitamins if you\u2019re eating a healthy diet.\u00a0 While a bottle of vitamin water might only advertise 13 grams of sugar per serving, realize that there are 2.5 servings in a bottle.\u00a0 That\u2019s as bad as a bottle of sports drink, and almost as bad as a can of soda.<\/p>\n Regardless of your feelings about a slight increase in your risk of pancreatic cancer, there are plenty of good reasons to quit drinking sugary beverages\u2013not just sodas, but fruit juice and other supposedly healthy drinks.\u00a0 Combine the possible risk of pancreatic cancer with the known negative impacts of sugar on much more common diseases-obesity, diabetes, cavities-and you\u2019ve got a really good reason to put down that bottle.\u00a0 The real message about soft drinks, fruit juices, and other sugary drinks is that while they might slightly increase your risk of pancreatic cancer, they\u2019re unhealthy for much more common reasons.<\/p>\n Originally posted on The Faster Times<\/a>.<\/p>\n