Sodas: From Health Drink to Casual Beverage Prior to its current image as one of the most esteemed and consumed beverage across the globe, the history of soda drinks began with the manufacturing of carbonated water by Joseph Priestly, and Torbern Bergman’s invention of a mechanism turning carbonated water into chalk form with the use of sulfuric acid in the 1700s. However, Bellis and Oatman-Stanford noted that the newly manufactured good of Priestly and Bergman was met with little success in the market due to financial constraints and the presence of a weaker glass industry making it different and costly to support the sale of carbonated drinks. The beverage gained prominence only in the United States when Professor Silliman from Yale College began selling carbonated water in the Tontine coffeehouse and the city’s hotel in 1809. In his venture, Professor Silliman focused more on the ornate designs of the soda bottles while at the same time continuously propagating the positive medical benefits of the product. It is under this aforementioned strategy that carbonated water began to be perceived as a health drink and was then started to be offered in apothecaries, drugstores, or pharmacies (Oatman-Stanford).
As sodas became popular as a heath drink, pharmacists have constructed far more ways in improving the medical benefits associated with the beverage. These include mixing soda with other ingredients capable of addressing specific disease areas such as the use of Sarsaparilla to cure syphilis, Phosphoric acid to cure hypertension, and so on. Soon, pharmacists have taken soda consumption into the next level with the incorporation of narcotics like morphine and cocaine into the mix which has been adapted by customers as part of their morning routine to start their day right due to its jolting effect on the body. Eventually, medical professionals have observed that carbonated water has no standalone health benefit so, from a health drink, people continued selling the good but only as a treat. In the 20th century, experts and health practitioners have noticed the dangers that come with selling casual soda drinks infused with unregulated forms of medication; this resulted into greater controls on the contents of soda brands (Oatman-Stanford).
Furthermore, as efforts are being made to control the medicinal and narcotic contents of soda beverages, the soda manufacturers began to rely on sugar to entice their customers. As consumers have also become more aware of then unhealthy impact of soda consumption due to the enormous amount of sugar used in manufacturing the good, businesses continued to counter it with the use of cheaper ingredients thus converting soda beverages into a highly sweet and very accessible casual beverage (Oatman-Stanford).
The Controversy in the Use of Sugar
While the issue of high sugar concentration in soda beverages have already been highlighted by various consumer groups in the 20th and 21st century, scientific evidences proving its potency has contributed largely into magnifying the issue of high sugar content as a major consumer and industrial controversy – most of them linking sugar content with the prevalence of obesity and blood sugar-associated diseases. In the systematic study of Malik, Schulze and Hu on the published researches on the relationship between sugar-sweetened beverages and the risk of unhealthy weight gain from 1966 to May 2005, conducted cross-sectional studies have provided very strong evidence on the high independent impact of sugar beverage consumption into the promotion of obesity or unhealthy weight gain both in children (Ludwig, Peterson, and Gortmaker & Berkey et al.) and adolescents (Phillips et al.). These high correlations were also observed in the cohort and experimental studies examined (Malik, Schulze, and Hu).
However, the controversy on the impacts of the use of sugars in sodas on the health of individuals does not solely lie on the disadvantage of soda businesses. This is due to the fact that, even though studies proving its direct correlation are present, contesting studies were also made available that says otherwise. Going back with the study of Malik, Schulze and Hu on 30 previously conducted researches, ten of these studies provided results revealing that there is no significant to positive insignificant relationship between sugary beverage consumption and obesity or unhealthy weight gain. Notable among these were the study of Kvaavik et al. on 422 adults for 8 years, the study conducted by Anderson et al. on 3139 schoolchildren in Norway from 1993 to 2000, the study done by Forshee and Storey on 3311 adolescents and children in 2003 and the subsequent investigation of Forshee et al. on 2216 adolescents in 2004. Nonetheless, the controversy surrounding the high sugar content of soda beverages have resulted into decreased consumer confidence and consumption leading firms to manufacture an alternative: diet sodas and the use of artificial sweeteners.
The Controversy in the Artificial Sweeteners
With the public’s growing awareness on the sugar concentration of soda beverage, major soda companies have begun to manufacture their own sugar-free varieties containing little to no calories. In order to make this possible, soda manufacturers made use of artificial sweeteners such as Aspartame (known to be 180 times sweeter than regular sugar), Acesulfame-K (200x sweeter), Saccharin (300x), Sucralose (600x), Neotame (7,000 – 13,000 times sweeter), Advantame (20, 000x sweeter) and so on (Harvard School of Public Health). Though the intention of diet beverages is to provide a healthier alternative to regular soda beverages, consumer groups later on exclaimed the negative impacts of these sugar alternatives to the body making them no different than the sugar that they have replaced. Even so, the scientific community in their conducted studies, similar to the previously discussed studies on the links between sugary beverages and obesity, still failed to provide a single unifying stand due to the presence of contesting results across varying methodologies and sampling techniques. As stated by Tandel, the results led into conclusions and recommendations ranging from guaranteed safe across all conditions to proven unsafe at any dosage.
In the exploration of clinical studies done by Tandel, the study revealed that the use of artificial (alternative) sweeteners have been recommended on five key aspects which include assisting in weight loss (Bellisle and Drewnowski), dental care precaution than regular sugar (Bentley and Mackie), regulating blood sugar levels and managing glucose in the bloodstream (Tandel). However, other studies have contrasted these results by responding that the consumption of particular artificial sweeteners could yield into adverse effects as proven by studies done on animals and other test subjects if consumed on unhealthy levels as approved by health authorities such as the Food and Drug Administration (Tandel). In addition to these, the meta-analysis done by Bellisle and Drewnowski revealed that even though artificial sweeteners could contribute in lessening the amount of sugar in the body, it could still impact the functioning of the brain. Normally, the consumption of sugar signals the availability of digestible calories necessary in providing energy, but since artificial sweeteners have been devoid of calorie contents, this could result into lower levels of satiety leading into higher consumption of sugary products or regular food and thus would still require the proper regulation of diet quality and consumption.
Opinion on the Controversy
As emphasized by Malik, Schulze and Hu, and Tandel, there is still no overall unified stance among the scientific community on the safety of sodas including those of their diet soda counterparts. While there were some points of unification in the discourses such as the banning the use of cyclamates as sugar alternatives, the provided evidences on both sides, whether in support or against soda consumption, remains to be overwhelming in terms of sample size and length of the period of analysis. Thus, I assert the needed for further current researches on the subject matter in order to continuously examine the impacts of these products to the body. Similar to the recommendations of Malik, Schulze and Hu, there is also a need for a convergence in terms of the methodologies used in determining the impacts of these goods. With these, the results will be easily made comparable across various regional and time-bound researches which will make it easier to unite in a particular stand within the scientific community.
On the other hand, as a typically consumer, my opinion on the controversy highlights the importance of moderation and the search for better alternatives. As shown in the literature reviewed earlier, the disadvantages that come with soda consumption draws from the daily consumption of the product. As such, moderation, together with the assurance of a balanced diet and exercise, still proves to be a potent solution to mitigate the impacts of sugary beverages to the body. Similar to what Bellisle and Drewnowski have stated, though diet beverages and sugary beverages have the propensity to affect the blood sugar levels of the body, the impact of these beverages would still depend on the systems of control and compensating strategies employed by the consumer which includes methods of overall sufficient calorie management, the consumption of the appropriate energy diet, and the overall lifestyle management applied by the individual.
Works Cited
Andersen, Lene F., Inger T. Lillegaard, Nina Overby, Leslie Lytle, Knut-Inge Klepp, and Lars Johansson. "Overweight and Obesity Among Norwegian Schoolchildren: Changes from 1993 to 2000." Scandinavian Journal of Public Health 33.2 (2005): 99-106. Web. 22 Apr. 2016.
Bellis, Mary. "Introduction to pop: The history of soft drinks." About Money. N.p., 3 Feb. 2016. Web. 21 Apr. 2016. <http://inventors.about.com/od/foodrelatedinventions/a/soft_drinks.htm>.
Bellisle, F., and A. Drewnowski. "Intense sweeteners, energy intake and the control of body weight." European Journal of Clinical Nutrition 61.6 (2007): 691-700. Web. 22 Apr. 2016.
Bentley, E.M., and I.C. Mackie. "A qualitative investigation into general practitioners' views on prescribing sugar-free medicines for children prior to a dental health education campaign." Health Education Research 8.4 (1993): 519-524. Web. 22 Apr. 2016.
Berkey, Catherine S., Helaine R. Rockett, Alison E. Field, Matthew W. Gillman, and Graham A. Colditz. "Sugar-Added Beverages and Adolescent Weight Change." Obesity Research12.5 (2004): 778-788. Web. 22 Apr. 2016.
Forshee, Richard A., Patricia A. Anderson, and Maureen L. Storey. "The Role of Beverage Consumption, Physical Activity, Sedentary Behavior, and Demographics on Body Mass Index of Adolescents." International Journal of Food Sciences and Nutrition55.6 (2004): 463-478. Web. 22 Apr. 2016.
Forshee, Richard A., and Maureen L. Storey. "Total beverage consumption and beverage choices among children and adolescents." International Journal of Food Sciences and Nutrition 54.4 (2003): 297-307. Web. 22 Apr. 2016.
Harvard School of Public Health. "Artificial Sweeteners." Nutrition Source. N.p., 2016. Web. 22 Apr. 2016. <http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/healthy-drinks/artificial-sweeteners/#ref55>.
Kvaavik, Elisabeth, Lene F. Andersen, and Knut-Inge Klepp. "The Stability of Soft Drinks Intake from Adolescence to Adult Age and the Association Between Long-term Consumption of Soft Drinks and Lifestyle Factors and Body Weight." Public Health Nutrition 8.2 (2005): 149-157. Web. 22 Apr. 2016.
Ludwig, David S., Karen E. Peterson, and Steven L. Gortmaker. "Relation Between Consumption of Sugar-sweetened Drinks and Childhood Obesity: A Prospective, Observational Analysis." The Lancet 357.9255 (2001): 505-508. Web. 22 Apr. 2016.
Malik, Vasanti S., Matthias B. Schulze, and Frank B. Hu. "Intake of Sugar-sweetened Beverages and Weight Gain: A Systematic Review." Am J Clin Nutr 84.2 (2006): 274-288. Web. 22 Apr. 2016.
Oatman-Stanford, Hunter. "Medicinal Soft Drinks and Coca-Cola Fiends: The Toxic History of Soda Pop." Collectors Weekly 10 Apr. 2014: n. pag. Web. 21 Apr. 2016. <http://www.collectorsweekly.com/articles/the-toxic-history-of-soda-pop/>.
Phillips, Sarah M., Linda G. Bandini, Elena N. Naumova, Helene Cyr, Skye Colclough, William H. Dietz, and Aviva Must. "Energy-Dense Snack Food Intake in Adolescence: Longitudinal Relationship to Weight and Fatness." Obesity Research 12.3 (2004): 461-472. Web. 22 Apr. 2016.
