Q. Does drinking colas deplete calcium? I am concerned that children are drinking sodas at school and at meals, instead of milk. Is this also a cause for diabetes in children? What about adults? I have a friend who drinks three to four colas a day, even at breakfast. — C. MacKenzie, Seattle
A. The "Pepsi Generation" has gotten pudgy. And so has their progeny. In the past 20 years, obesity (defined as being 30 percent over ideal body weight) in adults has ballooned from 15 percent in 1980 to 31 percent today. In children the statistics are even more alarming: For ages 6-11, the rate has DOUBLED in the last 20 years, and it is estimated that 80 percent of these children will be obese adults. For young people between ages 12 to 19, the obesity rate has TRIPLED.
This cascading corpulence is mainly due to increasing food portions and sedentary lifestyles. Soft-drink consumption is part of this problem because, on average, frequent soda-drinkers consume an average of 200 excess calories in a day than non-soda drinkers. In The Lancet, a British medical journal, a team of Harvard researchers reported: "Twelve-year-olds who drank sodas regularly were more likely to be overweight than those who didn't." While the intake of sodas has tripled, milk consumption has dropped by 40 percent. When sugary soda supplants real food like milk, the problems aren't just fat bodies but also more Type II diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, kidney stones, osteoporosis and an unhealthy drop in consumption of vitamins, minerals and other nutrients.
Because soda has replaced milk and other nutritional beverages to such a horrifying extent, osteoporosis is now considered to be a pediatric disease! Boys and girls ages 9-18 need 1,300 milligrams of calcium EVERY DAY, or they face health problems later. Recent studies have found those teens that drink sodas frequently are far more likely to fall short of this requirement and suffer bone fractures than teens that only drink sodas occasionally. Girls, for example, build 92 percent of their bone mass by age 18. If they do not get enough calcium by age 18, there is no catching up at age 19.
Calcium is important for all humans because it is needed for muscle contractions (including the heart), blood clotting, nerve transmissions, enzyme function and many metabolic functions. If the body does not get enough calcium from the diet, it takes it from the teeth and bones. This is where frequent soda consumption gets hazardous. First, some research suggests that the caffeine in sodas may increase calcium loss; second, according to the National Osteoporosis Foundation, the phosphates in soda may weaken bones and interfere with calcium absorption; and third, sodas are very high in sugar, which erodes tooth enamel.
According to Dr. James A. Howenstine, author of "A Physician's Guide to Natural Health Products That Work" (BookSurge Publishing, 2002, $21.95), "In an interesting experiment, the sugar from one soft drink was able to damage the white blood cells' ability to ingest and kill gonococcal bacteria for seven hours. Soft drinks also contain large quantities of phosphorus, which when excreted, pulls calcium out of the bones. Heavy users of soft drinks will have osteoporosis, along with their damaged arteries."
Since adult women over age 50 need almost as much calcium as teenage girls (1,200 milligrams/day), cutting soft-drink consumption down to about 12 to 20 ounces a day makes good bone sense. No drug can take the place of sensible nutrition or regular exercise.
Linda Buch is a fitness trainer in Denver, Colo., and Lancaster County native. Her book, "The Commercial Break Workout" (Crown/Random House), is available in bookstores. Please send your questions to: Linda@LJBalance.com or c/o "Body Language," Lancaster New Era, P.O. Box 1328, Lancaster, PA 17608.
