Soda: To Drink Or Not To Drink...

The average American drinks 44 to 56 gallons of soda yearly, depending on the survey results one looks at. (This is a whopping 101 to 128 cups of sugar a year, just from soda!)

Open a 12 ounce can of soda and be prepared to be ingesting 10 to 12 teaspoons of sugar.  Yet, despite admitting knowing about the high sugar content and that this very sugar is not good for health, 48% of Americans still admit to drinking soda every day. (Reported in a Huffington Post article about a Yale University study on obesity.)  Average consumption is 2.6 glasses of soda a day. Much liquid sugar is being ingested.

Where is this soda and sugar consumption taking Americans, their waist lines or their overall health?

Let us look at some of the impact soda, and the sugar, has in the human body.

1.  Soda is empty calories.  This means your body is taking in calories that have no nutritional value.  Your body needs calories, dense with nutrition, to support the replication of healthy cells.  Empty calories = empty cells.  This is cell degeneration... this is degenerative disease happening slowly but surely to your body.  Empty calories means weight gain, as well.

2.  One can of soda contains at least 10 teaspoons of sugar.  This causes an immediate blood sugar spike which causes an insulin spike.  The physiological reaction in your body is a sweet (no pun intended) set up for diabetes and all the other diseases that diabetes invites into your life.

3.  Soda contains phosphoric acid.  Phosphoric acid contributes to tooth decay and osteoporosis (cellular health thing again), both of which are also exacerbated by the empty calories and sugar content. It is a triple whammy to your cellular health.

Phosphoric acid interferes with digestive activity and inhibits nutrient absorption. Not what you want to happen if you want strong, healthy, nutrient dense body cells.

4.  Soda is loaded with liquid corn syrup; high fructose corn syrup.  Corn syrup comes from corn, genetically modified corn.  Corn syrup is harsh to your liver. Love your liver; feed it whole foods.

5. Got diet soda?  You then get aspartame or another synthetic sweetener (Aspartame's name has been changed to Aminosweet.  Do not be fooled!)  No calories, yes, but it is a fake substance with many inherent health issues.

Artificial sweeteners:  contribute to headaches and migraines, fake your body into thinking sugar is coming and this leaves you actually craving and eating more sugar and calories than you normally would, the before mentioned sugar consumption increases your risk of diabetes, and is linked to many health problems (look it up!).

6.  Erodes tooth enamel contributing to decay from the outside, on the actual tooth surface.  The phosphoric acid and empty calorie issues contribute to decay from the inside, de-mineralizing your teeth from inside.

7.  Soda, sugar consumption, is linked to higher rates of depression.  I would be happy to go into cell physiology with you and sugar's effects on the nervous system (your brain & mood health) if you want to chat.

Depression is certainly an issue in our culture.  Perhaps moving away from sugary drinks would lower the numbers of anti-depressant prescriptions written daily in this country?  Just a preventative health thought....

8.  The base of soda is tap water and is most likely not from pure sources.  You are getting a dose of chlorine and fluoride and the health issues that go along with ingesting chlorine and fluoride.

9.  Soda and obesity are linked; walking through life hand in hand.  I think it is about that sugar and empty calorie thing again.

10. Back to your teeth... soda consumption causes plaque to build up on your teeth.  Plaque contributes to cavities (Another whammy to the teeth from the outside; the surface of your teeth.) and can lead to gum disease.  All that plaque creates space for harboring bacteria...

11.  Soda contributes to de-mineralization of your body / body cells. (See #6 above.) Empty calories, refined sugar in your blood stream, and phosphoric acid all contribute to minerals being pulled from bones, teeth, organs, muscles... every body cell is affected by this mineral leeching.  Mineral deficiencies (as this is what de-mineralization does) cause many health problems: osteoporosis, tooth decay, bone spurs... any and every degenerative disease process is contributed to by mineral deficiencies.

Action To Take:

1.  Drink pure water that is free of chlorine and fluoride.

2.  Make herbal teas using the above mentioned pure water.

3.  Mix high quality fruit juice with above mentioned pure water to make a fruity flavored drink.

4. Mix that high quality fruit juice with seltzer water to create your own healthier version of a fizzy drink.

5. Drink beer!   : )     If you opt for this one, do so in serious moderation. Also, find craft brewed beers from ingredients that are good for you and good fo the Earth. Avoid beer produced in the typical mass production methods.

13 Health Foods That Are NOT So Healthy

13 Health Foods

That Are NOT So Healthy...

Proceed with

1. Brown Sugar:  Brown sugar used to be sugar that did have the molasses intact.  Modern brown sugar is merely refined "white" sugar that has added caramel coloring to make you THINK it is real brown sugar.  Action to take: Use sucanat, read the label and look for sugar that is simply dehydrated, sugar cane juice... nothing added, nothing removed. Another good brand is Rapunzel Rapadura Sugar.

2.  Greek Yogurt: Real Greek yogurt is truly just cultured milk that has been strained to make it thicker, creamier, and higher in protein.  If refined ingredients have been added to thicken the yogurt, it is not real Greek yogurt.  Most Greek yogurts, on the market, are not real.  Action to take:  Read labels on everything that a food manufacturing facility makes for you.  Read those labels for 100% whole food ingredients.  Do not settle for less; your cellular health depends on this.

While I am on the subject, eat plain yogurt*, not the flavored varieties.  Again, read labels, flavored yogurts are loaded with crap ingredients and sugar.  These crap ingredients and sugar do not create vibrant, healthy body cells.

Real yogurt should be milk and active cultures, period.  No thickeners, no flavorings, no sugars, etc!  Want a recipe for making a yummy snack with yogurt, fruit, and nuts... email me!  pyoumell@gmail.com

3.  Frozen Yogurt:  OK, so this is a fun one.  People order frozen yogurt instead of ice cream... well, because "it is yogurt. Yogurt is good for me,  so frozen yogurt is a healthy treat, right?"  No, it is not.  See above info on plain yogurt.  No good gut microbes survive freezing, so thinking frozen yogurt is good for gut health is a flawed thought (yes, perpetuated by marketing, but flawed none the less).  Action to take:  *Eat plain yogurt you have made yummy and fun with fruit, berries, cinnamon, vanilla.  Want a recipe? Email me, pyoumell@gmail.com.

4. Ginger Ale: "Ginger ale is good for me when I am sick, have a fever, correct?" "It settles my stomach if I have a nasty, gut bug sickness, correct?"  No, sorry. Modern sodas are just a source of liquid corn syrup, artificial flavors, and other artificial ingredients.  Action to take: Make ginger tea, use the ginger tea with seltzer water to make your own ginger soda; buy a natural brand of ginger soda that has real ginger in it!

5.  Bran Muffins: Running late for work or an appointment, no time for breakfast, so one stops at the mini-mart and grabs a bran muffin.  It is the health option in the mini-mart, correct?  NO, it is loaded with refined and toxic ingredients: white sugar, corn syrup, hydrogenated oils, white flour, artificial flavors, fillers, dough conditioners, etc., and a small amount of bran.  Action to take:  Make your own and have them handy.  Want a recipe, email me.  Take the time for a real breakfast.

6.  Wheat Bread:  Lots of issues here:  modern wheat is not all it is cracked up to be, most wheat breads have minimal whole grains in them, and most manufactured wheat bread is loaded with refined and crap ingredients.  Again, read labels.Action to take: Read labels and make certain breads are 100% whole grains for 100% whole cellular health.  Sprouted whole grain breads are another nourishing option.

7.  Commercial Fruit Smoothies: Ok, so the fruit does not exist in powdered smoothie mixes.  Many are artificially fruit flavored or have dried fruit powders in them.  Action to take: Make at home with 100% whole food ingredients, whole fruit, and only buy fruit smoothies in shops that make them the same way.  If the fruit smoothie is a powdered mix, RUN, fast, get away from the powdered world crap.  I don't care how healthy they say their protein powder fruit smoothies are for you.  They are not real food!

8.  Vitamin Water: One word: crap.  Ok, so vitamin water has a marvelous marketing campaign. This is a big clue here, any product with a marketing campaign most likely is worthless and not nourishing to your body cells.  Fresh produce does not need to be marketed as healthy.  We all innately know it is! Action to take: Drink water from your tap, if it has not been poisoned with chlorine and fluoride.  If it has, filter it.  If you think you need to have added vitamins in your water, go to Nature's Storehouse and find a 100% whole food liquid vitamin supplement and add it to your water.  Your health and cells will be grateful.

9.  Non-Calorie Sweeteners:  Nature did not make many non-calorie sweeteners. Food laboratories do; that is your clue to avoid them.  Nature makes real food, "food" labs do not.  These sweeteners are toxic to your liver and toxic to all of your body cells.  Now stevia... yes, if you are using real, green stevia.  The powdered green herb form of stevia is a real non-calorie sweetener.  Stevia that is the white powder or clear liquids, refined in food labs, in not healthy cell food.  Action to take:  Get a hold on your sugar usage.  Is it really something we were meant to eat every day?  Nah... it's not!

10.  Diet Soda and Diet Drinks:  Toxic to liver and body cells. See Non calorie sweetener above.  Action to take: Always put your body cells first and foremost in your mind when choosing foods and food products.  Make herb teas and enjoy them sweet free or use a tiny bit of raw, local honey.  Make "soda" with seltzer water and a wee bit of organic fruit juice concentrate.

11.  Gluten Free Food Products:  A word of caution:  when a health problem arises, manufacturers are quick to respond with ' "food products" to help solve your problem.  Many gluten free products are HIGHLY processed and full of junk ingredients.

Gluten free does not mean it is healthy.  There are thousands of gluten free products on the market:  cakes, cookies, breads, pizza crusts, boxed mixes; processed food heaven!  Learn to read labels.  Many of these products are full of fillers.  Yes the “fillers” in question are gluten free, but they are also refined, nutritionally devoid foods.  If the natural, whole food nutrition is not in the food, the refined food product will rob your body cells of nutrients and contribute to degenerative diseases. You are trading off one huge health problem for another of equal degenerative quality.

Things to look for are:  white rice flour, corn starch, potato starch*, tapioca starch*, tapioca flour*, potato flour*.  Basically these are cheap, filler ingredients not real food, not food that nourishes your beautiful body cells. These fillers create a host of health problems in your body including blood sugar and insulin issues that contribute to inflammation and exacerbate health issues.  

Action to take:  

Keep refined ingredients out of your diet for vibrant health. Read labels, buy food products that are 100% whole food ingredients only, including gluten free products.

Want to learn more?  I do gluten free workshops, contact me: pyoumell@paulayoumellrn.com 

Want gluten free bread & pizza dough recipes?  See my recipes under FREE STUFF link at the top of my web page. Or contact me for more suggestions.

*Note: Some brands of tapioca flour and potato flour are the whole roots ground into flour.  Check with the individual companies to know that what you are buying is a whole food flour, not a refined food flour.

12.  Fat Free Dairy: There are many reasons to avoid animal fat.  My big issue is that they are contaminated with all the toxins that have been created on this divine planet.  So, I advise buying organic and naturally raised animal products.  I even try to avoid animals products from animals that are fed GMO foods: corn and soybeans.  These are no easy tasks, I admit, and can leave one throwing up their arms in despair.  With this said, fat is needed in your body!   The manufacture of your bodily hormones depends on ingested fat.  Action to take:  Get to know your farmers, ask them how they raise their animals, what they feed them, if the corn /soy is GMO free, if they get fed very little corn and soy and mostly have access to pasture.  (Yes, winter in the north country complicates the pasture grazing issue!)  www.gardenshare.org  Go ahead, click the link, and start finding local farmers to grow your food!

13.  Chocolate: Ok, I know there are people who will want to strangle me for adding this one to the list.  Let's get serious, anti-oxidants aside, we all intuitively know that eating processed chocolate, every day, is not what nature intended.  It has been well marketed to us as a healthy superfood.  (Please see the above comments about marketing campaigns and food.)  Yes, I am certain chocolate, cocoa beans, have antioxidants, why wouldn't they?  Nature did make them.  But humans take those beans and process them into 554 million different chocolateproductsand then market them as a necessary daily food.  Our culture has certainly bought into this food campaign: hook,  line, and sinker.  Perhaps we could all thrive ingesting just chocolate, red wine, and coffee... all are loaded with antioxidants, right?!  Ok, ok, I know I am being a smart ass.  Action to take:  See it for what it is;  a tasty, fun, occasional treat.  Buy organic and fair trade to support the farmers that grow these amazing beans and enjoy it, with a smile, on occasion.

Questions to ask yourself about a food product: 

Was this nature made or man-made?

Were the ingredients nature made or man-made?

Was this made in a food factory?

Does this product have a huge marketing campaign?

If you would like to know more about how to heal your body with real food, how to incorporate healing-whole health strategies into your life, enter your name (above and on the right side of the page) to subscribe to my blog newsletter.  Come to a class I teach or give me a shout and we can work one on one.  Your health will soar, you will feel great, your cells will bounce with amazing energy!   Blessings, Paula