GettyWe’ve often been told that drinking a can of coke isn’t the healthiest option in the world but have you ever wondered how bad for you the stuff actually is?
Well, a new infographic has revealed the reaction your body goes through in the hour after consuming the fizzy drink and it’s unpleasant, to say the least.
The graphic was put together by Truth Theory, a blog run by a former pharmacist who goes by the name Niraj, which reveals (you guessed it) the truth about some of your favourite foods.
And Niraj’s latest post details the dangers of drinking Coca Cola, from the 20 minute blood sugar spike to “the crash”.
Just some of the nuggets of terrifying information are that coke works in a similar way to heroin, contains 100% of your recommended daily sugar intake, and you’ll p*ss out the small amount of good nutrients in the drink anyway. Lovely…
Truth TheoryIn the blog post, the former pharmacist wrote:
Coke is not just high in high fructose corn syrup, but it is also packed with refined salts and caffeine. Regular consumption of these ingredients in the high quantities you find in Coke and other processed foods and drinks, can lead to higher blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes and obesity.
Speaking to the Mail Online, Ella Allred, Technical Nutritionist at NutriCentre.com added:
These facts on Coke, may shock you, but it is a good indication as to why we shouldn’t be drinking it. The NHS has just changed the total added sugar allowance from 10 teaspoons per day to 7.5 teaspoons per day. This makes just one can more than your total free sugar allowance for the entire day. Such a high surge of sugar causes your pancreas to over work to produce insulin, increasing your chances of developing Diabetes Type 2 and causing you to lay down fat around the middle, which increases your chances of developing heart disease.
GettyThe caffeine hit from the coke silences certain receptors in the brain making you feel alert and awake. We don’t feel tired in the first place due to caffeine deficiency, so it just masks the symptoms of another problem. Ignoring this problem isn’t going to get you anywhere! The huge sugar hit that your body now needs to deal with uses up valuables nutrient stores such as magnesium and calcium, our biggest stores being in our bones – just think about that for a second.
It also causes you to become dehydrated, making you feel drowsy and tired, again needing another energy hit. The sugar and caffeine stimulate the same pleasure centres in our brain as drugs such as cocaine and heroin, leaving you craving more, which further worsens the effect on your body.
So, in conclusion, coke is bad news!
Yesterday, Tesco announced they would be banning Ribena and Capri-Sun because of the high sugar content, as part of a fight against childhood obesity, and we wonder if drinks like Coca Cola could soon go the same way.
