Which soft drink is the worst for you

If you're not a high-performance athlete, you don't need an electrolyte replacement drink to help you stay fueled and at the top of your game. But for the average half hour on the elliptical, water will do the trick. Sports drinks are designed to help athletes stay energized and appropriately hydrated from the right balance of readily available carbs sugar and replete minerals sodium, potassium and chloride.

They'll add significant calories, and if you have a sensitive tummy, they may also make you a little nauseous. Instead of sports drinks, opt for: Plain water or unsweetened coconut water just look out for flavored varieties that can pack in a ton of added sugar.

Even if they claim to have "no sugar added," most smoothies are just masquerading as a "health" drink. While they can get away with the claim by using sugar in the form of fruit puree, the total sugar load is still significant and is often not balanced with any fiber or protein to help stabilize blood sugar levels and keep you full.

Instead of pre-bottled smoothies, opt for: Homemade smoothies that pack in fruit, veggies and a protein source like Greek yogurt. A standard can of peach iced tea contains 34 grams of added sugar, almost 9 teaspoons of the stuff which exceeds the daily limit recommended by the American Heart Association.

If it's pre-sweetened, you can't control how much added sugar or artificial sweeteners are being added to your drink. You're better off ordering an unsweetened version and adding a teaspoon or two of sugar on your own for sweetness. That way, you can control how much you add and cut the total sugar content by more than half. Instead of sweetened iced tea, opt for: Unsweetened and add a slice of citrus and one or two teaspoons of sugar on your own for sweetness.

Check labels for artificial sweeteners aspartame, acesulfame-K, sucralose, saccharin are a few on "water" labels. While they may not be harmful to your health, not all flavored waters are created equal and require some nutrition label detective work. Instead of artificially flavored or sugary sparkling waters, opt for: sparkling waters with a dash of fruit juice for flavor.

Product Reviews. Home Ideas. In many countries outside the U. Although this carbonated energy drink contains B-vitamins and herbals, the high levels of caffeine and sugar negate any health benefits.

Despite its name, it does not contain any real orange juice. Bawls Geek Beer is a oz. Jolt Cola comes in A can of Jolt contains mg of caffeine and 94 g of sugar, which is derived from granulated sugar and high fructose corn syrup. But one soda you will never see me drinking or offering it up to my child is Orange Crush.

While Orange Crush sounds harmless enough—it has a fruit in the name and an image of an orange slice on the label, after all—in reality, it is a sugar bomb that can do a number to your health. And while drinking it instead of another regular soda does not appear to increase your risk of obesity, type 2 diabetes, or other negative health effects any more or less , I have seen this particular beverage fall under a health halo because of the name and labeling.

In my practice, I have encountered quite a few clients mistaking a cup of Orange Crush as a fruit serving and assuming that drinking it is giving them a boost of nutrition. And when serving beverages to children, some clients proudly tell me that they choose Orange Crush instead of Coke or Pepsi to get some fruit into their kids' diets. At first glance, Orange Crush sounds like a better choice than classic dark sodas.

It is a similar color to vitamin-packed orange juice and it is easy to assume that it is made with real oranges: a fruit that is loaded with nutrients like vitamin C and folate that has some health benefits.

But after one glance at the food label, you will not find a lick of real orange on the ingredient list. The orange color is a product of mixing man-made red and yellow dyes and the orange taste stems from the use of undisclosed natural flavorings.

Plus, when comparing the added sugar of the content — 71 gram in the Orange Crush vs. With the neon orange hue and the super-sweet orange smell, a cup of Orange Crush is loaded with some ingredients that you will never find on a dietitian's "must-eat" list. Instead of having an orange color because the soda contains real orange juice, it contains ingredients like Red 40 and Yellow 6 — both artificial colorings that make this drink orange. As a by-product of petroleum, consuming red 40 is linked to negative behaviors in children.

And when consumption of this dye is limited, some children with ADHD experience some benefit. It is true that not all carbonated water is detrimental to our health. If you're still unsure about any long-term damage soda can have, you might want to think about your smile. Studies have uncovered that dential erosion and severe tooth decay have been linked to frequent soft drink consumption.

Mtn Dew's take on orange soda is just as bad as the original flavor. Don't even bother drinking any Live Wire! The name of this citrus-flavored soda might make it seem like it's a chill, refreshing drink.

But one bottle of Mello Yello is packing nearly calories and 78 grams of sugar. That's nothing to be calm about! Cream soda is known for its vanilla flavor that is reminiscent of ice cream. But Mug's version is loaded up with 79 grams of the sweet stuff. Eating a mango might make you feel like you're somewhere tropical, and a recent study even found that the fruit may help reduce wrinkles.

That same can't be said for Fanta's mango soda that is packing more sugar than 21 Chips Ahoy cookies. Sensing a trend among these fruit-flavored sodas? They're all filled with straight-up added sugar. Eating an actual pineapple, though, has plenty of upsides. It can help strengthen your immune system, aid digestion, and boost your mood, among the fruit's many health benefits. All of which—as you can imagine—are lost in this Fanta soda.

If you're really looking to combat your sugar intake, this is the science-backed way to curb your sweet tooth in 14 days. A fruit punch soda sounds intriguing, and the color of this Sunkist drink is eye-catching, to say the least. Take a look at the nutrition, though, and those 80 grams of sugar are enough to scare you away for good. More than calories and 81 grams of sugar for a bottle of Crush's peach soda? If you're really in the mood for some actual peach-flavor, we highly suggest eating the actual fruit instead.

Another pineapple soda makes the list, and it's even worse than the Fanta offering. Sunkist's version of this fruity drink comes in at calories and 84 grams of sugar. That's more than you would get if you ate three of McDonald's vanilla ice cream cones. If you chowed down on eight Original Glazed Krispy Kreme donuts, you would still consume less sugar than you would get from this one bottle of Crush Pineapple soda.

Plus, this soda has the same amount of calories as two bags of Lay's Classic Potato Chips. Those are more than enough reasons to never go near this drink!