PlanetSave - Known Carcinogen Present in Soft Drinks Since 1990
The right atoms are present, but would a chemistry expert care to determine if the reaction really can form benzene? I wonder if this is why I think Sunny-D is so gross?
I just have to cringe when I see someone guzzling pop from a 2L bottle they will finish by themselves by the end of a sitting. It doesn’t matter if it’s “diet”, the potential health consequences could be akin to smoking.
A Hat Tip goes to Life As I Know It blog, where I seem to recall seeing this topic initially in May.
Oh, and here’s a shocking scene, where it appears a mother feeds her very young child Pepsi instead of water:
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Lord Kitchener's Own | 14-Nov-06 at 12:07 pm | Permalink
I know I’m overstating this, but it seems to me that scientists have now determined that every piece of matter in the known universe may cause cancer.
A turning point for me, was when it was discovered that the sun tan lotions we use to stop the sun from giving us cancer, can actually cause cancer.
I threw up my hands at that point.
So fine, softdrinks may give me cancer. I guarantee if I switch to drinking something else, within 5 years someone will have shown that THAT might cause cancer. Seems to me, the only thing left for me to do that WON’T increase my chance of getting cancer is to die.
Until they discover a chemical in coffins that causes cancer in corpses that is.
I’ve reached the point where I’ve decided, if I’m going to try to avoid everything that might give me cancer, I’d be better off dead.
I think the chances of scientists curing cancer are actually better now than the chances of me avoiding it.
I’ll take my chances.
Saskboy | 14-Nov-06 at 12:12 pm | Permalink
“Until they discover a chemical in coffins that causes cancer in corpses that is.”
They have. Formaldehyde is highly carcinogenic. I’ve heard there’s a high death rate in morticians because of it. The “alternatives” to the embalmer, tend to contain the chemical as well.
While it’s impossible to avoid every cancer risk (ie. you have to walk past smokers, and breathe air as cars pass, and drink water industries use), you can manage your risks, so that you eat the best food and water possible, and wear a hat at least. It’s not a lot of effort [none] to drink healthier choices than Coke, and the benefits from drinking water are obvious to me anyway over subjecting oneself to daily soda pop intake.
Todd | 14-Nov-06 at 3:34 pm | Permalink
Saskboy, do you just eat organic celery and drink 5 times filtered water? I think eating anything, in moderation, is fine.
Don’t tell me that you never get fast food (hydrogenated oils) or sugary soft drinks.
Saskboy | 14-Nov-06 at 4:44 pm | Permalink
Todd, I try to eat veggies and fruits every day, and fish in the week a few times. I drink 90% water as my liquid in the week. I wear a hat, but not one that covers my ears unfortunately. I’ve made an effort to avoid foods with trans fat when there’s an alternative that doesn’t have it. Yesterday I had a Blizzard I’d never had before, and chicken wings, and I eat out about once a week, with a dessert maybe twice a month.
Sometimes, eating in moderation means eating nothing of something. Just because many people drink Coke by the gallon in a week, doesn’t mean it isn’t killing them faster than they’d otherwise die. Some people would consider a gallon of Coke a week, drinking it in moderation. I’d consider a glass a week about enough of a treat. (I stopped drinking Coke years ago, it made my teeth ache for some reason, and does bad things to my gut.)
Rosie | 14-Nov-06 at 5:45 pm | Permalink
I guess there is only so much you can do. I work in a lab full of carcinogens, especially one that attaches to your DNA and glows under ultra violet light. I am convinced that when I go to a club or something my skin is glowing from all the ethidium bromide I’ve absorbed. My diet is the least of my worries!
However, to put things into perspective, chances are the pesticides found on the fruits and veggies are worse for you than the benzene in pop. Also, with nutrasweet, there is more methanol found in a tomato than diet pop. By the way, bread crusts and barbque’d meat contain some perdy nasty things, so better stop eating altogether!
About the kid drinking pop, I’ve seen mothers give a small child an entire chocolat bar. No wonder why we are obese! Oh, and in mexico, in some places pop is cheaper than providing clean water to drink to the government hands it out if you can believe that.
Saskboy | 14-Nov-06 at 6:23 pm | Permalink
I’ve heard that about 3rd world liquid distributions, maybe from your blog Rosie? It’s nuts that it’s cheaper to take what should be potable water, put SUGAR and other materials into it, then bottle it, and ship it off to desperate people. It’s OBVIOUSLY cheaper to not add additional materials to a product if you want to lower the cost. Adding sugar and drug(s) to water, seems to be a clear attempt at either genocide or caffeine enslavement [to use a slight hyperbole].
You’re right, pesticides on our food are probably part of why I sometimes get hives. I want to get a house so I can grow a chunk of my food myself, and give my body time to detoxify. Problem is, in most places they put chlorine into the water supply, so BAM some more carcinogens come through the pipeline unless I succumb to buying Brita filters, which probably contain some carcinogen in their filters anyway…etc. I understand why some people like Todd (it seems), throw up their hands and eat whatever, because being TOO picky in a diet is a one way ticket to the funny farm.
It’s important that we make whatever efforts we can though to both encourage companies to stop poisoning us, and at the same time stop pouring obviously bad levels of sugar and crap into our mouths. My motto: If you don’t buy the crap at the store, you won’t have the junk to shove into your mouth at home. I can’t tell you the last time I bought pop, but it must be years ago. I’m not suffering by having it only when I eat out.
Miss Cellania | 14-Nov-06 at 9:06 pm | Permalink
Since I was a kid here in Kentucky, I’ve seen mothers give a baby bottle with Pepsi in it. It would be funny if it weren’t so sad. No wonder there are so many toothless young adults here.
Saskboy | 14-Nov-06 at 10:29 pm | Permalink
Miss C, I’m sure it’s rather common in many places [where education isn't at its best level], so most people might not even find it shocking. I think it’s about as shocking as putting beer into a baby bottle.
Todd | 15-Nov-06 at 8:49 am | Permalink
I don’t eat ‘whatever’. I eat in moderation. Moderation, to me, means anything that is certified fit to eat is okay to eat in moderation. Moderation, to you, means some things are never fit to eat. That’s not moderation as far as the dictionary goes.
I eat my share of veggies, low fat items, fibre, etc. etc. But I also have popcorn with butter or a diet pop or some sweets now and then too.
Saskboy | 15-Nov-06 at 9:17 am | Permalink
Todd, I didn’t mean you’d eat “whatever” as in “anvils and cigarette butts”. I meant as in possibly thinking it’s OK to have pop every day as long as it’s not every meal, or something along those lines. Granted one person’s “moderation” is another person’s “not at all”. For instance I smoke in “moderation” in that I don’t smoke at all. I get enough from my neighbours to last a lifetime.
I don’t even see a problem with popcorn and diet pop now and then. As long as it’s not “now and then throughout the day”, or now and then like “every second day”. Of course the most important parts to any sustainable diet is to include a variety of natural and fewer processed foods, with a total caloric value at a level where you don’t gain or lose a lot of weight over the year.