Sugary sodas like Coca-Cola have long been shown to increase the risk of conditions like obesity and diabetes. But now experts are warning the popular fizzy drinks could also be wrecking havoc on your digestive system, causing gastrointestinal distress, fractures, and even permanent organ damage.
Even diet sodas, despite not having sugar, could lead to excessively craving other sweets, which may cause weight gain and conditions like diabetes.
And artificial sweeteners like aspartame in diet sodas may cause stomach upset like diarrhea and constipation.
Coca-Cola and several sodas from brands like Dr Pepper contain phosphoric acid, a colorless additive meant to make foods more acidic and prevent bacterial and mold growth, as bacteria can quickly multiply in sugary drinks.
This also gives sugary drinks their tart flavor and fizzy texture.
Phosphoric acid comes from phosphorus, a naturally occurring mineral in the body responsible for tissue and cell growth, maintenance, and repair.
While we need phosphorus for these functions, getting to much has been shown to deplete calcium from the body, an essential nutrient for bone and muscle health.
Without calcium, you’re more prone to developing conditions like osteoporosis, which causes bones to become so brittle that they break.
For example, one observational study in the journal Nutrients found that people who drank soda every day doubled their risk of fractures compared to those who did not drink soda.
Soda has also been shown to irritate stomach lining due to the high carbonation.
Nancy Mitchell, a nurse and contributor for Assisted Living Center, told EatingWell: ‘For those with gastritis, ulcers, acid reflux, and the like – the carbonic acid may aggravate symptoms and cause discomfort, especially if you’re already experiencing chronic inflammation.’
Sugary sodas have also been shown to lower HDL (‘good’) cholesterol and increase triglycerides, a type of fat in the bloodstream that comes from foods like butter, oils, and other fats.
A 2020 study in the Journal of the American Heart Association, for example, found that adults who drank soda frequently had a 98 percent higher risk of low HDL levels and a 53 percent higher chance of developing high triglycerides.
Cesar Sauza, a registered dietitian nutritionist at HealthCanal, told EatingWell: ‘If the sugar from the soda is not used for physical activity, the liver will turn sugar into [triglycerides].
‘If the sugar from the soda is not used for physical activity, the liver will turn sugar into fat.’
In terms of liver damage, one study found that women who drank one or more sugar-sweetened sodas per day were 85 percent more likely to be diagnosed with liver cancer in that time compared to those who consumed fewer than one a week.
Daily soda drinkers were also 68 percent more likely to die from liver disease than those who drank three or fewer per month.
However, the researchers noted the overall risk of death was still very low – with only around 150 fatalities from the disease in the trial.
There was no correlation between liver disease and sugar-free drinks like Diet Coke.
However, diet sodas can come with their own side effects.
In 2022, researchers in Tel Aviv and Johns Hopkins University found that participants who consumed the artificial sweeteners aspartame and stevia – found in diet drinks like Diet Coke – could suffer glucose-galactose malabsorption, a condition that makes it difficult for the gut to absorb sugars.
This can lead to severe diarrhea, dehydration, and weight loss.
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