The Benefits of Starting Your Day with a Walk

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The Benefits of Starting Your Day with a Walk

When you wake up in the morning, the movement might not be your first priority. But starting your day with a walk — whether it’s around your neighborhood or part of your commute to work or school — can offer your body a number of health benefits.

Here are 10 reasons why you may want to start your day by getting in some steps. There are also a few tips to seamlessly work it into your daily routine.

1. Boost your energy

Starting out your day with a walk may give you more energy throughout the day. If you walk outdoors, that’s especially true.

Studies show that adults who walked for 20 minutes outdoors experienced more vitality and energy than those who walked for 20 minutes indoors.

A small study found that 10 minutes of stair walking was more energizing than a cup of coffee for 18 women who felt sleep-deprived.

The next time you need a morning energy boost or feel tired when you wake up, you may want to try a walk.

2. Improve your mood

There are physiological benefits to walking in the morning, too.

A walk may help:

  • improve self-esteem
  • boost mood
  • reduce stress
  • reduce anxiety
  • reduce fatigue
  • ease depression symptoms or reduce your risk for depression

For best results, try walking for 20 to 30 minutes at least 5 days a week.

3. Complete your physical activity for the day

One benefit of walking in the morning is that you’ll complete your physical activity for the day — before any other family, work, or school obligations derail you.

The Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans recommend that healthy adults should complete at least 150 to 300 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise per week.

Try to complete a 30-minute walk 5 mornings a week to meet these requirements.

4. It may help you lose weight

Walking in the morning may help you meet your weight loss goals. Walking at a moderate pace for 30 minutes can burn up to 150 calories. Combined with a healthy diet and strength training, you may find you lose weight.

5. Prevent or manage health conditions

Walking can offer numerous benefits for your health, including boosting your immunity, as well as preventing and helping you manage various health conditions.

StudiesTrusted Source shows that walking for 30 minutes per day can reduce your risk for heart disease by 19 percent. If you live with diabetes, walking may also help lower your blood sugar levels.

It can even help increase your life span and reduce your risk for cardiovascular disease and certain cancers.

6. Strengthen muscles

Walking may help strengthen the muscles in your legs. For best results, walk at a moderate to brisk pace. Try to change up your routine and climb stairs, walk up and down hills, or walk at an incline on the treadmill.

Add in leg-strengthening exercises like squats and lunges several times a week for more muscle tone.

7. Improve mental clarity

A morning walk may help improve your mental clarity and ability to focus throughout the day. A recen found that amongst older adults, those who started their days with a morning walk improved their cognitive function, compared to those who remained sedentary.

Walking may also help you think more creatively. Research shows that walking opens up a free flow of ideas, which may help you problem-solve better than if you’re sitting or remaining sedentary. This is especially the case if you walk outdoors.

The next time you have a morning meeting or brainstorming session, suggest that your co-workers join you on a walk, if possible.

8. Sleep better at night

Walking first thing may help you sleep better at night later. A small 2017 study trusted Source observed older adults aged 55 to 65 who were experiencing difficulty falling asleep at night or were living with mild insomnia.

Those who exercised in the morning versus the evening experienced better sleep quality at night. More research is needed to determine why exercising in the morning may be better for sleep than exercising at night, though.

9. Beat the heat

One benefit of walking in the morning in the summertime — or if you live in a climate where it’s warm year-round — is that you’ll be able to fit in exercise before it gets too hot outside.

Be sure to drink plenty of water to stay hydrated before and after your workout. Bring a water bottle with you, if needed. Or, plan to walk along a route with water fountains.

10. Make healthier choices throughout the day

Starting your day with a walk may set you up to make healthier choices throughout the day. After your walk, you may feel more energized and less sleep-deprived.

When your energy drops or you’re tired, you’re more likely to reach for comfort snacks or energy boosters. Walking in the morning may inspire you to choose a healthy lunch and snacks in the afternoon.

Make it part of your routine
  • Set out clothing for your walk the night before. Leave your socks and sneakers by the door so you don’t have to look for them in the morning.
  • Try to set your alarm for 30 minutes earlier so you can get in at least a 20-minute walk in the morning. Look for a nature trail nearby or just walk around the neighborhood.
  • Find a friend or co-worker to walk with in the morning. Chatting and working together can help keep you motivated.
  • If you don’t have a lot of time in the morning, consider making walking part of your commute. If you can’t walk all the way to work, try getting off the bus a stop or two early to get a walk in. Or, park farther away from your office so you can walk from your car.

Should you walk before or after breakfast?

If you walk in the mornings, you may wonder if walking before or after breakfast matters and if it’ll help if you have weight loss goals. Research is mixed on whether or not skipping breakfast will increase your metabolism or help you lose weight faster.

Some research shows that exercising in the fasting state (before breakfast) helps your body burn more fat. But more studies are needed.

In the meantime, it depends on your body. If you feel fine taking a walk before eating, or if your stomach feels better if you don’t eat, that’s OK. Or, you may find that you feel better eating a small snack like a banana or a fruit smoothie before heading out on your walk.

Either way, after you exercise, make sure you eat a healthy breakfast and drink plenty of water.

The takeaway

Starting your day with a short walk can offer a number of health benefits. You may feel more energized throughout the day, see your mood and mental clarity improve, and sleep better at night. Be sure to stretch before and after your walk and drink plenty of water to stay hydrated.

If you have more questions, talk to your doctor before starting a new exercise routine

Is Low-Calorie Ice Cream Healthy?

Regular ice cream is usually packed with sugar and calories and can be easy to overeat, which may lead to weight gain.

Thus, you may be curious about low-calorie options that still satisfy your sweet tooth.

This article examines low-calorie ice cream — and provides easy recipes to try at home.

How to choose a healthy ice cream

Low-calorie ice creams can be made with low-fat dairy, artificial sweeteners, and/or milk alternatives to cut down on the number of calories.

However, that doesn’t necessarily make these desserts healthier. Some low-calorie ice creams may be highly processed, while others contain more sugar than regular ice cream.

What’s more, artificial sweeteners have been linked to long-term weight gain because they may lead to overeating throughout the day. Research also suggests that they may upset your stomach or cause diarrhea[rx]

It’s best to read labels when shopping for low-calorie ice cream and review the following:

  • Ingredient lists. A longer list generally means the product is highly processed. As ingredients are listed in order of quantity, closely examine those at the beginning.
  • Calories. Though most low-calorie ice creams deliver under 150 calories per serving, the calorie content depends on the brand and ingredients used.
  • Serving size. Serving size can be deceptive, as a small serving will naturally contain fewer calories. There are normally several servings in a single package.
  • Added sugar. Eating too much added sugar is linked to numerous diseases. As such, try to avoid ice creams with more than 16 grams per serving [rx].
  • Saturated fat. Evidence suggests that limiting saturated fat intake — especially from sugary, fatty foods like ice cream — may reduce your risk of heart disease. Look for alternatives with 3–5 grams per serving [rx]
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Sugar substitutes, artificial flavors, and food dyes may be included as well.

A high intake of certain sugar substitutes, such as sugar alcohols, may cause stomach pain (rx).

Furthermore, some studies suggest that certain artificial flavors and food dyes are linked to health concerns, including allergic reactions and behavioral problems in children, as well as cancer in mice [rx], [rx], [rx][rx]

Thus, try to find products with shorter ingredient lists, as these are normally less processed.

While low-calorie ice cream may be appealing from a weight loss perspective, you should still watch out for unhealthy ingredients.

Healthiest low-calorie ice cream options

Some healthier brands of low-calorie ice cream include:

  • Halo Top. This brand offers 25 flavors, only 70 calories per serving, and lower fat and higher protein contents than regular ice cream. You can find Halo Top in both dairy and dairy-free bars and pints.
  • So Delicious Dairy Free. Made from either oat, cashew, coconut, soy, or almond milk, these ice creams contain many organic ingredients. They’re also vegan and gluten-free.
  • Yasso. This low-fat alternative is made from Greek yogurt, which increases its protein content. Some flavors are gluten-free.
  • Chilly Cow. This brand uses ultra-filtered milk and offers a whopping 12 grams of protein per serving while remaining low in calories and sugar. However, it’s high in carbs.
  • Arctic Zero. This brand offers non-dairy, lactose-free, and light pints with only 40–90 calories per serving. They’re also free of sugar alcohol.
  • Cado. This avocado-based ice cream is a dairy-free and paleo-friendly option with several organic ingredients.
  • Enlightened. This high-protein, the low-fat brand offers about 80–100 calories per serving. It also produces dairy-free versions.
  • Breyers Delights. This high-protein option is available in multiple flavors.
  • Ben & Jerry’s Moo-Phoria Light Ice Cream. This product is low in fat but boasts 140–160 calories per serving, making it higher in calories than many other options on this list.

Low-calorie ice cream comes in many varieties, including vegan, gluten-free, organic, and lactose-free options. Keep in mind that healthier versions tend to have fewer ingredients

Strawberry ice cream

This cottage cheese-based dessert is packed with protein.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup (226 grams) of low-fat cottage cheese
  • 2 tablespoons (30 ml) of unsweetened vanilla almond milk
  • 2 teaspoons (10 ml) of your preferred sweeteners, such as honey, maple syrup, sugar, or sugar substitute
  • 10 large frozen strawberries

Directions

  • Stir the cottage cheese, almond milk, and sweetener in a medium-sized bowl and freeze until solid.
  • Cut the frozen mixture into cubes and thaw for 10–20 minutes. Thaw the frozen strawberries as well.
  • Add the ingredients to a food processor and pulse until smooth, scraping the sides when necessary.

This recipe yields 2 servings, each containing 137 calories and 14 grams of protein.

Mint-chocolate-chip ‘nice cream’

“Nice cream” is the term for fruit-based ice cream.

Ingredients

  • 1 peeled, frozen banana
  • 1 cup (20 grams) of baby spinach
  • 2 tablespoons (30 grams) of unsweetened coconut milk
  • 1/2 teaspoon (2.5 ml) of peppermint extract
  • Just a few chocolate chips

Directions

  • In a blender, blend the banana, baby spinach, coconut milk, and peppermint extract until smooth.
  • Add the chocolate chips and blend again for 5–10 seconds.

The recipe serves one and provides 153 calories.

Mango frozen yogurt

This fruity dessert gives you a burst of tropical flavor.

Ingredients

  • 2 cups (330 grams) of frozen mango
  • 1/2 cup (227 grams) of plain, non-fat Greek yogurt
  • 2 teaspoons (10 ml) of vanilla extract
  • 2 tablespoons (30 ml) of honey

Directions

  • Combine all ingredients in a food processor.
  • Blend until smooth and creamy.

This recipe makes 4 servings, each with 98 calories.

Iced-coffee ice cream

This cottage cheese-based recipe is loaded with protein to keep you feeling full.

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups (339 grams) of low-fat cottage cheese
  • 1/2 cup (120 ml) of brewed espresso or black coffee, cooled to room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon (5 ml) of your preferred sweetener or sugar substitute
  • 1 teaspoon (5 ml) of vanilla extract

Directions

  • Mix all the ingredients in a medium-sized bowl and freeze until solid.
  • Cut the frozen mixture into cubes and thaw for 30 minutes.
  • Add the ingredients to a food processor and pulse until creamy, scraping the sides when necessary.

This recipe makes 2 servings, each providing 144 calories and 20 grams of protein.

Healthy, low-calorie ice creams are easy to make at home with ingredients like cottage cheese, fruit, and nondairy milk.

If enjoyed in moderation, low-calorie ice cream can be a part of a balanced diet. Although it cuts back on calories from sugar and fat, this dessert may be highly processed and contain unhealthy ingredients like artificial sweeteners. Therefore, you should read ingredient lists carefully.

For an even healthier option, make your own low-calorie ice cream at home

Thinking of Trying a Meal Prep Service? These Black-Owned Companies Have You Covered

They check all the marks for freshness, flavor, and elevating Blackness in the food industry

I was standing in my friend’s kitchen, watching him toss shrimp and breadcrumbs into a sizzling pan and squeeze lemon over the top.

We were making po’boys, one of my favorite Southern sandwiches rich in flavor and generous with the bread.

I always assumed they were made better by the professionals, but here my friend was, cursing at Sunday night football in his sweatpants and casually telling me about the “fond,” all the little roasty bits in the bottom of the pan.

His eyes glimmered when he told me about the new dishes he had recently mastered.

When he told me he used a meal prep service, I was intrigued.

For about $60 per week, he had a box of fresh and specially curated ingredients delivered to his doorstep. Between gas for my car and random clothing purchases, $60 a week on delicious meals seemed like a responsible lifestyle upgrade for me.

When I chose a meal prep service, I wasn’t thinking about the company’s mission or whether they offered healthy meals that reminded me of my favorite foods from the African diaspora. I wasn’t considering the company’s commitment to my community or anyone else’s.

I just didn’t want to go grocery shopping.

I ended up using the same service as my friend. That was nearly 3 years ago. While I’m grateful for the culinary world I found there, I’m also grateful for the burgeoning Black-owned meal prep services that exist now.

Meal prep 2.0

It’s time for healthy meal prep services that are flavorful, convenient, and support talented Black chefs in the process.

First Batch Artisan Foods

When Chef Dymetra Pernell became a holistic health practitioner and started eating vegan, she soon missed her favorite food: ice cream.

The first batch of vegan ice cream she made springboarded her into business for the vegan community, and specifically for lactose-intolerant people of color for whom ice cream wasn’t an option.

While First Batch Artisan Foods found additional success with restaurants like Slutty Vegan and national recognition from the “Today Show,” COVID-19 made meal prep a necessity for people who have grown tired of cooking every day.

For members of the Black community, the fatality of COVID-19 highlighted the powerful relationship between diet and health.

“What you see and what I offer are all of my favorite things. For culture, we do Soul Food Sunday or Soul Food Saturday, where we offer the plates that are traditionally eaten in our household but without all of the sodium and… cholesterol,” Pernell says.

Beyond expanding First Batch Artisanal Food to meal prep, Pernell is preparing to ship her brownie, cookie, and peach cobbler mixes across the United States.

Restaurant patrons can look out for vegan breakfast options, which are often hard to find at nonvegan restaurants. Here’s hoping they make it to the delivery service soon.

Fit Chef Toronto

Led by Chef Amanda Chigumira, FitChef Toronto provides global cuisine to customers in the Toronto area.

Fit Chef Toronto is focused on helping customers with meal prep and delivery options that meet their dietary needs. Think gluten-free, vegan, low carb, and beyond.

Chigumira knows that flavor is essential to her customers.

“As a chef, I believe life is too short and the world is too vast to not dabble in all the flavors,” she says.

As such, popular menu items include Thai, Greek, Jamaican, Italian, and American dishes.

Fit Chef Toronto uniquely gives customers the option to text their favorite dishes to their chef to keep on rotation, and orders come in sets of 6, 10, 15, and 20 meals. All you have to do is heat them up and enjoy.

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Chef Jess Meal Delivery

As a chef and nutritionist with midwestern roots and Atlanta swag, Chef Jessica Swift works hard to create “healthy-ish” meals for every lifestyle.

As she puts it, her food is inclusively for “those who are newly diagnosed [with health conditions] to business travelers who come home to an empty refrigerator… or the mom and dads that are busy and just want to make sure that there’s healthy food in the house.”

Following her dream to become a chef went against her father’s wishes for Swift to go to medical school. Ironically, she now uses her expertise to help her father manage diabetes through nutrition.

Empowering her father inspired Swift to offer her culinary and nutrition expertise to community members via private classes and special events. She eventually opened her own commercial space with professional staff.

Chef Jess Meal Delivery is now a family-run business, with Swift’s brother acting as chief financial officer and her sister serving as chief operating officer.

Subscribers in the Washington, D.C., the area can enjoy fresh eats like sweet potato pancakes and roasted tomatillo carnitas for a single delivery or weekly subscriptions.

Field of Greens DFW

For biochemist and nutritionist Chef Janel Fields, meal prep isn’t just about healthy eating. It’s about healthy families and communities.

When she saw family members deal with preexisting health conditions, Fields began to alter her cooking methods. She reduced or eliminated certain ingredients, like dairy, from her dishes.

Her family was initially skeptical of the diet Fields introduced, which she credits to their “true New Yorker” status. Still, she quickly won them over with her results and her own personal progress.

“I’m on this journey with them. So, I’m eating the foods that I’m cooking for them, with them. I’m living a balanced lifestyle. Now that they see the changes physically with me, they’re like, OK, how can I do this?” Fields say.

With Field of Greens DFW, you can choose from an assortment of proteins, salads, and sides, like cauliflower rice and lemon Broccolini. Fields are also set to release a cookbook with savory recipes that empower people to prepare their favorite fried foods with healthier air frying and broiling methods.

Global Village Cuisine

Whether you want to grab your favorite dinner from the freezer or prepare a healthy meal yourself, Vermont-based Global Village Cuisine proudly offers options for “total convenience.”

Global Village Cuisine is a family-owned business that started when co-founder Damaris Hall sought food for her child with food allergies. She turned to her roots in Kenyan cooking, using traditional gluten-free and allergy-free methods.

Damaris and co-founder/husband Mel expanded their offerings from their home to local markets and festivals. Then they opened a restaurant.

Their diet-inclusive menu quickly spread outside the area, and Global Village expanded regionally to offer Pan-African cuisine in local Whole Foods and natural co-ops markets, in addition to their delivery services.

The beauty of Global Village is that its frozen meals preserve nutrients while eliminating the stress of cooking.

“Damaris has a wonderful talent for being able to cook things right to the place where right when you warm it up, it tastes like somebody made an African meal and invited you home for some hospitality,” Mel says.

With meals like Swahili curry chicken and Moroccan lemon chicken and olives, I ain’t mad. Meal prep orders start at $50 with free shipping.

Getting started

It can be overwhelming to choose a meal prep service that’s right for your lifestyle, especially if it’s your first time. When I asked these meal service providers for their advice, they had a few suggestions.

Hall asks, Is the food ethically produced? Is it healthy? Are there [whole food] ingredients?

Fields point out that “a lot of people truly do eat with their eyes. If it doesn’t look appealing, nobody wants to try it.

Wright reminds consumers to get informed.

Ask your questions! Many meal sites are open to questions and have FAQs sections, so start there,” she says.

According to Chiquita, look for variety.

Choose a company that rotates the menu often and gets creative with their dishes,” she says.

Look at how convenient it is for you… How the meals are packaged should make sense for you and your situation,” Pernell adds.

Whatever direction you go, you can be confident that the options above will check all the marks for freshness, flavor, and elevating Blackness in the food industry

13 Ways That Sugary Soda Is Bad for Your Health

When consumed in excess, added sugar can adversely affect your health.

However, some sources of sugar are worse than others — and sugary drinks are by far the worst.

This primarily applies to sugary soda but also to fruit juices, highly sweetened coffees, and other sources of liquid sugar.

Here are 13 reasons that sugary soda is bad for your health.

1. Sugary Drinks Do Not Make You Feel Full and Are Strongly Linked to Weight Gain

The most common form of added sugar — sucrose or table sugar — supplies large amounts of the simple sugar fructose.

Fructose does not lower the hunger hormone ghrelin or stimulate fullness in the same way as glucose, the sugar that forms when you digest starchy foods

Thus, when you consume liquid sugar, you usually add it on top of your total calorie intake — because sugary drinks don’t make you feel full (rx, rx).

In one study, people who drank sugary soda in addition to their current diet consumed 17% more calories than before (rx).

Not surprisingly, studies show that people who drink sugar-sweetened beverages consistently gain more weight than people who don’t (rxrx, 9rx).

In one study in children, each daily serving of sugar-sweetened beverages was linked to a 60% increased risk of obesity (rx).

In fact, sugary drinks are among the most fattening aspects of the modern diet.

You tend to consume more total calories if you drink sda, as liquid sugar doesn’t make you feel full. Sugar-sweetened beverages are associated with weight gain.

2. Large Amounts of Sugar Are Turned into Fat in Your Liver

Table sugar (sucrose) and high-fructose corn syrup are composed of two molecules — glucose and fructose — in roughly equal amounts.

Glucose can be metabolized by every cell in your body, whereas fructose can only be metabolized by one organ — your liver.

Sugary drinks are the easiest and most common way to consume excessive amounts of fructose.

When you consume too much, your liver becomes overloaded and turns the fructose into fat.

Some of the fat gets shipped out as blood triglycerides, while part of it remains in your liver. Over time, this can contribute to nonalcoholic fatty liver disease

Sucrose and high-fructose corn syrup are about 50% fructose, which can only be metabolized by your liver. Excessive amounts may contribute to nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.

3. Sugar Drastically Increases Belly Fat Accumulation

High sugar intake is associated with weight gain.

In particular, fructose is linked to a significant increase in the dangerous fat around your belly and organs. This is known as visceral fat or belly fat (rx).

Excessive belly fat is tied to an increased risk of type 2 diabetes and heart disease (rx, rx).

In one 10-week study, 32 healthy people consumed beverages sweetened with either fructose or glucose (rx]

Those who consumed glucose had an increase in skin fat — which is not linked to metabolic disease — while those who consumed fructose saw their belly fat significantly increase.

High consumption of fructose makes you accumulate belly fat, a dangerous type of fat linked to metabolic disease.

4. Sugary Soda May Cause Insulin Resistance — a Key Feature of Metabolic Syndrome

The hormone insulin drives glucose from your bloodstream into your cells.

But when you drink sugary soda, your cells may become less sensitive or resistant to the effects of insulin.

When this happens, your pancreas must make even more insulin to remove the glucose from your bloodstream — so insulin levels in your blood spike.

Insulin resistance is arguably the main driver behind metabolic syndrome — a stepping stone towards type 2 diabetes and heart disease (rx).

Animal studies demonstrate that excess fructose causes insulin resistance and chronically elevated insulin levels ( rx).

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One study in healthy, young men found that moderate intake of fructose increased insulin resistance in the liver [rx).

Excess fructose intake may lead to insulin resistance, the main abnormality in metabolic syndrome.

5. Sugar-Sweetened Beverages May Be the Leading Dietary Cause of Type 2 Diabetes

Type 2 diabetes is a common disease, affecting millions of people worldwide.

It is characterized by elevated blood sugar due to insulin resistance or deficiency.

Since excessive fructose intake may lead to insulin resistance, it is unsurprising that numerous studies link soda consumption to type 2 diabetes.

In fact, drinking as little as one can of sugary soda per day has been consistently linked to an increased risk of type 2 diabetes [rx, rx], [rx, [rx].

A recent study, which looked at sugar consumption and diabetes in 175 countries, showed that for every 150 calories of sugar per day — about 1 can of soda — the risk of type 2 diabetes increased by 1.1% [rx].

To put that in perspective, if the entire population of the United States added one can of soda to their daily diet, 3.6 million more people might get type 2 diabetes.

A large body of evidence links added sugar consumption — particularly from sugar-sweetened beverages — to type 2 diabetes.

Sugary soda contains virtually no essential nutrients — no vitamins, no minerals, and no fiber.

It adds nothing to your diet except excessive amounts of added sugar and unnecessary calories.

Sugary sodas contain little to no essential nutrients, only providing sugar and calories.

7. Sugar May Cause Leptin Resistance

Leptin is a hormone produced by your body’s fat cells. It regulates the number of calories you eat and burn [rx).

Leptin levels change in response to both starvation and obesity, so it’s often called the fullness or starvation hormone.

Being resistant to this hormone’s effects — referred to as leptin resistance — is now believed to be among the leading drivers of fat gain in humans (rx,rx).

In fact, animal research links fructose intake to leptin resistance.

In one study, rats became leptin resistant after being fed large amounts of fructose. Strikingly, when they reverted back to a sugar-free diet, leptin resistance disappeared (rx,rx).

That said, human studies are needed.

Animal trials suggest that a high-fructose diet can drive leptin resistance. Eliminating fructose may reverse the problem.

8. Sugary Soda May Be Addictive

It’s possible that sugary soda is an addictive substance.

In rats, sugar binging may cause dopamine release in the brain, giving a feeling of pleasure (rx).

Binging on sugar may have similar effects in certain people, as your brain is hardwired to seek out activities that release dopamine.

In fact, numerous studies suggest that sugar — and processed junk foods in general — affect your brain like hard drugs (rx).

For individuals predisposed toward addiction, sugar may cause reward-seeking behavior known as food addiction.

Studies in rats demonstrate that sugar can be physically addictive (rx).

While addiction is harder to prove in humans, many people consume sugary drinks in a pattern typical for addictive, abusive substances.

Sugary drinks have powerful effects on your brain’s reward system, which may lead to addiction.

9. Sugary Beverages May Increase Heart Disease Risk

Sugar intake has long been linked to heart disease risk (rx, rx).

It is well established that sugar-sweetened drinks increase risk factors for heart disease, including high blood sugar, blood triglycerides, and small, dense LDL particles (rx,rx).

Recent human studies note a strong association between sugar intake and heart disease risk in all populations (rx, rx, rx, rx, rx).

One 20-year study in 40,000 men found that those who drank 1 sugary drink per day had a 20% higher risk of having — or dying from — a heart attack, compared to men who rarely consumed sugary drinks (rx).

Multiple studies have determined a strong link between sugary beverages and heart disease risk.

10. Soda Drinkers Have a Higher Risk of Cancer

Cancer tends to go hand-in-hand with other chronic diseases like obesity, type 2 diabetes, and heart disease.

For this reason, it is unsurprising to see that sugary drinks are frequently associated with an increased risk of cancer.

One study in over 60,000 adults discovered that those who drank 2 or more sugary sodas per week were 87% more likely to develop pancreatic cancer than those who did not drink soda (rx).

Another study on pancreatic cancer found a strong link in women — but not men (rx).

Postmenopausal women who drink a lot of sugary soda may also be at greater risk for endometrial cancer, or cancer of the inner lining of the uterus rx).

What’s more, sugar-sweetened beverage intake is linked to cancer recurrence and death in patients with colorectal cancer (rx).

Observational studies suggest that sugar-sweetened beverages are linked to an increased risk of cancer.

11. The Sugar and Acids in Soda Are a Disaster for Dental Health

It is a well-known fact that sugary soda is bad for your teeth.

Soda contains acids like phosphoric acid and carbonic acid.

These acids create a highly acidic environment in your mouth, which makes your teeth vulnerable to decay.

While the acids in soda can themselves cause damage, it is the combination with sugar that makes soda particularly harmful ( rx).

Sugar provides easily digestible energy for the bad bacteria in your mouth. This, combined with the acids, wreaks havoc on dental health over time (rxrx, rx).

The acids in soda create an acidic environment in your mouth, while the sugar feeds the harmful bacteria that reside there. This can have severe adverse effects on dental health.

12. Soda Drinkers Have a Drastically Increased Risk of Gout

Gout is a medical condition characterized by inflammation and pain in your joints, particularly your big toes.

Gout typically occurs when high levels of uric acid in the blood become crystallized (rx).

Fructose is the main carbohydrate known to increase uric acid levels [rx).

Consequently, many large observational studies have determined strong links between sugar-sweetened drinks and gout.

Moreover, long-term studies tie sugary soda to a 75% increased risk of gout in women and an almost 50% increased risk in men ( rx, rx).

People who frequently down sugary drinks appear to have an increased risk of gout.

13. Sugar Consumption Is Linked to an Increased Risk of Dementia

Dementia is a collective term for declines in brain function in older adults. The most common form is Alzheimer’s disease.

Research shows that any incremental increase in blood sugar is strongly associated with an increased risk of dementia (rx).

In other words, the higher your blood sugar, the higher your risk of dementia.

Because sugar-sweetened beverages lead to rapid spikes in blood sugar, it makes sense that they could increase your risk of dementia.

Rodent studies note that large doses of sugary drinks can impair memory and decision-making capabilities

Some studies indicate that high blood sugar levels raise your risk of dementia.

Drinking high amounts of sugar-sweetened beverages — such as soda — can have various adverse impacts on your health.

These range from increased chances of tooth decay to a higher risk of heart disease and metabolic disorders like type 2 diabetes.

Regular consumption of sugary soda also appears to be a consistent risk factor for weight gain and obesity.

If you want to lose weight, avoid chronic disease, and live longer, consider limiting your intake of sugary drinks.

Reference

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