Is A Little Sugar So Bad?

We started the week off with announcing a fun giveaway featuring the all natural diet soda called Zevia. If you missed that post, you can view it here and get yourself entered to win!

Now I wanted to share what I've learned about sugar and artificial sugar substitutes, which makes it a whole lot easier to let go of regular soda and typical diet soda. You'll have to let me know what you think.

Most folks working at losing weight understand why regular soda is so bad. Besides all the artificial ingredients that God only knows what effect they have on our innards, the sugar is just the devil. I read this week about some of the scary truths about sugar and what it does to our bodies. Here's just a couple of the warnings I read about:

1. Drinking two cans of soda provides about 24 grams of sugar and reduces the efficiency of your white blood cells by 92%!!! This severely compromises your immune system....and that effect can last up to 5 hours!! That means while you're sipping a soda in a crowded restaurant or bar, and for 5 hours following, you better not be exposed to any nasty viruses or bacteria because you may not be able to fight off the invasion.
2. Refined sugar also overworks the pancreas which can lead to adrenal exhaustion (think: fight or flight instincts). When this happens, early menopause, type 2 diabetes, hypoglycemia and chronic fatigue are standing at the door. Yikes.

Okay. That's why so many of us have opted for diet sodas, knowing in our hearts that it's probably still not good, but better than the sugary versions.

Think again.

Diet sodas aren't much better. Though you won't get the sugar problems, the artificial sweeteners might make you wish you had the sugar problems instead:

1. Aspartame containing products have such a high concentration of naturally occuring amino acids that they disrupt nerve cell communication and have been linked to headaches, seizures, mental confusioin and balance problems. And, that's just the tip of the iceberg.
2. Saccharin containing products, the lesser of these two evils, is a derivative of petroleum!!! I didn't find any proof that saccharin is currently classified as a potential carcinogen...but seriously, petroleum??? We're talking some serious detoxification that your liver must do every time this PETROLEUM product is ingested.

But, we like our bubbles. Or the flavors. Or the way the coldness feels going down on a hot day.

Zevia is one all natural diet soda that won't have your liver writhing in chemicals...since my post on Monday, I've learned there are other all natural diet sodas too, like Blue Sky Soda (they have a REALLY cool website, too!). I'm sure there are others, too. I, for one, will be choosing one of these all natural options instead of the others that contain, ummm, really bad stuff.

If you wanna try Zevia too, you might be able to do it for FREE!! Hop on over to Monday's post and read how to enter, I've kept it very very simple. And, three lucky readers will win some free product!!

What have you heard about the bad effects of sugar and/or artificial sweeteners? The more knowledge we have about this stuff, the more we are armed to make really good decisions for our health, so I'm hoping you'll share what you've learned in the comments. :)

To our health,
Cheryl

It's A Giveaway ~ A Zevia Giveaway!!

I'm very pleased to announce that Zevia, Nature's Answer to Diet Soda is sponsoring a giveaway of their delicious all natural soda through this here blog! Last week they sent me a free mixed case to taste test and review . . .  AND to give three of my readers a chance to try it for free too!

So, first the review, and then the giveaway details.

The Review

I honestly LOVE this soda. I do admit to you that I am NOT a soda conoisseur, but in my opinion this bubbly beverage is tasty, fresh and light, and I feel good both while I'm drinking it and afterwards.

The 7 flavors they offer are Cola, Root Beer, Twist, Orange, Ginger Ale, Black Cherry, and Dr. Zevia.

My absolute favorite is the Orange, though the Root Beer and Ginger Ale run very close in the runner up positions. The flavors are distinct but not overpowering or strong....I find the soda very refreshing and thirst quenching. Hubby loves them too and he doesn't typically drink diet soda. There aren't ANY of the flavors that I disliked....I would suggest, tho, that if you are really tied to your equivalent soda flavor, keep an open mind. Zevia might taste a bit different, but the difference is not a bad one. At all.

So, I give Zevia a solid thumbs up! And, I'm willing to bet most of you will like it too.

Soda ~ We Love It And Hate It

I find that us soda drinkers have kind of a love/hate relationship with soda. We hate it because we know it's bad for us, and we love it because, well, why DO we love it?  One brand claims their product has "no caffeine, no sugar, no sodium." So, exactly what IS in there?!

Bubbles. We LOVE our bubbles. Maybe a little sweetness. And maybe a little bit of flavor. But, mostly bubbles.

So, if it's bubbles we're really after, lets drink some healthy ones and just make it all about love! Zevia says they have produced the first truly all natural (read: nothing artificial) diet soda. It contains zero calories and zero sugar....and is sweetened with the stevia plant.

Stevia is an extremely safe herb that is not only an excellent sweetener, but it actually lowers blood sugar levels in diabetics by helping to regulate pancreatic function. And unlike sugar which weakens the immune system, stevia has antimicrobial properties and actually helps the body fight off colds and flus.

So, now your soda can keep you healthier! Maybe your company will even supply it to reduce workplace illness. Imagine the possibilities! ;)

The rest of this week my posts will be devoted to the other stuff found in soda, i.e. sugar, artificial sweeteners, etc. and the effect they have on our bodies. And, why Zevia is such a GREAT soda option.

Now, the fun GIVEAWAY part!! 

Zevia will send three of my readers free Zevia soda to try for yourself!

• Two readers will receive a mixed 6 pack!
• And one lucky reader will receive a full mixed case!!  

And, all you have to do to enter is leave a comment below about why you love AND hate soda, and include your Twitter handle. That's it, nothing complicated.

You can also receive extra entries by one, tweeting out this post (making sure to mention @LosingMyBehind so I know about it), AND yet another by hopping on over to my Facebook Fan Page and becoming a fan!

The giveaway runs all of this week, ending on Sunday, April 18th at 9 pm Central Time. The winners will be chosen in a random drawing and announced on Twitter next Monday, April 19 in the morning. Make sure you follow me on Twitter if you aren't already so you don't miss the big announcement! You'll have 24 hours to claim your prize by emailing me through Twitter or Facebook at which time final details will be exchanged!

Okay . . . GO!

Cheryl