Before you place an order at your local restaurant or coffee shop or hit the liquor store, think twice.
You should be aware of sugar and additives lurking in your favorite drinks.
Several nutritionists have considered which beverages to avoid if you want to put your health first. Read on for important health-focused and nutritional insights regarding many popular drinks today.
Pre-workout and energy drinks
New York-based registered dietician and owner of her own private practice called Within Nutrition, Kylie Ivanir, said energy and pre-workout drinks could lead to “increased blood pressure, stress, and compromised sleep” because they contain stimulants and caffeine.
“Other side effects of excess stimulants found in pre-workout and energy drinks are headaches and nausea,” Ivanir told Fox News Digital. “Pre-workout and energy drinks also contain artificial sweeteners and flavors, which disrupt gut health and brain health.”
“The supplement industry is also notoriously unregulated, which leads to contamination with toxins and banned substances that are detrimental to our health,” she continued.
Ivanir recommends that instead of energy or pre-workout drinks, opting for matcha tea or coffee.
Sweet alcoholic cocktails
Ivanir said the combination of fructose syrup and alcohol, sometimes found in cocktails, isn’t food for your liver — the organ in which those liquids are processed.
“This compromises the liver’s ability to filter out toxins and hampers its conversion of fructose to glucose,” said Ivanir.
“As a consequence, we can’t detox as well, and we also end up storing that excess fructose as fat. This can then cause a rise in triglycerides, a harmful blood lipid — and is one of the causes of a fatty liver.”
Regular soda
Soda is bad for your health because of its added sugar, according to experts.
“I recommend instead of opting for seltzer or sparkling water and adding a squeeze of lime, lemon or orange juice for flavor,” said Amy Gorin, a plant-based registered dietician nutritionist and owner of Master the Media in Stamford, Connecticut.
Gorin said that according to the United States Department of Agriculture’s Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2020-2025, people ages two and older should limit the intake of sugars to less than 10% of the total calories consumed daily.
“For someone following a 2,000-calorie daily diet, for example, this means no more than 200 calories from added sugar — or about 12 teaspoons,” said Gorin.
“A 12-ounce can of cola contains about ten teaspoons worth of added sugar.”
Iced tea
Jinan Banna, professor of nutrition at the University of Hawaii and registered dietician, said not only does iced tea contain added sugar, but bottled or commercially prepared teas may have the same amount of sugar as soda.
“A high consumption of sweetened drinks such as iced tea is associated with development of metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes,” said Banna, referencing a 2010 meta-analysis on beverages sweetened by sugar and type 2 diabetes.
Drinks that have been sweetened with agave nectar
Agave syrup is made from agave plant sap, which has been increasing in popularity as a substitute for traditional sweeteners like honey and table sugar, according to the nutritional profile and chemical analysis on agave syrup published in the National Library of Medicine. However, beware of agave-sweetened drinks, as “agave is pretty much high fructose corn syrup with a glorified label,” said Ivanir.
“Agave nectar can contain between 55% to 90% fructose — that’s higher than the amount of fructose in high fructose corn syrup,” she continued.
Ivanir pointed out that most agave nectar sold in supermarkets contains about 80% to 90% fructose.
“The problem with taking in a lot of fructose is that your body must convert it to glucose in the liver, but if you have too much, it gets stored as fat. Specifically, belly fat,” said Ivanir.
“Excess fructose is also pretty bad for your gut. Your gut bacteria don’t like large doses of fructose. For those with a sensitive gut, this can cause bloating, diarrhea, and discomfort. It leads to increased LDL (your bad cholesterol) and decreases insulin sensitivity.”
If you are thinking, “Isn’t fruit high in fructose?” consider, “Some fruits are, but when fructose is in its natural and fiber-wrapped form, then it’s not harmful. So, there is no need to avoid fruit,” said Ivanir.
Juice “cocktail”
Sometimes, juices that are blended with additives are labeled with the word “cocktail” on the label, according to experts.
“This is a keyword to watch out for in the grocery store. The word “cocktail” indicates that a juice is mixed with added sugar,” said Gorin.
“Added sugar is unnecessary and adds extra calories to your day. But not surprisingly, per the CDC, sugar-sweetened drinks are a top source of added sugar in the American diet.”
Gorin said, “Shop for 100% fruit juice instead.”
Artificially sweetened drinks
As Ivanir indicated, research has shown artificial sugars like sucralose and aspartame “disturb the microbiome and damage our gut health.”
“This is harmful to our overall health since the gut plays a key role in many of our body’s systems, such as our immune health, hormone recycling, serotonin production, and nutrient absorption,” added Ivanir.
“Stevia- or monk fruit sweetened drinks are great sugar alternatives that are also gut-friendly,” she said.
Ivanir suggested jazzing up beverages by adding herbs like basil, mint, or fresh fruit to water.
Frappuccinos
Consuming frappuccinos isn’t worth it for your health.
“Frappuccinos and other sweet coffee drinks contain what I call ‘sweet fats’ — a combination of sugar [from the syrups and flavors] and saturated fats [from the cream]. While this combination of sugar and fat makes the drink taste deliciously creamy, it leads to excess fat storage due to a rise in the hormone insulin (our fat storage hormone),” said Ivanir.
These ‘sweet fats’ hijack our brain circuits, making us want more and more.” They also drive up insulin, which leads to higher lipid levels and insulin resistance, and ultimately metabolic syndrome, added Ivanir.
Frozen lattes
“In some establishments, this drink may contain more sugar than a can of coke, such as the caramel latte that is found in some businesses,” said Banna.
“Sweetened coffee drinks have been identified as an item in the diet that makes a notable contribution to intake of added sugar,” she added.
Banna pointed to a report published in the National Library of Medicine titled “Sugar-sweetened beverage consumption among adults.”
