20 Worst Drinks in America 2010

Zeb_Carter

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20 Worst Drinks in America 2010
Over the past 50 years or so, we Americans have developed a severe drinking problem.

We stopped making our own iced teas and lemonades (recipe: water, lemon, sugar) and started buying them in bottles or mixes, with ingredients like "high-fructose corn syrup" and "ascorbic acid" on the labels. We stopped thinking of a soda as a treat - akin to an ice cream or a candy bar - and started seeing it as the equivalent of a glass of water, drinking two, three, four, or more a day. (The average American now drinks about a gallon of soda a week!) Then we stopped drinking water out of the tap and started demanding that it be artificially flavored and put into bottled with the words "vitamin" or "energy" stamped on their labels. And, in just the last decade or so, many of us stopped brewing our own coffee and started buying things with vaguely European names, like "mocha latte," or swapped out coffee altogether for something called "energy drinks," which taste exactly like what would happen if a crazed pastry chef hijacked a truckload of Smarties and drove it into a battery acid factory. And the result of all this beverage evolution is that, today, walking into a convenience store or a beverage distributorship has become dangerous to our health.

America’s supermarket aisles and drive-thru menus are awash in empty liquid calories. We've updated our list of worst offenders. Survive the rising tide by eliminating these, the country’s most damaging drinkables, from your beverage regiment.
 
I'm surprised that four slices of a Sara Lee pie are only 240 calories and no fat! :eek:

That was the comparison to SoBe green tea, saying it was the equivalent. Wow.
 
I'm surprised that four slices of a Sara Lee pie are only 240 calories and no fat! :eek:

That was the comparison to SoBe green tea, saying it was the equivalent. Wow.

That was only the sugar equivalent, not both sugar and fat.
Liquid candy, people.
That was truly horrifying. Personally, I prefer to eat my calories rather than just drink them .... chewing actually burns calories anyway.
 
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That was only the sugar equivalent, not both sugar and fat.
Liquid candy, people.
That was truly horrifying. Personally, I prefer to eat my calories rather than just drink them .... chewing actually burns calories anyway.

But it's a bit misleading. And I'm still a bit surprised four slices of even a small pie is only 240 calories.

I'm not advocating drinking empty-calorie drinks.
 
Whew...my fave wasn't on there: vitamin water. Love, love, love it.
 
But it's a bit misleading. And I'm still a bit surprised four slices of even a small pie is only 240 calories.

Depends on what's in the pie. In a lot of foods, particularly junk foods, it's the fat that makes it high-calorie. Find a way to make it low-fat or no-fat and the calories per serving go WAY down.

Doesn't necessarily make it healthy though.
 
Depends on what's in the pie. In a lot of foods, particularly junk foods, it's the fat that makes it high-calorie. Find a way to make it low-fat or no-fat and the calories per serving go WAY down.

Doesn't necessarily make it healthy though.

It was stated very specifically on his link as a Sara Lee cherry pie.

I was a bit shocked is all.

Personally, I think if you think you need a green tea, try white zinfandel instead. You get more bang for your calorie. ;)
 
Given my diet watch, diet sodas are all that shows up in the den. However, I was very, very pleased to discover that the glycemic index of red wine is . . . (wait for it, wait for it . . . ) . . . ZERO! Hot damn!
 
since when did we stop making our own ice tea, and drinking tap water? shrug, still do around here.
 
Do keep in mind that this is an article in a popular magazine and therefore by definition sensationalistic. :rolleyes:
 
Gah! That stuff's disgusting. I drink tap and bottled spring water, coffee and tea...also the occasional Coke, Dr. Pepper or IBC Black Cherry soda. I cannot imagine a steady intake of those sugar filled atrocities. :p
 
Starbucks double shot - mmm...

I make my own espresso usually, but if you have to push through the afternoon blahs, a doubleshot about 2:00pm will keep you hopping till bedtime - if I drink one much after 2:00pm, I can't even get to sleep.
 
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Hmmmmmmm,

Makes my diet look trivial in comparrison. Mostly I drink boiled flavored water. (Rather strongly flavored with coffee mind you.) Other than that I drink filtered Tap Water and of course Beer.

That's about it for my liquids. Occasionaly I'll drink a Soda, more often either unsweetened Iced Tea or once in a Blue Moon my style of Lemonade. (Several lemons squeezed into a Blender filled with Ice, add a bit of water then puree until smooth.)

I don't do a lot of sugars, I just don't like them and certainly don't like the rush that accompanies them.

On the other hand my diet leans heavily towards Red Meats and Carbs.

Cat
 
Speaking of carbs, I'll have to try and find some of that Sierra Nevada Bigfoot, sounds perfect for carb loading.
 
It was stated very specifically on his link as a Sara Lee cherry pie.

I was a bit shocked is all.

Personally, I think if you think you need a green tea, try white zinfandel instead. You get more bang for your calorie. ;)

Oooo I LOOOOOVE white zin. Thanks for the tip. ;) :D
 
Gah! That stuff's disgusting. I drink tap and bottled spring water, coffee and tea...also the occasional Coke, Dr. Pepper or IBC Black Cherry soda. I cannot imagine a steady intake of those sugar filled atrocities. :p

I'll drink an energy drink if I absolutely MUST stay awake and I've run out of other alternatives. Some of them don't taste bad, but I'm a long way from saying any of them taste good. I don't keep them in the house though...I have to run to the gas station to get one.

Luckily, this doesn't happen very often. :)

My liquid intake generally consists of water and milk, some tea, and some unsweetened natural juices. Soda is rare, and energy drinks are even rarer for me.

ETA: Of course, the fact that hubby's allergic to some energy drinks is even more motivation to keep them out of the house.
 
I drink gallons and gallons of Green and White tea, pretty much all I drink, other than coffee and the occasional beer.

And the odd Frosty-cino.
 
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