Brush your teeth right after drinking Coke? The consequences are serious! Learn about the dangers and rumors of carbonated drinks

In a busy life, leisure time is always short. Open a bottle of "Fat House Happy Water", hear the crisp "click", the bubbling "sizzle" and the refreshing feeling when it goes down your throat, and you can instantly relieve stress.

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It's okay to drink occasionally, but drinking too much is really not good. Recently, the news #00s boy drank Coke as water for a long time and his teeth were all damaged# became a hot search. The man almost never drank boiled water for a long time, and drank 2 to 3 bottles of Coke every day, which eventually led to tooth decay and tooth loss.

Hearing this news, many "cola lovers" were shocked. Coke is a kind of carbonated beverage. Drinking carbonated beverages frequently not only damages teeth, but also has many other harmful effects! In this article, we will reveal the health hazards of carbonated beverages one by one, and then expose two rumors related to it.

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01

Drinking carbonated drinks frequently is harmful

Tooth decay: Most carbonated drinks on the market are sugary drinks. For example, the picture below shows the most commonly consumed one. The first three ingredients in the list are water, fructose syrup, and white sugar. It can be understood as sugar water with food additives. Looking at the data in the nutrition facts table, the sugar content is 11.2 grams. Drinking a 330 ml can of sugar will consume 36.96 grams of sugar. Many people are not satisfied with one can, and may have another can, drinking 74 grams of sugar directly.

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my country's Dietary Guidelines for Chinese Residents recommends that daily added sugar intake should not exceed 50 grams, and should be kept below 25 grams.[1] Drinking carbonated beverages can easily lead to excessive sugar intake.

Eating too much sugar increases the risk of tooth decay. Don’t underestimate tooth decay. If it is not treated in time, it will further form cavities. When you encounter sour, sweet, cold or hot food, you can only look at or smell it. If you put it in your mouth, it will be a "stimulation" and the pain will be very obvious. In more serious cases, it will lead to tooth loss and difficulty chewing, which will affect eating. [2]

In addition, tooth decay is not limited to children. Adults can also suffer from tooth decay! According to my country’s “Fourth National Oral Health Epidemiological Survey Report”, the dental caries rate among adults in my country is over 80%, which is higher than that of children under 15 years old. The older the age, the higher the prevalence of dental caries. [3]

In order to enjoy your meals when you are old, you must protect your teeth!

Obesity: Carbonated drinks generally have high calories. A 500mL bottle of cola has almost 200kcal, which is equivalent to half a meal. If you drink an extra bottle of cola every day in addition to three meals, it will inevitably increase the chance of obesity and make you fatter.

Gout: Some carbonated drinks also contain a lot of fructose syrup or fructose, which promotes the production of uric acid. Excessive sugar intake may also cause insulin resistance, indirectly reducing the excretion of uric acid, and thus increasing the risk of gout.

Cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases: Frequent consumption of carbonated beverages can cause weight gain, which is a contributing factor to many chronic diseases. Multiple studies at home and abroad have shown that long-term and excessive consumption of carbonated beverages can lead to weight gain, obesity, an increased risk of diabetes, and lipid metabolism disorders. [4]

Moreover, excessive consumption of carbonated beverages can lead to endothelial damage, exacerbating atherosclerosis and is closely related to endothelial damage diseases such as hypertension and coronary atherosclerosis. [4]

Other survey results show that people who drink carbonated drinks frequently have a 48% higher risk of metabolic syndrome than those who do not drink carbonated drinks frequently. If healthy people who do not drink carbonated drinks and do not have metabolic syndrome start to change their habits and start drinking a bottle of carbonated drinks every day, their risk of heart disease will be 44% higher after four years than those who do not have the habit of drinking carbonated drinks. [4]

Especially for people who already suffer from chronic diseases, it is best not to drink it.

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Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease: Studies have shown that the frequency and amount of drinking carbonated beverages are positively correlated with the prevalence of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. In other words, frequent consumption of carbonated beverages increases the risk of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. [5]

In addition, a 2022 foreign study published in the Journal of Nutrition showed that compared with women who drank no more than three servings of sugary drinks per month, women who drank more than one serving of sugary drinks per day had a 78% increased risk of liver cancer. [6]

If you want to keep your liver healthy, you really need to drink less carbonated drinks!

Skin deterioration: The sugar ingested from drinking carbonated drinks is not only the "enemy" of dental health, but also unfriendly to skin health. Eating too much sugar may cause acne on the skin and affect the appearance.

Because high-sugar foods generally have a high glycemic index (high GI), they will stimulate the secretion of large amounts of insulin, increase sebum secretion, and keratinize hair follicles, which can lead to acne on the skin. In addition, high-sugar foods will promote the glycation reaction of the skin, which can lead to decreased skin elasticity, dark yellow skin, spots, and easy aging.

If you want to stay young, don’t drink beverages every day.

02

2 Myths About Carbonated Drinks

➤Drinking Coke will kill sperm

Folk rumor: "Men cannot drink Coke, otherwise they will become infertile."

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In fact, for men who generally drink carbonated beverages, it is unlikely that the "tadpoles" will be killed, unless the sperm is directly soaked in them. Because the first research experiment that concluded that "cola affects sperm motility" was that the researchers soaked the sperm in cola and left it at room temperature for 1 minute, and found that the sperm motility was significantly reduced. [7]

This experiment does not mean that drinking cola will also reduce the quality of sperm. In addition, some people have done research on whether drinking cola has an effect on sperm quality. A study of 2,554 young Danish men showed that consuming ≤800 mg of caffeine per day and ≤14 bottles of 0.5 liters of cola per week were not associated with decreased semen quality.

In other words, drinking less than 1 liter of cola per day will not reduce sperm quality; while for those who drink more than 1 liter of cola per day, although the sperm quality is reduced, it is still within the normal range. In addition, these people have an unhealthy lifestyle, such as eating hamburgers, smoking, drinking, sitting for long periods of time, eating less fruits and vegetables, and drinking less milk. These unhealthy lifestyles will also affect sperm quality. [8]

On the other hand, drinking more than 1 liter of cola a day not only takes up space in the stomach, but also causes bloating. You will not be able to eat other food. Over time, malnutrition will inevitably reduce sperm quality.

So, if you only drink Coke occasionally, or drink a small amount every day, you don’t have to worry about it “killing your sperm”.

➤ Carbonated drinks can cause osteoporosis

There are rumors that carbonated drinks contain phosphoric acid, and drinking them frequently will affect calcium absorption, increase bone loss, and make you more susceptible to osteoporosis.

There are different opinions on whether carbonated beverages can induce osteoporosis. Some literature claims that excessive intake of carbonated beverages can easily cause an imbalance in the calcium-phosphorus ratio, delay calcium absorption, and cause bone mineral loss. This can ultimately lead to osteoporosis and increase the risk of fractures. [9]

However, the World Health Organization believes that the maximum daily tolerable amount of phosphorus for adults is 70 mg/kg body weight. For an adult weighing 60 kg, the maximum daily intake of phosphorus is 4,200 mg, which is safe and will not cause health problems. The maximum tolerable intake of phosphorus for adults in my country's "Nutrient Reference Intake for Chinese Residents (2013 Edition)" is 3,500 mg.

The phosphorus content of many carbonated beverages is not high, mostly at 13 mg/100 g.[10] Drinking a 330 ml can will only result in the intake of 42.9 mg of phosphorus. 100 g of spinach also contains 47 mg of phosphorus. The amount of phosphorus ingested from drinking one can will not cause much impact.

However, the phosphorus content of cola-like carbonated beverages is generally not low, about 45 mg/100 g. Drinking 500 mL of cola can provide the human body with 225 mg of phosphorus. Drinking three or four bottles a day will indeed reduce the calcium-to-phosphorus ratio and affect calcium absorption. [10]

Furthermore, in 2006, researchers from Tufts University published an article in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition showing that among carbonated beverages, only cola was associated with decreased bone density. [11]

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So, if you like the taste of carbonated drinks and are worried about osteoporosis, then don't drink cola. It would be better to choose other carbonated drinks.

If we have to say that drinking carbonated drinks increases the risk of osteoporosis, it may be because: first, drinking too much of this type of drink will affect the intake of dairy products and other foods, leading to insufficient calcium intake, which in turn increases the risk of osteoporosis; second, the sugar in carbonated drinks will also increase calcium loss.

Reminder: Don’t brush your teeth immediately after drinking Coke, even if you drink sugar-free Coke.

Because the pH value of most "fat house happy water" is far below 5.5, which is the critical pH value that causes tooth enamel corrosion. The lower pH value will cause calcium ions to be replaced, causing acid erosion of tooth enamel. [12]

Therefore, when you just finish drinking Coke, your teeth have been damaged by the acid and are in an unprotected stage. If you brush your teeth, it will further damage your teeth. It is best to rinse your mouth with clean water in time and wait for 1 hour for the components in the saliva to form a protective layer on the surface of the teeth before brushing your teeth.

Summary: Drinking carbonated drinks frequently is unhealthy, but it is not completely unhealthy. Be moderate in drinking, after all, it can deliver "happiness". Remember that the healthiest drink is always plain water.

References:

[1] Chinese Nutrition Society. Dietary Guidelines for Chinese Residents[M]. People's Medical Publishing House. 2022

[2] Oral Health Guidelines for Chinese Residents[M]. China Medical Science and Technology Press, 2010.

[3] Feng Xiping. Oral health status of Chinese residents - the fourth Chinese oral health epidemiological survey report [A]. Oral Preventive Medicine Professional Committee of the Chinese Stomatological Association. Proceedings of the 18th Annual Academic Conference of Oral Preventive Medicine of the Chinese Stomatological Association in 2018 [C]. Oral Preventive Medicine Professional Committee of the Chinese Stomatological Association: Chinese Stomatological Association, 2018.

[4] Luo Kun, Mao Hua. Correlation between carbonated beverages and the risk of cardiovascular disease[J]. Chinese Modern Doctor, 2016, 54(09): 155-158+162.

[5] Li Chunlei. Cross-sectional study on the association between the frequency of carbonated beverage consumption and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease[D]. Tianjin Medical University, 2016.

[6]Longgang Zhao, Mace Coday, David Garcia, Xinyi Li, Melissa Lopez-Pentecost, JoAnn Manson, Katherine McGlynn, Yasmin Mossavar-Rahmani, Michelle Naughton, Nazmus Saquib, Howard Sesso, Aladdin Shadyab, Michael Simon, Linda Snetselaar, Fred Tabung, Lesley Tinker, Deirdre Tobias, Trang VoPham, Xuehong Zhang, Association Between Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Intake and Liver Cancer Risk in the Women's Health Initiative, Current Developments in Nutrition, Volume 6, Issue Supplement_1, June 2022, Page 259, https://doi.org/10.1093/cdn/nzac052.026

[7] Umpierre SA, Hill JA, Anderson DJ. Effect of "Coke" on sperm motility. N Engl J Med. 1985 Nov 21;313(21):1351. doi: 10.1056/NEJM198511213132111. PMID: 4058526.

[8]Jensen TK, Swan SH, Skakkebaek NE, Rasmussen S, Jørgensen N. Caffeine intake and semen quality in a population of 2,554 young Danish men. Am J Epidemiol. 2010;171(8):883-891. doi:10.1093/aje/kwq007

[9] Wang Luping, Li Jinyuan. Research progress on the effects of carbonated beverages on osteoporosis and jaw fractures[J]. Chinese and Foreign Medical Research, 2016, 14(13): 162-164. DOI: 10.14033/j.cnki.cfmr.2016.13.088.

[10] Li Hongliang, Wang Jian, Guo Wen. Study on risk assessment of calcium-phosphorus ratio in diet[J]. Food Science and Technology, 2012, 37(04): 101-104. DOI: 10.13684/j.cnki.spkj.2012.04.014.

[11] Colas, but not other carbonated beverages, are associated with low bone mineral density in older women: The Framingham Osteoporosis Study. Am J Clin Nutr 2006;84:936 – 42

[12] Peng Jie, Liu Hongzhou, Zhang Min, Xie Ni, Zhu Youjia. Effects of different types of beverages on the concentration of calcium in dental enamel of adolescents[J]. Journal of Clinical Stomatology, 2014, 30(09): 537-539.

Author: Xue Qingxin, registered nutritionist

Review | Zhang Yu, researcher at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, doctor of medicine, and master's supervisor

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