Interesting video from Soda Free Summer. Also visit: Have a Coke and a . . .

I am no fan of soda ... I don't drink it. Here's my popular post about soda. To kick the soda habit, I recommend this. You might as well call soda ... liquid candy.

However, I noticed one of the sources for the information is: Waterforlife.com (a company that sells water-based products). So, before I believe everything on this poster, I would need to do some research. Let's face it, while soda packs a lot of calories and sugar, there are many causes for obesity, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and osteoporosis.

For example: If you read the information under Heart Disease, it discusses high fructose corn syrup - a controversial and much debated sugar. Most experts will tell you, there's very little difference between HFCS and cane sugar. HFCS is 55% fructose and cane sugar is 50% fructose. Bottom line: It's best to limit your intake of all sugar.

Needless to say, I'm a little skeptical of this poster. But, but, but ... I do recommend staying away from soda.

When you drink a 20-ounce soda, how much sugar are you consuming? Take a look. 

If you drink one 12-ounce can of soda per day, this is the amount of sugar you will consume in a year.

Whether you drink diet soda or the sugared stuff, replace it with sparkling water. Believe it or not, other than the high-intensity of the sugar or artificial sweetener, it will taste very similar.

Try it for a week. Most likely you won't miss the other stuff. In the past, I was a Diet Coke drinker. For the most part, I drink "plain old water", however, if I want the taste of carbonation, sparkling water "hits the spot".

My how times have changed. If you still drink Coke or Pepsi daily, you might want to take a look at this visual.

If you drink one 12-ounce can of soda a day, in one year, this is the amount of sugar you will consume. Now think about it: What if . . . you drink two, three, four or more a day? .

Would you like a glass of water to wash all that sugar down? 

When I show this jug in my presentations, many people take this quote to heart: Good habits are as addictive as bad habits, and a lot more rewarding. - Harvey MacKay

By the way, if you would like to see a "health" drink that has a lot more calories than the Coke/Pepsi example, check this out.