Foods and Nutrition
HOW MUCH SODA DO YOU DRINK IN AN AVERAGE WEEK?
Soft drinks are no longer an occasional treat. They’ve become a daily habit for a growing number of people, especially kids, teens and young adults. A steady diet of soft drinks is a leading cause of tooth decay.
A bottle of soda in the 50’s was 6.5 oz. Today, a 12 oz. is standard and a 20oz. bottle is common.
Larger container sizes mean more calories, more sugar and more acid in a single serving.
There is no nutritional value in soft drinks. In regular soda, all of the calories come from sugar.
In addition to cavities, heavy soda consumption has been linked to diabetes, obesity and osteoporosis.

How you get cavities:
Sugar in soda combines with the bacteria in your mouth to form acid.
Diet or “sugar-free” soda contains acid also.(read the labels)(see the chart)
Acid in soft drinks is the primary cause of weakening tooth enamel.
The acid attacks your teeth. Each acid attack lasts about 20 minutes.
The acid attack starts over again with every sip.
Ongoing acid attacks weaken tooth enamel.
Bacteria in your mouth cause cavities when tooth enamel is damaged
How to reduce decay:
Drink sodas in moderation. Don’t sip for extended periods of time. Ongoing sipping prolongs sugar and acid attacks
Use a straw to keep sugar away from teeth.
After drinking, swish your mouth out with water to dilute the sugar. (OR BRUSH!)
Never drink soda or juice before bedtime because liquid pools in your mouth and coats your tongue and teeth with sugar and acid.
Drink water instead of soda. It has no sugar, no acid and no calories!
Get regular check-ups and cleanings to remove bacteria build-up (plaque). Floss too!

Parents, please talk to your children about the effects of soda consumption. Monitor what, how much and when they drink. Encourage healthy alternatives such as milk and water.
BEVERAGE | Acid* (Low=BAD) | Sugar** (per 120z serv) |
Pure Water Barq’s Diet Barq’s Diet 7-Up Sprite Diet Dr. Pepper Diet Coke Diet Mountain Dew Grape Minute Maid Mountain Dew Fresca Orange Slice Diet Pepsi Nestea Surge Gatorade Dr. Pepper Squirt Hawaiian Punch Orange Minute Maid Coke Classic Pepsi Battery Acid | 7.00(neutral) 4.61 4.55 3.67 3.42 3.41 3.39 3.34 3.29 3.22 3.20 3.12 3.05 3.04 3.02 2.95 2.92 2.85 2.82 2.80 2.53 2.49 1.00(ouch) | 0.00 10.7 tsp. 0.0 0.0 9.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 11.9 11.0 0.0 11.9 0.0 5.0 10.0 3.3 9.5 9.5 10.2 11.2 9.3 9.8 0.0 |
*Laboratory tests, University of Minnesota School of Dentistry, 2000.
**USDA: 4.2 Grams=1 teaspoon sugar