A grocery products trade group that represents Coca-Cola, PepsiCo and
other soft drink manufacturers is adamantly denying the scientific merit
of new research linking high fructose corn syrup with rising rates of
obesity and diabetes. Stephanie Childs of the Grocery Manufacturers of
America, repeats the same old lie told by everybody that sells
obesity-promoting products: the problem is simply that people eat too
many calories, she explains, not that people are drinking soft drinks.
It's the same old line: it's the consumers' fault, and soft drink
companies have every right to keep making and advertising products that
are now well known to promote chronic disease. They should have the
right to sell those products in our public schools, too, the industry
seems to be saying. Soft drinks "can be part of a balanced diet," they
ridiculously insist.
It's all a big lie, of course. Soft drinks
directly and inarguably cause obesity and diabetes, among other
problems. They are products that cause illness and suffering, and yet
they are sold without label warnings, and without any financial
responsibility on the part of the soft drink manufacturers to repay the
medical expenses incurred by consumers who suffer the consequences of
long term soft drink consumption.
If all this sounds familiar, it
should: it's the haunting echo of Big Tobacco, which continues to deny
that nicotine is even addictive! Soft drink companies are no less
ridiculous in denying that high fructose corn syrup doesn't promote
obesity. Perhaps someday we'll see a panel of soft drink company CEOs
testifying before Congress and swearing, right down the line, "I do not
believe soft drinks cause obesity."
The bottom line: soft drinks are
disease causing products. At the very least, they should be banned from
all advertising and from being placed in schools or hospitals. Better
yet, the FDA should require a large warning be placed on all soft drink
cans or bottles, stating, "This product has been shown to promote
obesity and diabetes." The soft drink industry, of course, will bitterly
fight against any limitation on their "right" to keep pushing
disease-promoting products onto our children and general public, but
when enough soft drink customers start dying from obesity, we'll begin
to see public pressure limiting the reach of soft drink companies.
Without a doubt, finding ways to limit the consumption of soft drinks
would save our nation billions of dollars in future health care costs.
About the author: Mike Adams is a natural health researcher, author and award-winning journalist with a passion for teaching people how to improve their health He is a prolific writer and has published thousands of articles, interviews, reports and consumer guides, and he has authored and published several downloadable personal preparedness courses including a downloadable course focused on safety and self defense. Adams is an honest, independent journalist and accepts no money or commissions on the third-party products he writes about or the companies he promotes. In 2010, Adams created TV.NaturalNews.com, a natural living video sharing site featuring thousands of user videos on foods, fitness, green living and more. He's also a noted technology pioneer and founded a software company in 1993 that developed the HTML email newsletter software currently powering the NaturalNews subscriptions. Adams also serves as the executive director of the Consumer Wellness Center, a non-profit consumer protection group, and practices nature photography, Capoeira, martial arts and organic gardening. He's also author a large number of health books offered by Truth Publishing and is the creator of numerous reference website including NaturalPedia.com and the free downloadable Honest Food Guide. His websites also include the free reference sites HerbReference.com and HealingFoodReference.com. Adams believes in free speech, free access to nutritional supplements and the innate healing ability of the human body. Known on the 'net as 'the Health Ranger,' Adams shares his ethics, mission statements and personal health statistics at www.HealthRanger.org
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