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For years now, newsodabrands have been popping up incessantly.
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It seems that every grocery store trip yields a fresh, never-before-seen pastel can.
They promise “better-for-you” makeups, healthier ingredients, and a completely new way to soda.
It all begs the question, “What is so wrong with the old ones?”
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Well, the answer is a lot of things.
Meanwhile, most sodas on the market carry twice or even three times that amount in one bottle.
If you thought diet sodas were safe with their zero-calorie, zero-sugar recipes, think again.
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It’s a bit worrying, to say the least.
You might want to think twice before popping the top on these unsettling soft drinks.
Several studies have found that prolonged ingestion of thedye could trigger carcinogenesisthe formation of cancer.
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Plus, artificial colorings including Yellow 5 have been linked to hyperactivity and other behavioral changes in children.
What’s worse is that other Mountain Dew variations add even more questionable dyes into the mix.
Take Code Red Mountain Dew for example.
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The jolting spinoff combines Red 40 and Blue 1 on top of Yellow 5.
The substance was also officiallybanned by the FDA in 2024.
Each20-ounce bottleof the fizzy drink contains 290 calories, 77 grams of sugar, and 105 mg of sodium.
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Last, but not least, have you heard of something calledMountain Dew Mouth?
This success is what spurred Coca-Cola to invent its own recreation of the drink, which it dubbedMello Yello.
Mello Yello also gets its coloring from Yellow 5 and packs 290 calories in a 20-ounce bottle.
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It further contains 78 grams of added sugarthat’s over 150% of your daily intake recommendation.
To achieve its Zero Sugar variation, the brand uses artificial sweeteners including aspartame.
It’s mixed into the beverage because it helps to keep citrus flavors from separating out.
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Each 20-ounce Pepsi bottle contains a smidge more sugar69 grams compared toCoke’s 65.
It has a few more calories, too: 250 calories compared to 240 for Coke.
Citric acid naturally occurs in citrus fruits like lemons.
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High fructose corn syrup and caramel coloring are also key players on Pepsi’s ingredient list.
In high doses,caramel coloring has been found to be carcinogenic.
And, as for high fructose corn syrup, there are a myriad of possible negative side effects.
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The artificial sugar has been linked to diabetes and heart disease.
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This is certainly not what the doctor ordered.
This coloring agent is, again, used for nothing other than aesthetics.
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But, it has been linked to hypertension,liver damage, and reduced white blood cell counts.
The doctor doses out another secret ingredient as well: phosphoric acid.
This compound gives Dr. Pepper its tartness.
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But, you’ve got the option to likely see why it wasn’t well received.
Mug Cream Soda
Cream soda is like the dessert of all soft drinks.
Not to mention something called yucca mohave extract makes the list.
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This is a plant extract that is commonly used in cosmetics and as an animal feed additive.
Yucca has been given thethumbs up by the FDA, suggesting it’s safe for consumption.
But it certainly sounds “yuccy,” doesn’t it?
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And,Mug Root Beerthe brand’s other popular product lineisn’t in the clear either.
A&W’s cream soda matches Mug’s in terms of total calories per bottle at 290.
Not surprisingly, ingredients like high fructose corn syrup and artificial flavors are involved in both beverages.
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Plus, caramel coloring gives them their golden and dark amber hues.
But, that couldn’t be further from the truth.
A quick peek at theSunkistlabel reveals that the word “orange” is nowhere to be found.
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And, with no real oranges to give it that neon orange coloring something else must be at play.
Well, that would be a combination of Yellow 6 and Red 40both chemical dyes which are highly controversial.
And, in Sunkist’s other fruity flavors, there’s more of the same.
To achieve the purple coloring of the brand’s grapelessGrapeflavor, Red 40 and Blue 1 are thrown together.
Red 40 and Yellow 5 work together to createPeach, andCherry Limeadeis made from Red 40 and Yellow 5.
You get the idea.
Now, the included list of substances is much less natural and recognizable.
Once again, no real oranges were harmed in the making of this beverage.
The rest of Fanta’s flavors are just another forbidden rainbow of synthetic colorings and citric acid.
If we’re including the Zero Sugar version then the buzzword aspartame is also thrown into the mix.
After hearing that, do you still “Wanta Fanta?”
Just like Sunkist’s pineapple-flavored soda, theCrush versionalso has a stomach-churning 320 calories.
But, it surpasses the Sunkist version with a total of 85 grams of sugar.
That’s 169% of your daily recommended amount.
The usual suspects appear on Crush soda’s nutrition labels including high fructose corn syrup and sodium benzoate.
To call it a science experiment wouldn’t be too far off.
TheOrangette orange sodais one of the worst offenders.
Its triple threat of high fructose corn syrup, BVO, and Yellow 6 is bad enough.
If you do find yourself an incurable hankering for Great Value soft drinks, you should reach forTwist Up.
The lemon-lime drink isn’t the picture of health.
Nehi Soda
Nehi is more of a nostalgic soda.
A forgotten name for some people.
All three are caffeine-free.
However, they are far from sugar-free.
They actually boast some of the highest sugar counts in the game.
It should also come as no surprise that those dazzling hues are as phony as they come.
There aren’t many naturally occurring substances that would give the grape flavor that shade of tongue-staining deep purple.
High fructose corn syrup and additional non-disclosed artificial flavors also make this old-timey soda’s ingredient label.
Just because these picks lack sugar (and sometimes calories) doesn’t mean they’re good for you.
You may notice diet sodas still offer a sweet sensation.
Aspartame islisted as a possible carcinogenic.
But, it’s also beenlinked to neurological issueslike headaches, dizziness, and cognitive impairment.
These are on top of possiblemetabolic issueslike weight gain and an increased risk for key in 2 diabetes.
These acids erode your tooth enamel, making you more susceptible to cavities.
Just like the brand’s line of fruit juices, the sparkling sodas are also laden with sugar.
But, the difference is that the sugar within the sodas is not naturally occurring.
The grape variety, Welch’s most prominent flavor, contains79 gramsof total added sugars.
The tropical yellow fruit always seems to be the biggest culprit.
Red 40, Blue 1, Yellow 6…the list goes on and on.
Perhaps this is why it was so behind the times in terms of updating its ingredient list.
The brand was one of the most recent to finally remove BVO from some of its recipes.
And, some bottles of theKey Lime flavorstill contain brominated soybean oil.
Aside from this, Stewart’s pops are also dripping in calories and sugar (mostly cane sugar).
As an unpalatable bonus, you also won’t find any flavors without artificial colorings or dyes at play.
