iStockWhen it comes to putting terrible stuff into our bodies (pizza, cupcakes, pizza topped with cupcakes), our motto is: Just let us live. Meaning, it's pretty hard to turn us off to any of the food we love to eat, because if we feel like eating Taco Bell, you better believe we are hitting that drive-thru harder than Leonardo DiCaprio hits on models. (Hi-yo!)
But this infographic created by former U.K. pharmacist Niraj Naik actually makes us think twice about throwing back that can of Coke.
Naik, who is also known as the Renegade Pharmacist, showed exactly what happens the hour after you drink a can of Coca-Cola. He used the research done by Blisstree's Wade Meredith to show off the soda side effects as a way to teach people about the dangers of high-fructose corn syrup.
"After seeing so many people suffering from obesity related diseases like heart disease, diabetes and the side effects of the medication they were taking, I was strongly motivated to research what actually causes people to become obese, it clearly was not just the fat they were eating!" he wrote. "I actually discovered that a trigger factor for many widespread diseases of the west such as obesity, heart disease and diabetes could be closely linked to the consumption of one particular substance found in many processed foods and drinks – fructose in the form of high fructose corn syrup."
Here is what happens after popping open hat Coke and finish off the can:
In the first 10 minutes: 10 tsp. of sugar hit your system which is 100 percent of your suggested daily intake. "You don't immediately vomit from the overwhelming sweetness because phosphoric acid cuts the flavor, allowing you to keep it down."
20 minutes: Up goes your blood sugar. "Your liver responds to this by turning any sugar it can get its hands on into fat."
After an hour: Now you have to pee. "The caffeine's diuretic properties come into play. It is now assured that you'll evacuate the bonded calcium, magnesium, and zinc that was headed to your bones as well as sodium, electrolytes, and water. "
After an hour: Sugar crash time! "You may become irritable and/or sluggish. You've also now, literally, pissed away all the water that was in the Coke. But not before infusing it with valuable nutrients your body could have used for things like hydrating your system, or building strong bones and teeth."
Yikes. Seems brutal, doesn't it?
But before you dump all your Coke into the toilet like some dramatic Boston Tea Party-esque ritual, Naik insists that drinking soda every once in a great while probably won't cause you much harm as long as it's actually every once in a great while.
"Coke is not just high in high fructose corn syrup, but it is also packed with refined salts and caffeine. Regular consumption of these ingredients in the high quantities you find in Coke and other processed foods and drinks, can lead to higher blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes and obesity," he wrote. "However a small amount now and then won't do any major harm. The key is moderation!"
Basically, reach for water more than you reach for soda, OK?