The Decline of ‘Big Soda’ • Hacker News Board

Re: The Decline of ‘Big Soda’

#141

Post by adventured » Sat, Oct 03, 2015, 9:36 PM UTC

hippich wrote: post #61

klenwell wrote: post #25

When Mr. Nutter was fighting the soda tax battle, he kept a bottle of Mountain Dew and a container with 17 teaspoons of sugar — the amount in the bottle — on the table in the center of his office. It was a good “conversation piece,” he said, about the surprising number of calories in a typical soda. I think this is key. Better information and transparency is having an effect. I'm glad to hear we're approaching a poin…

I hope people will also lay down sugar amount of apple, bagel, etc food next to these coke/dew/etc bottles of soda drinks. =) Thing is - most of products in US has label stating clearly amount of calories and major contributors. It is SUPER easy to find approximate amount to which you need to stick. But people still over do it two/three/more times. As much as I hate it, I think only high food costs will work. Problem…

Replace 90% of the sugar consumed in America with erythritol or similar, and ban high fructose corn syrup as unsafe for human consumption. Obesity would begin to plunge overnight. It would remove vast amounts of calories from the typical American diet.

Re: The Decline of ‘Big Soda’

#142

Post by jmcphers » Sat, Oct 03, 2015, 9:41 PM UTC

bluedino wrote: post #48

What are restaurants doing to combat the loss of their highest-margin items? Another bonus of drinking water instead of a soft drink is a cheaper bill at lunch.

They're just increasing the prices of everything else. In earlier decades, restaurants used to sell their food at a near-loss because everyone had a couple of high-margin alcoholic drinks with their meal. When that started to go by the wayside, the restaurants had to increase the menu prices of the actual food. I expect we'll see the same thing happen if people stop buying beverages entirely, especially at fast-food restaurants where the soft drink is almost always the highest-margin element of the meal, making up for loss leaders like the "dollar menu".

Re: The Decline of ‘Big Soda’

#143

Post by adventured » Sat, Oct 03, 2015, 9:42 PM UTC

free2rhyme214 wrote: post #75

lemevi wrote: post #5

Just take some time next time you're in a supermarket and walk down the cereal aisle, it's just incredible. It's all sugar and carbohydrates in colorful cartoony boxes meant to appeal to children. Just a cup of cereal has many calories and people and children eat huge bowls of this stuff. So I think an anti-cereal campaign might also help. I often wonder what would happen to national obesity rates if cereal aisles in…

If man made it, don't eat it.

Would that include cabbage, brussels sprouts, kale, broccoli and cauliflower? Those are all man made.

http://www.vox.com/xpress/2014/8/6/5974989/kale-cauliflower-...

Re: The Decline of ‘Big Soda’

#144

Post by Eric_WVGG » Sat, Oct 03, 2015, 9:58 PM UTC

pro-tip for anyone trying to kick a soda (or alcohol) habit: get yourself a seltzer maker, and an assortment of bitters (Fee Bros Cranberry, Walnut, and standard Angostura are a good place to start).

This is just my personal experience, but I found that most of the unhealthy drinking I was doing was out of habit and boredom. I’m just as happy with a seltzer + a few dashes of bitters as I was with a beer or a coke.

Re: The Decline of ‘Big Soda’

#145

Post by sundsta » Sat, Oct 03, 2015, 10:01 PM UTC

kuschku wrote: post #133

bsder wrote: post #123

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Soda sales are down but obesity is still up, so the calories are coming from somewhere. A recent study showed that people in earlier years ate the same number of calories but were still thinner. It's more complex than calories. I suspect they're going to find that nicotine (lack thereof in current society) is the culprit. That's not to say we should go back, but it's not just "calories".

The largest difference is movement. Which helps keep down obesity in many other nations: If you walk everywhere, or bike, or use transit for 90% of what you do, you will burn a lot more calories (especially grocery shopping and carrying them home via the metro). Compared to driving everywhere, sitting at work, etc...

The study he's referencing took into account exercise as well: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1871403X15...

Re: The Decline of ‘Big Soda’

#146

Post by Malician » Sat, Oct 03, 2015, 10:02 PM UTC

_delirium wrote: post #102

mikenyc wrote: post #95

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sugar-wise, the can of coke is about 70% worse. 12-oz caramel macchiato = 23 grams of sugar http://www.starbucks.com/menu/drinks/espresso/caramel-macchi... 12-oz can of coke = 39 grams of sugar http://www.coca-colaproductfacts.com/en/coca-cola-products/c...

Good point, the source of calories isn't the same mix, even though the latte has more total calories (200 calories/12oz, vs. 140). Though I was thinking of the caramel latte rather than macchiato, which is a bit closer, at 27g of sugar: http://www.starbucks.com/menu/drinks/espresso/flavored-latte... . And since it's autumn, it's now time for their signature seasonal drink, the pumpkin spice latte, 300 calories and 39…

I suspect these are actually healthier because of the additional calories - which come in the form of fat and protein, dulling the impact of the sugar spike from a soda.

Even if you're overweight, a latte is more nutritious and likely to make you feel full than a soda.

Re: The Decline of ‘Big Soda’

#147

Post by seizethecheese » Sat, Oct 03, 2015, 10:05 PM UTC

fennecfoxen wrote: post #134

hisham_hm wrote: post #129

"Soda companies" are already moving to controlling water supply in many countries. In Brazil, it's already hard to find in some stores water which is not owned by either Coca-Cola or Nestlé.

Does the "water supply" of most citizens of most countries come from a grocery store? Or does it still come from things like municipal plumbing or rural wells ?

In Latin America tap water is not drinkable so most people get their drinking water bottled.

Re: The Decline of ‘Big Soda’

#148

Post by _delirium » Sat, Oct 03, 2015, 10:22 PM UTC

Malician wrote: post #146

_delirium wrote: post #102

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Good point, the source of calories isn't the same mix, even though the latte has more total calories (200 calories/12oz, vs. 140). Though I was thinking of the caramel latte rather than macchiato, which is a bit closer, at 27g of sugar: http://www.starbucks.com/menu/drinks/espresso/flavored-latte... . And since it's autumn, it's now time for their signature seasonal drink, the pumpkin spice latte, 300 calories and 39…

I suspect these are actually healthier because of the additional calories - which come in the form of fat and protein, dulling the impact of the sugar spike from a soda. Even if you're overweight, a latte is more nutritious and likely to make you feel full than a soda.

This suggests a strategy for improving the healthiness of soda: the government should work to make the ice-cream float come back into fashion. "Don't drink your soda plain: add a scoop for your health!"

Re: The Decline of ‘Big Soda’

#149

Post by PopeOfNope » Sat, Oct 03, 2015, 10:25 PM UTC

wpietri wrote: post #83

PopeOfNope wrote: post #52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What we really need is fewer people speculating about what other people need. Follow in the footsteps of your forefathers[0] and mind your own damned business. [0]: http://rivergrandrapids.com/the-first-official-us-coin-said-...

You realize that the advertising industry, which clears north of $200 billion a year in the US, is entirely devoted to manipulating what other people need, right? If those people will stop trying to mind (and control) everybody else's business, there'd be a much smaller problem here.

You realize people are going to do what people are going to do.

The only thing you can really control is yourself and your reactions to things. I don't watch TV, read newspapers, watch football games, browse the web without an ad blocker, or live in a city. I haven't seen an ad in years. When I do venture into the city, I recognize that I must have seen ads, but I can't recall what any of them were; I'm too busy thinking about other things.

Stop blaming other people and focus on yourself.

Re: The Decline of ‘Big Soda’

#150

Post by Malician » Sat, Oct 03, 2015, 10:26 PM UTC

_delirium wrote: post #148

Malician wrote: post #146

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I suspect these are actually healthier because of the additional calories - which come in the form of fat and protein, dulling the impact of the sugar spike from a soda. Even if you're overweight, a latte is more nutritious and likely to make you feel full than a soda.

This suggests a strategy for improving the healthiness of soda: the government should work to make the ice-cream float come back into fashion. "Don't drink your soda plain: add a scoop for your health!"

Maybe?

I mean, have you ever tried to eat dinner after icecream? It's just not happening, even if it's delicious dinner.

But soda, well, take a 2000 calorie meal and add soda and you have a 3000 calorie meal.