Death by Soda

There has been a story floating around the last week about a woman who died because of drinking Coca-Cola.  Most of the headlines oversimplify the story. In reality, the woman died from a heart attack. The contributing factors were low potassium and caffeine toxicity. Yes, Coca-Cola was involved in her death. No, Coca-Cola is not at fault. This woman was drinking more than TWO gallons of soda every day. She also did not eat very much and smoked over a pack of cigarettes every day. She was depriving her body of almost all the needed nutrients and taxing her heart with the excessive amounts of caffeine and nicotine.

The woman's partner noted that she was experiencing problems with energy and blood pressure. I can't find whether she sought treatment for those symptoms or if anyone ever told her to cut back on the Coke. I have pointed out that soda is bad for you, but anything consumed at this extreme level will harm your health. Maybe not as directly as soda, but at least indirectly by supplanting other items from your diet. When it comes to what you consume, moderation is key.