Headline: Can you ‘taste the difference?’

Sub-headline: Pepsi plans to cut back sugar and calories

In a country where sugar has become a common enemy for many, one of the main sources is a variety of drinks every American loves–soda. Not only do these drinks combine favorite flavors and a bunch of sugar, the cans are loaded with a ton of caffeine, which causes people to become addicted.

According to the American Heart Association, the daily intake of sugar allowed for a woman is 24 grams, and 36 grams for a man. One typical can of Pepsi contains 41 grams of sugar, almost doubling the recommended amount of sugar in one day for women. As obesity rates rise, the issue of sugar in everything becomes an important topic of discussion–one Pepsi has taken into consideration–but can reducing the amount of sugar in a can of pop help that much?

Pepsi is planning to have reduced its single serving drinks to 100 or fewer calories and cut back on sugar by 2025. While it is great that Pepsi is trying to take steps in the healthy direction, there are many other companies that need to jump on board in order to receive effective results from the population. On the other hand, if PepsiCo makes changes to its entire company, more results might show. Pepsi not only owns the drink half the nation loves, but also Gatorade, Tropicana, Frito-Lay, Doritos, and Cheetos. Given that people who buy soda also buy these unhealthy junk foods, healthier eating could possibly happen. Natalie Garner, senior, says, “There’s so many different unhealthy food habits that just changing one won’t solve it, but it’s a step in the right direction.”

As mentioned earlier, caffeine addictions are very common in soda drinkers. Just like any other addiction, it’s sometimes hard for people to quit drinking soda because their body feels a lack of energy that soda provides. Unhealthy food habits can and should be broken, but how many people fall back into the habit? Olo Ofori, junior, comments, “Soda itself isn’t good for you.” So is cutting down on an already addictive habit worth it?

Even if Pepsi cuts down on the sugar in its drinks, in order to keep the original flavor, the amount of sugar taken out couldn’t be too much. Also, this may cause people who don’t drink Pepsi to all of a sudden think that because Pepsi cut back on sugar, the soda is ‘healthy.’ No matter how much sugar is reduced in Pepsi, it really will never be good for anyone. Applaud Pepsi for its efforts, but obesity rates will only go down when people realize that in order to become a healthier individual, all junk food needs to be cut from their diets.

Hopefully one day people will understand pleasure can come from many healthy foods and that ‘healthy’ doesn’t necessarily mean no sugar or sweetness, but using more natural foods with natural sugars to create the same dishes people eat today.