Americans are drinking more soda pop than ever before.

According to SugarScience.org, the average American drinks 597 cans of soda pop each year. All that carbonation and sugar is doing a number on our health, from dissolving tooth enamel to causing kidney stones and more.

One 12-ounce soda contains anywhere from five to 15 teaspoons of sugar, Rachel Saunders, a registered clinical dietitian with McKay-Dee Hospital said.

“Soda is typically made from carbonated water, a sweetener, and a flavoring. If this sweetener is sugar, then the body will start digesting in the mouth,” Saunders said. “Simple sugars from soda are quickly absorbed and will signal to the pancreas to produce insulin to remove this excess sugar from the blood. If the sugar is not needed immediately for energy the body will store this extra sugar in the form of body fat.” she said.

Jennifer James, a registered dietitian and weight loss class instructor at Ogden Regional Medical Center said sodacan increase the amount of fat in the blood (triglycerides), cause the body to deposit fat in the liver, and create something called metabolic syndrome which increases the risk for heart disease and diabetes.

James said the first sip of soda sets in motion a chain of events. The taste buds and brain register the sweet taste and saliva is released. The soda travels down the esophagus to the stomach and continues on to the small intestine.

“The 2-unit sugar sucrose from sugar or corn syrup is broken down into glucose and fructose on the brush border of the small intestine and transported through the gut wall,” James said. “It ends up in the large vein that takes it to the liver. This can happen very quickly since it skips several steps in digestion that starches have to go through.”

The pancreas releases insulin to push the glucose into our cells. It is used for energy, stored as fat or stored as glycogen in the liver and muscles. The fructose mainly heads to the liver where it is often converted into fat. It can also end up in the blood as triglycerides.

“The glucose seems to affect our brain in ways that dampen our appetite where fructose does not have this effect. It gets complicated,” she said. “Moderate amounts of fructose from whole fruit are not a problem, just in the concentrated forms we see in sodas.”

Also, James said Cola’s cause the body to pull calcium out of the bones to neutralize the phosphoric acid they contain and the sugar can affect our brain in ways similar to narcotics and alcohol.

“It is a completely processed man-made food with little nutritional value. The simple carbohydrates are processed very quickly and are not as satiating as complex carbohydrates, protein or fat. It leaves us wanting more,” James said.”

James and Saunders also added a child’s growth is compromised if they drink sodas instead of eating their calories from healthy food or drinking milk.

“The carbonation makes us bloated. Sugar in and of itself has inflammatory effects on the body, meaning, our immune system responds to it in negative ways, increasing our risk for chronic disease,” James said. “Human beings are not designed to handle vast quantities of sugar without any consequences.”

James said soda isn’t the only culprit. Our consumption of overall sugar and sweeteners is really the villain.

So, if sugar is evil, what about artificial sweeteners in diet drinks? Are they bad for us too?

Saunders said diet soda may be a better option for people with diabetes, because they do not raise blood sugars. Artificial sugars are much sweeter (200-600 times sweeter) than table sugar. Because they pack a bigger punch, not as much is needed to create that sweet taste.

“The American Dietetic Association, through its Evidence Analysis Library, examined the research on the effects of nonnutritive sweeteners on human subjects,” Saunders said. “There is strong evidence that aspartame, in particular, after testing for a wide range of possible effects over decades, is not associated with adverse effects in the general population.”

However, pregnant women should avoid aspartame because the fetus cannot break down the amino acid. Additionally, Saunders said, consistent with the findings of the FDA, the available research from peer-reviewed journals supports the safety of all these ingredients for the general adult population; however, the ADA suggests that continued post-market surveillance is needed; and that only limited research currently exists regarding possible adverse effects in children.

James said artificial sweeteners are not a health food and there is some controversy about whether the artificially sweet taste increases hunger.

“From my experience, in some people they seem to increase hunger. However, in small amounts the artificial sweeteners are probably fine and have been studied ad nauseum,” she said. “Personally I don’t use them anymore. We really just need to wean ourselves off of eating so many sweet-tasting foods not made by Mother Nature.”

So, drink up. But choose another beverage like water, milk or 100 percent fruit juice.

“Just like any other habit, if you want to stop or decrease your soda consumption, it may take some time. Create realistic goals of slowly cutting down,” Saunders said. “For example, if you drink three cans a day, decrease to two cans per day until this becomes normal for you and then continue to cut more out until your normal becomes water throughout the day.”

If you like caffeinated soda this can become especially hard because going cold-turkey could cause some side effects such as headaches or cravings. Weaning will take time and a conscious effort, but the main goal is to slowly add more water and less soda daily.