Eat Naked Segment.....Flavored Waters

I could tell you again how horrible soda is for you and those insane amount of caffeine laden rock star drinks, but... you all know that story. Let's visit the popular craze of flavored waters. They are labeled as "Vitamin Waters", "Powerades" or even just water with "real fruit juices added". They seem innocent enough. They even may lead you to believe that they are better than water. They give us electrolytes to replenish what has been lost in vigorous activity, they give us vitamins to make us healthier, they add some real fruit juice. Well, as we all know, advertisements can be misleading. Labels can be misleading. Companies are misleading....on purpose.
BECAUSE, we fall for it. Lets just talk a bit about Vitamin waters.

Did you know that in one bottle of Vitamin Water there are actually 2.5 servings in the bottle? So, the calories and sugar contents you think you are getting on the back should be timed by 2.5. The total amount of sugar grams is 32.5, compare that to a Coke which has 39 grams. Sure, they throw in some synthetic vitamins to make it sound better and some "natural flavors" to make it seem well, "natural" but that is also a cover up. If it was just a natural product, they would list the product. If it was once natural but has been synthetically processed and changed, it is now a "natural flavor." In other words, you don't want it. I won't even go into all the other synthetic ingredients in these drinks. We will just focus on the sugar alone.

When sugar is ingested, the sugar just goes right through the stomach wall and raises the blood sugar levels in the body. Your body is programmed to keep the blood sugar at a certain level. When it soars, the pancreas secretes insulin to balance it all out. When the insulin is increased, your metabolism is disrupted. Metabolism has a very important role in the bodies. It is the process by which the molecules in your body combine and create new material that that help take in energy and release heat. By changing the natural metabolism in your body by disrupting it in a negative way, the immune system is suppressed.

What does this mean? The very drink you are sipping to help give you some vitamins can actually help make you sick. Not to mention add some love handles. Many of these are even laden with High Fructose Corn syrup, now even linked to mercury content in many foods.

THE MORAL OF THE STORY: DRINK NAKED. Drink water. To add some flavor, essential oils are great, and....even beneficial. I love to put some lemon or orange oil in my water. It has a sort of creamy taste to the oil and is very refreshing. It will help cleanse the water also of any bacteria. It is much cheaper than vitamin waters but just make sure that you get a pure brand of oils. We put some oils in our water jug in the fridge for a little zip. We also love cutting up cucumbers in the water jug. It has such a fresh and light taste. I wouldn't have expected to like this much but sampled it one day at a store and have been hooked. My kids all love it , a true "vitamin water" . This really all should be so obvious. I mean, can anything blue or bright neon colored be healthy? Stick to what God gave us. I want to keep my sugar intake to where it really counts, a good desert or chocolate bar. Don't waste it on a drink. We all need to take our sugar level down and drinking it daily will kick it over the edge. Especially for the little kiddies who consume these drinks like they are , well....water. I know that now and then a good Gatorade will not kill us. All in moderation. But, on a daily basis, lets kick up the water intake. We can't live without it.