4 ms·

We need a social-shift that treats sugary drinks more like we treat alcohol. I'm not saying let's only sell Coca-Cola to 21-year-olds, but rather that the socia

by s_q_b 13y ago

We need a social-shift that treats sugary drinks more like we treat alcohol. I'm not saying let's only sell Coca-Cola to 21-year-olds, but rather that the social stigma should be different. A sugary beverage should be a celebratory drink, reserved for special occasions, like beer or wine, not a staple of our diet.

xd 13y ago
I don't see society conforming to your ideals any time soon. Hell, I love nothing more than celebrating the end of a hard days work with a beer. IMO people need to worry about sitting down all day way before worrying about sugary drinks.
- s_q_b 13y ago
  Hell, I love nothing more than celebrating the end of a hard days work with a beer. No disagreement from me. I would simply suggest that people think the same way about a Coke. There's nothing wrong with celebrating the end of a day with a beer, but most people would look askance if you were drinking them all day at your desk. So why is it considered normal to do the same with a caffeine and sugar concoction that we know is highly dangerous? As to the standing desk issue, I think it's most an issue of being sedentary in general than standing vs. sitting. There's nothing particularly natural about standing in a single place for hours either.
JohnTHaller 13y ago
Unfortunately, the 'junk drink' companies have worked VERY hard to get soda et al to be treated as every day, every meal drinks. Heck, Coke was working for a while to come up with a way to have every home have a Coke faucet in the kitchen next to water many years back.
cliffu 13y ago
I think your point is muddied by "celebratory" and "special occasions", which is too bad because it's a good point; but it's going to be lost on people who have a beer or glass of wine with dinner, even though we probably all agree that drinking a "big gulp" beer at work is inappropriate and maybe we should feel that way about colas too.
- s_q_b 13y ago
  You're probably right. Dinner to me falls into the same category. Just as there's nothing wrong with a beer or a glass of wine with dinner, there's nothing wrong with a cold glass of Coke by the pool. It's the failure to socially recognize the dangers of excess in sugary drinks that's problematic.

by s_q_b 13y ago

xd 13y ago

I don't see society conforming to your ideals any time soon. Hell, I love nothing more than celebrating the end of a hard days work with a beer. IMO people need to worry about sitting down all day way before worrying about sugary drinks.

s_q_b 13y ago
Hell, I love nothing more than celebrating the end of a hard days work with a beer. No disagreement from me. I would simply suggest that people think the same way about a Coke. There's nothing wrong with celebrating the end of a day with a beer, but most people would look askance if you were drinking them all day at your desk. So why is it considered normal to do the same with a caffeine and sugar concoction that we know is highly dangerous? As to the standing desk issue, I think it's most an issue of being sedentary in general than standing vs. sitting. There's nothing particularly natural about standing in a single place for hours either.

JohnTHaller 13y ago

Unfortunately, the 'junk drink' companies have worked VERY hard to get soda et al to be treated as every day, every meal drinks. Heck, Coke was working for a while to come up with a way to have every home have a Coke faucet in the kitchen next to water many years back.

cliffu 13y ago

I think your point is muddied by "celebratory" and "special occasions", which is too bad because it's a good point; but it's going to be lost on people who have a beer or glass of wine with dinner, even though we probably all agree that drinking a "big gulp" beer at work is inappropriate and maybe we should feel that way about colas too.

s_q_b 13y ago
You're probably right. Dinner to me falls into the same category. Just as there's nothing wrong with a beer or a glass of wine with dinner, there's nothing wrong with a cold glass of Coke by the pool. It's the failure to socially recognize the dangers of excess in sugary drinks that's problematic.