Originating in Japan in the early 1960s, energy drinks such as Red Bull are sold in 134 countries worldwide. Global sales have surpassed $5 billion a year and are projected to hit $10 billion by 2010. The popularity of diet soda continues to grow amid concerns about obesity, with 59% of Americans saying they drink diet soda and worldwide sales surpassing $20 billion a year. Sales of sports drinks, which originally were designed to help athletes rehydrate, total $3 billion a year. Each of these beverages offers some benefits, but all contribute to acidity in the body.

Energy drinks cause dehydration and increase bodily acid.

• The key ingredient in most energy drinks is caffeine, often from guarana or yerba mate.
• Caffeine is the source of much the energy boost, but it also causes dehydration. To rehydrate, you need to drink two cups of water for every cup of energy drink consumed.
• Energy drinks are extremely acidic. For example, Red Bull has a pH level of 3.26, almost 10,000 times more acidic than pH neutral water. ¹

Diet soda has been linked to weight gains and acidity.

• A 2008 study at Purdue University found that rats on diets containing the artificial sweetener saccharin gained more weight than rats given sugary food, ² perhaps because the body does not receive a signal to "rev up" the metabolism. ³
• An eight-year study with 1,550 participants conducted at University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, found that drinkers of diet soft drinks had a greater risk of gaining weight than drinkers of regular soft drinks. ⁴
• Diet soda is even more acidic than energy drinks. Diet Coke has a pH level of 2.97, more than 10,000 times more acidic than pH neutral water. ⁵

Sports drinks are designed for athletes exercising more than two hours.

• Sports drinks contain electrolytes, carbohydrates, and other nutrients burned up through extended periods of exercise.
• Most sports drinks have between 13 and 19 grams sugar per eight ounce serving. Drinking sports drinks without working out increases caloric intake.
• Sports drinks are even more acidic than energy drinks and diet soda. Gatorade has a pH level of 2.95, more than 10,000 times more acidic than pH neutral water. ⁶

Americans are spending billions of dollars each year on beverages that may provide a short-term boost but also increase the likelihood of gaining weight and increasing acidity in the body. A better solution is to hydrate frequently with ionized alkaline drinking water, which hydrates better than diet soda and energy drinks and helps to neutralize the acidity of the body.

¹ Young, Dr. Robert O., The pH Miracle for Weight Loss. New York: Grand Central Publishing, 2005, p. 125.

² "A Role for Sweet Taste: Calorie Predictive Relations in Energy Regulation by Rats," Susan E. Swithers, PhD and Terry L. Davidson, PhD, Purdue University; Behavioral Neuroscience, Vol. 122, No. 1.

³ American Psychological Association (2008, February 11). Artificial Sweeteners Linked To Weight Gain. ScienceDaily.

⁴ Abstract 1058-P. Sharon P. Fowler, MPH, University of Texas Health Science Center School of Medicine, San Antonio.

⁵ Young, Dr. Robert O., The pH Miracle for Weight Loss. New York: Grand Central Publishing, 2005, p. 125.

⁶ Young, Dr. Robert O., The pH Miracle for Weight Loss. New York: Grand Central Publishing, 2005, p. 125.