7 Worst Summer Drinks

What if you could turn this ongoing heatwave into an opportunity to lose weight—without exercising or changing what you eat?

Here's all you have to do: Think before you drink. A lot of what's offered at the supermarket and the corner convenience store is likely to make this summer only more miserable—by adding inches to your waistline.

According to a study in the journal Obesity, liquids account for more than 20 percent—some 450 daily calories—of the American diet, and most of this is sugar. Another study from the University of Minnesota demonstrated that added sugars are directly linked to weight gain. We're drinking ourselves fat!  More...Yahoo Health

Tax on sugar beverages could have large impact

The impact of sugar-sweetened beverages (which include beverages sweetened with sugar, corn syrup and other caloric sweeteners) is coming to the forefront of public discussion, as well it should. Houston joins the United States in seeing growing rates of obesity among children as well as adults. Obesity is a great public health concern that has been associated with many serious health conditions such as diabetes, hypertension and some cancers. Nearly two-thirds of Houston adults are obese or overweight.

Many national health organizations have reviewed the research and determined that sugar-sweetened beverages are associated with the obesity epidemic. Some of these organizations include the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the National Institute of Medicine, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the American Academy of Pediatrics. These groups recommend decreasing use of sugary beverages.

Sugar-sweetened beverages have minimal nutritional value yet contribute many calories to one's diet. A 12-ounce serving of regular cola adds 140 calories to 150 calories with nine to 11 teaspoons of sugar. Many popular sports and energy drinks contain 75 calories to 150 calories with five to 11 teaspoons of sugar in 12 ounces. 

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Diet soda may be making you fat.

Think you're making a healthier choice when you reach for diet soda instead of a sugary soft drink? Think again.

Diet soft drinks may have minimal calories, but they can still have a major impact on your waistline, according to two studies presented at a meeting of the American Diabetes Association in San Diego.

Researchers at the Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio tracked 474 people, all 65 to 74 years old, for nearly a decade, measuring the subjects' height, weight, waist circumference, and diet soft drink intake every 3.6 years. The waists of those who drank diet soft drinks grew 70 percent more than those who avoided the artificially sweetened stuff; people who drank two or more servings a day had waist-circumference increases that were five times larger than non-diet-soda consumers.  More....Shine at Yahoo