A lot of food has sugar naturally, like fruits, veggies, and whole grains. And then there's a lot of food and drinks that have a ton of added sugar - like pop.  And the U.S. Department of Agriculture recommends that based on a 2,000 calorie diet, you should limit your added sugars to about 10 teaspoons, or 40 grams.  Here's how it breaks down, one teaspoon of sugar is four grams. One tablespoon of sugar is equal to three teaspoons, or, you guessed it, 12 grams.  So, what does that mean for your pop?

It depends on what kind your drinking. All of these figures are based on a 12 oz. can of soda (not a 20 oz. bottle) Pepsi has 41 grams of sugar, or 3.4 tablespoons. Coke and 7Up? 39 grams of sugar, or 3.3 tablespoons.  And what about Mountain Dew and A&W Root Beer? 46 grams of sugar, or 3.8 tablespoons.  Dr. Pepper? 40 grams, 3.3 tablespoons.  And Orange Slice? 50 grams of sugar, or 4.2 tablespoons. 

How much sugar is that really? Well, there's 16 tablespoons in a cup. Let's use Coke and 7Up as an example.  Say you drink one can of pop every day, that's more than 23 tablespoons, or almost a cup and a half of sugar! And what about a month? Over six cups of sugar!  Do you even want to hear about a year?  We'll tell you just in case  . . .75 and a quarter cups of sugar!!!

And what if you drink a 20 oz. bottle of pop a day, and not a can? It's 5.5 tablespoons a day instead of 3.3.  That's 2.4 cups a week, and 10.3 cups a month. 

A year? More than 125 cups of sugar! In case you're curious, that's about 91,000 calories! 

Interested in more info about the crazy amounts of sugar in pop, and what it can do to your body?  Check out these links:

• A news story from MSNBC.
  
• Skeptical?  Check out this youtube video of a "How much sugar is really in soda?" science experiment.
  
• And this story on Healthline about counties in the San Francisco area preparing for a "Soda-free Summer."
• And here's a great site from Wichita, Kansas!
  

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