Depending on whom you believe, Coke is either mildly poisonous or a miracle elixir that enhances the quality of our lives. The beverage giant spends billions of dollars every year trying to convince us of the latter, but consumers literally aren’t buying it – have been buying steadily less Coke over the years, much to the consternation of the company’s top brass in Atlanta. For in the end, no amount of advertising can undo the salient point made so obvious by the picture below – i.e., that every can of Coke is loaded with sugar, an ingredient for which no health benefits have ever been claimed. Indeed, no less an authority on the subject than Fidel Castro once averred that America’s concerns about Communism were misplaced – that sugar, once exported by Cuba to the U.S. in immense quantities, was rotting our nation from within.
The idea of sugar-as-toxin has gained traction as Americans have inched their way over the last decade toward healthier foods. At the same time, the blog world, with all the latest information on why too much Coke will kill you, has provided an informational counterweight to soda-pop ads that would have us believe that a no life well-lived should be without carbonated sugar-water. All too predictably, Coke has responded to our increasing reluctance to believe such claptrap by boosting its advertising budget, which was $3.1 billion in 2013, by $1 billion over the next three years. Similarly, McDonald’s, which has been killing us with fat, sodium and beef raised on hormones and antibiotics, thinks the correct marketing approach is to hit us with more, and “better,” advertising. Do you think it will work? That’s the question of the week, all comments welcome.
I can remember someone saying one can use Diet Coke to clean battery terminals … should give you an idea what yer drinking.
Many years ago, I was a Coke fanatic, think 4 to 6 cans a day, then decided I needed to cut down the sugar in my diet. Turned out I was addicted to Coke. It took me 3 full weeks to get rid of that. I was actually having withdrawal symptoms.
One side effect of giving up soft drinks in general: I’ve saved a lot of money asking for a water cup instead of a regular drink.