Which is Worse For Your Health: Drinking Soda or Beer?

Neither soda nor beer is necessarily good for your health. They both have their detriments, but which is worse? Alcohol, in moderation, is said to have some health benefits. The same can be said for the caffeine in soda. Both beverages can be dehydrating and can be associated with obesity. Both beer and soda can be harmful in excess, but which is the most damaging to your health?

Comparing Calories, Carbs, Fat, and Sugar

Calories, sugar, fat, and carbs are some of the most common metrics used to gauge how potentially unhealthy food or beverages can be. While beers and sodas come in a variety of styles, most sodas are higher in calories, carbs, fat and sugar than most beers. In fact, beer generally has no sugar, as sugars are metabolized by the yeast in the fermentation process in order to produce alcohol. Beer also has no fat in it and has some vitamins while sodas have none.

The sugar in soda can be one of its most damaging qualities. Soda simply has an insane amount of sugar, which contributes to high blood pressure, diabetes, and severe tooth decay. At an average of a whopping 39 grams of sugar per 12 oz can, and with the ease with which it can be consumed in large quantities, it’s obvious that soda can be dangerous.

The obscenely large amounts of sugar, fat, and carbs in soda make it a leading contributor to obesity as well. Beer can be heavy on carbs as well, though generally not as much so as soda, and does have a reputation for making people gain weight. Neither beer nor soda is going to be great for your girlish figure. Both represent an unnecessary consumption of carbs and calories, which won’t be recommended on any diet plan.

When it comes to calories, carbs, fat, and sugar, beer defeats soda hands down. Beer has an advantage over soda because it generally has fewer calories and carbs, has no sugar or fat at all, and can be less easy to drink in excess. Beer has a lower glycemic load than soda, which is a measurement of how much a food or beverage will raise the blood sugar after being consumed. In short, the carbs in beer are less likely to raise your blood sugar than the carbs in soda. Simply, soda is more likely to cause weight gain or contribute to diabetes than beer.

Now the Alcohol…

Up until now, beer has been the clear winner. However, when we begin to take alcohol into account, things are going to change drastically. Or will they? The health effects of alcohol are varied and can very different when alcohol is consumed in different ways.

It’s important to mention here that there is a big difference, health-wise, between alcohol in moderation and alcohol in excess. An excess of consumption of alcohol, beer included, can contribute to a wide assortment of dangerous health issues. From cirrhosis of the liver, increased risk of certain types of cancers, to cognitive impairment, the side-effects of alcoholism are bleak. That’s not even beginning to mention the potential for accidents if driving drunk or the host of other physical harm that can come to people who use alcohol irresponsibly. Alcohol is damaging to your liver when consumed in large quantities.

In contrast, when used in moderation alcohol the health detriments of alcohol are minimal, and some studies even tout some health benefits to craft beer. A drink a day has been shown to have positive effects on cardiovascular health, cognitive development, and has even been shown to reduce the risk of diabetes. Beer also has been shown to have positive effects on your teeth and studies have shown it to have anti-inflammatory properties. Beer contains healthy B vitamins and antioxidants as well. In contrast, soda is devoid of nutrients.

Beer can be majorly detrimental to your health — much more than soda — when used improperly. However, when used in moderation, the health risks of beer are minimal. Beer, consumed responsibly, can actually have health benefits, none of which can be claimed by sodas. The dangers of using alcohol in excess far outweigh the dangers of using soda in excess, but the overall health consequences of soda are far greater. Contributing severely to heart disease, obesity, asthma, and diabetes, and contributing nothing to benefit your health, soda is one of the worst things that you can consume on a regular basis.

Wrap up

Moderation is the key with both soda and beer. Overuse of either can be majorly damaging to your well-being. It’s important not to overuse either.

Overall, soda has far few health benefits and far greater health risks than beer. Beer’s lower glycemic load and presence of circulation-boosting antioxidants and B vitamins make the occasional beer much better for you than a sugary, carb-laden soda.