If you’re physically active, you may believe you need a sports drink or a fortified beverage like coconut water to keep you hydrated. Consumer Reports debunks the notion in a recent article.

According to the report, although sports drinks are advertised as having the extra electrolytes and carbs needed to replenish your body after physical exertion, most people don’t exercise that vigorously to need anything but water for hydration.  The downside of sports drinks, as the article points out, is that most contain lots of sugar increasing the risk of type 2 diabetes. They also contain food coloring, preservatives and other unhealthy ingredients. Sports drinks that are low in sugar use artificial sweeteners, another health concern.

Coconut and other plant-based waters (including maple, artichoke and cactus) don’t fare much better. Consumer Reports found no basis for product claims that said these drinks were a “miracle of hydration and replenishment.”  Other purported benefits — such as elevating antioxidants, increasing metabolism, enhancing digestion and purifying toxins — are also difficult to substantiate. Plus coconut waters and plant-based waters are expensive, with prices ranging from $2.50 to $4.00 for a 16 ounce bottle.

If you’re looking to stay healthy and hydrated, consider Syfo Beverages. Our water is not just filtered, but purified using a multi-step process that includes reverse osmosis. Our Original Seltzer and Naturally Flavored Sparkling Waters contain no sugar, artificial sweeteners, sodium, additives or preservatives. To rehydrate after your favorite sports activity or just to stay refreshed on a hot summer day, Syfo is a delicious and healthy beverage choice.

Here’s another great reason to switch to Syfo. A new epidemiology paper estimates that replacing the daily consumption of one serving of a sugary drink with either water or unsweetened tea or coffee can lower the risk of developing diabetes by 14% to 25%.

The work published in Diabetologia is based on a large EPIC-Norfolk food diary study that included more than 25,000 men and women aged 40-79 years living in Norfolk in the UK. Study participants recorded everything they ate and drank for 7 consecutive days including weekdays and weekends. They noted what they drank, how much, how often and whether any additional sugar was added by the participants.

During approximately 11 years of follow-up, 847 study participants were diagnosed with new-onset type 2 diabetes. The study found that based on the dietary habits of the participants, there was an approximately 22% increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes for each extra serving per day of either soft drinks or sweetened milk beverages.

The authors of the study say that if participants had substituted a serving of sugary soft drinks with a serving of water (such as sparkling water like Syfo) or unsweetened tea or coffee, the risk of diabetes could have been cut by 14%. Replacing a serving of a sweetened milk beverage with water or unsweetened tea or coffee reduces the risk by 20%-25%.

If you’re looking to eliminate that extra serving of a sugary drink, Syfo Beverages are a perfect choice. Our Original Seltzer and delicious Naturally Flavored Sparkling Waters are made with purified water and contain no sugar, artificial sweeteners, sodium, additives or preservatives.

You can read more about this dietary study here.

Earth Day 2015 is Wednesday, April 22 and people all over the world will be focusing on the health of the environment and their own personal well-being. At Syfo, we believe promoting a healthy environment and health in people go hand in hand. We’ve taken steps to ensure that Syfo products are as GREEN as possible in every way, so they’re both healthy for the planet as well as healthy beverages for your body. We do everything we can to reduce waste in the supply stream by making every part of the Syfo packaging and bottling fully recyclable. The water we use in Syfo is purified through reverse osmosis and we return the waste water from the process back into the environment in a more purified state. Since the water we use to produce Syfo comes from a centrally located aquifer, it doesn’t require a heavy carbon footprint to make it to the production facility and the consumer.

We also consolidate our less-than-truckload (LTL) shipments to improve transportation efficiency, and we collaborate with our suppliers to save money, reduce waste and conserve energy. And of course the packaging and bottles that we use for all of our Syfo products are 100% recyclable.

As is well-known, Syfo Beverages Original Seltzer and Naturally-Flavored Sparkling Waters are made from purified water and are free of preservatives, chemical additives, sugar, sodium or artificial sweeteners. That makes them healthy beverages for your body and the environment.

Courtesy of LaboratoryEquipment.com

Thinking of turning to diet soda to stay thin?  A new study published in the Journal of American Geriatrics Society may give you pause.

For years Americans have tried diet soda as a soft drink alternative in an effort to reduce sugar intake and lose weight. The artificial sweeteners in these drinks, such as aspartame and sucralose, along with some other additives included have raised health concerns. Now this new study has linked the consumption of diet beverages to an increase in belly fat, which could help to partially explain why obesity has increased over the past 30 years in America even as people have gravitated toward diet sodas.

The study, called the San Antonio Longitudinal Study of Aging (SALSA), evaluated the negative health effects of diet sodas on adults 65 years and older. It measured diet soda consumption, waist circumference and height and weight at four separate time intervals over a period of 10 years. About 400 participants from the San Antonio, Texas area were included in the study.

The results of the study indicated that daily diet soda drinkers experienced an increase in waist circumference that was three times more of those who did not drink diet soda. Non-drinkers experienced an average waist circumference increase of .80 inches, where occasional diet soda drinkers experienced an average increase of 1.83 inches. Strikingly, those who drank diet soda daily experienced an average interval increase of 3.16 inches. The researchers of the study accounted and adjusted for confounding variables such as chronic medical conditions.

While zero calories and no sugar may seem appealing for diet soda, it may be doing more harm than good for your weight loss and health goals. Syfo Naturally Flavored Sparkling Waters have no calories and are free of sugar, artificial sweeteners, sodium, preservatives or any other additives. With Syfolicious flavors like Wild Cherry, Tangerine-Orange and Lemon-Lime, you can lose the diet soda and the belly fat.

Read more about the belly fat study here.