Sugary Drinks: What Cola, Rooh Afza and Juice Really Cost (Video)

Transcript

Hidden Calories

Ever wonder how many hidden calories sit in your everyday drinks? Let’s break down the numbers and see where you can cut back without missing the taste.

At a glance

A regular cola gives about 210 calories in a 500 ml bottle. A glass of Rooh Afza or squash lands around a hundred calories. Even a ‘no-added-sugar’ juice packs roughly 120 calories per cup.

What a day costs

Picture a summer day: a glass of squash at lunch, a 500 ml cola with dinner, and a packaged juice in the afternoon. That adds up to about 450 calories, which over a week is roughly 3,000 calories, about a third of a kilo of body fat.

Why liquid sugar slips

When you chew fruit, your stomach feels the volume, fibre and effort. A sugary drink gives a much weaker signal, so you finish it and still feel hungry for dinner. Plus, refusing a cold drink can feel rude, so it’s not about never drinking again.

Quick thought

The cold drink you genuinely wanted is worth the calories. The third one that appeared on a tray is not.

100% juice question

Packaged juice often looks healthy, but ‘100 % juice’ and ‘no added sugar’ just mean the sugar comes from the fruit, not a sack. Your body processes it similarly, and the fibre is left behind in the pressing. Look out for words like nectar or juice drink, which usually contain water and extra sugar.

What elders did

Back then, sharbat was seasonal, Rooh Afza showed up in peak summer and Ramadan, and lassi was churned fresh. Plain water with a pinch of salt or sugar was the hot-afternoon staple. Sweet treats were saved for special moments, not kept on the fridge door all day.

Swaps that hold up

A swap only works if it survives a 42 °C afternoon. Try chilled water with lemon, cucumber or mint. Namkeen lassi or plain chaas, yogurt whisked with water and a pinch of salt, gives a salty sip. If you miss squash, use half the syrup and fill the rest with water.

Try this for one week

Don’t ban anything. Write down every sweet drink you have for seven days, even the half glass at a cousin’s house. Circle the ones you truly enjoy and cross out the ones you drank just because they were there. Most people find half of their liquid sugar in the crossed-out group. Cut those, keep the rest.

Diet drinks, and what we can fairly say

Zero-sugar versions have almost no calories, so swapping a regular cola for a diet one removes the sugar load. They’re not magic weight-loss drinks, and a diet cola won’t offset a double naan. If the sweet taste still tempts you, plain water is the safest choice.

Children and sugary drinks

For kids, the focus isn’t calorie counting and you shouldn’t put them on a weight-loss diet at home. Change the household, not the child. Juice and cold drinks aren’t thirst-quenchers, water is. Storing bottles out of the fridge rotation makes it harder for a child to grab a sweet drink.

Worth knowing first

If you’re on insulin or a sulfonylurea, don’t make sudden large cuts to sugar without talking to your doctor, your dose may need adjustment. People on fluid restriction or with kidney disease should check before adding coconut water or other fluids. Sugarcane juice and heavy sharbat deserve a doctor’s eye if your blood sugar is already high.

Where this fits in the bigger picture

Drinks are the cheapest win, but they’re just one lever. Pair them with sensible portion sizes at meals for a bigger impact. When you’re ready, the Desi plate method gives honest ranges for Pakistani foods. A realistic pace is half a kilo to a kilo in seven days after the first fortnight.

Takeaway

For the full details, read the post on thecareonline.com. Remember, this is lifestyle guidance, not medical advice.