Carbonated drinks bode ill for bones

In the early 1990s, Harvard researchers in the United States reported study results showing that teenage girls who consumed a lot of cola tended to have more broken bones.

In 2003, a study of soft drink ( not just cola ) consumption among teenagers in Northern Ireland linked high intake to lower bone mineral density among the girls, but not the boys.

One explanation: Girls who drink lots of soft drinks end up with weaker bones because they aren't drinking milk, a rich source of calcium.

It's also possible that the problem is cola drinks. Most brands contain caffeine, which increases the excretion of calcium by the kidneys, leaving less to be incorporated into bones. Colas also contain phosphoric acid, which may lower blood levels of calcium by interfering with normal metabolism of the mineral.

But there's no evidence that bones are adversely affected by carbonation itself -- the carbon dioxide bubbles in soft drinks, seltzer, and mineral water.

In fact, you might get some health benefits by drinking more mineral water, which comes out of the ground naturally carbonated. Some varieties contain magnesium. A Swedish study published in 2005 concluded that high magnesium intake reduces colorectal cancer risk in women. Other research hints at cardiovascular benefits.

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