Insights \ Health Hits

In the last week there's been a lot of discussion about Americans' insatiable appetite for sugary drinks. The chatter has focused largely on sodas, after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that sugary drink consumption has soared in the last 20 years.

While it's true that sugary sodas have little nutritional value and contribute to obesity, they're not the only problem.

In fact, Americans are actually drinking fewer soft drinks than they used to. Per capita consumption for 2010 fell to about 728 eight-ounce servings, according to Beverage Digest. That compares to 739 eight-ounce servings in 2009. The peak year for American soda consumption was actually 1998.

That means other sweetened beverages from fruit juice to energy drinks are filling the void. Apple juice, for example, may have more vitamins, but it also has more sugar: A cup of apple juice has 114 calories where one cup of soda has 90.

Setting nutrition aside, fruit juices, energy drinks, chocolate milk, sweetened teas and many flavored coffee are all worse than soda when it comes to calories.

But that doesn't mean you should pop open a can of pop to celebrate. Try a glass of water instead. It has zero calories.