The benefits of beverages in everyday consumption

» Healthy and unhealthy drinks in a diet

Cazzy Lewchuk
Staff Writer

Wee on the daily grind
for school, work, errands, or
any other long activity, we all take
drinks with us for fuel. Depending
on the routine and time of day,
these drinks come in so many
forms—hot, cold, carbonated,
caffeinated, sweet, sugary, chock-
full-of-chemicals, or “natural.”
Different drinks have different
health benefits and uses, and we
examine the low-down of each
one’s effects here.

Water: the simplest and
ultimately healthiest beverage.
Before drinking anything else,

a glass of water can often be the
best source of energy. Water
hydrates the body, replenishing
fluid loss. This helps to regulate
digestion, circulation, nutrient
transportation, and the body’s
temperature. Water also helps to
maintain conditions of the skin,
muscles, and vital organs like the
kidneys. Whether it’s for working
out, starting work, or staying
alert in class, it’s the ultimate
replenishment.

 

100 per cent juice: Pure

: fruit or vegetable juices (be sure

: to avoid ones with high amounts

: of sugar or preservatives) are

: excellent sources of nutrients and

: vitamins. Fruit juices are filling,

: flavourful, and can even serve asa

: substitution for a meal in a proper
: smoothie (although this should be
: avoided, unless it’s an emergency.)

Gatorade/sports drinks:

: Most often used for athletic/

: exercise activities, but also a fuel

: source for anyone needing some

: energy. The primary benefit of

: drinks such as Gatorade is that

: they’re chock full of electrolytes,

: which are chemicals that regulate
: PH levels in the blood, restoring

: prime blood flow for bodily

: functions. They also contain

: carbohydrates, natural sugars

: needed for body nutrition

: replenishment. But be warned,

: sports drinks are not a source of

: adequate hydration and can harm
: the body through added sugars

: (suchas high fructose corn syrup)
: and citric acid (which deteriorates
: teeth.) They are best suited for

: occasional usage after exercise.

Wine/beer: Most commonly

: used for relaxation after
: stress, occasional and limited
: consumption of wine and beer

: can actually help the body. Red

: wine contains procyanidins,

: compounds that reduce the

: risk of heart disease. Beer has

: been linked to aid digestion and
: even lower cholesterol through

: increased fiber amounts. However,
: this aid comes in the form of one
: or two servings very occasionally,
: more than one or two drinks at a
: time is never good for the body,

: and has many negative health

: associations.

: commonly used beverage,

: moderated usage of coffee can

: help the body in the long term.

: Containing antioxidants—

: nutrients that strengthen tissue—
: coffee can be linked to reduced

: risk of diabetes and heart disease.
: However, the caffeine in coffee

: does not aid the body, and can

: do much more harm than good,
: causing irregular blood pressure
: and addiction.

: Besides pure juice and water,

: most beverages are not adequate
: sources of hydration. Although

: occasional usage of flavourful

: drinks may aid the body in some
: ways, water is always the best

: choice for replenishing energy

: or generally keeping the body

: healthy.

Coffee: Another extremely

   

Image via www.wykop.pl

 

The ECO-nomist and staying so fresh and so clean

» What ingredients to avoid in your everyday beauty and hygiene products

Brittney MacDonald
Life & Style Editor

n the August issue of the Other
Press, there was an article about
a push to ban microbeads due
to their being hazardous to the
environment. Microbeads are
those little bits of plastic found
in various scrubs and soaps.
Looking back on this, I began to

wonder what other environmental:
: species, meaning that these two

: toxins build up in the bodies

: of fish, whales, seals, and other

: animals at a greater rate than they
: are expelled by the body naturally.
: This leads to chemical poisoning,

: which is fatal. BHA is listed in the
: Convention for the Protection

: of the Marine Environment of

: the North-East Atlantic as being

: asubstance of concern, and

: the United Nations stated in an

: assessment that low levels of BHT
: were hazardous to aquatic species.

disasters could be lurking in my
medicine cabinet, and whether
or not making sure my beauty
and hygiene products were green
would cost me more than just
some extra label reading.

What I found was that
everyday bathroom items—
such as soap, lotion, hair dye,
makeup remover, etc.—are some
of the worst offenders when it
comes to hiding environmental
contaminates. Most of the time
their labels read like something
out of a science text book, so
consumers don’t know whether
an ingredient is hazardous or
harmless. Instead of going the
DIY route, and making all of
my beauty products (oatmeal
deodorant, anyone?), I decided to

just google it, and compile alist of :
: especially sneaky, considering

: the ingredient name doesn’t even
: have to be listed, just its colour

: call number. Though research

ingredients to avoid.

BHA and BHT are found
mostly in moisturizers, including
ones used in cosmetics like

: lipsticks. They can also be

: found in food, but that doesn’t

: make them safe. BHA has

: been identified as a potential

: carcinogen, and extended

: exposure of BHT has caused

: liver failure and problems with

: blood coagulation, among other
: things, in laboratory rats. What
: makes them problematic for the
: environment is that they tend to

bioaccumulate in a lot of marine

Phenylenediamine is used in

: dye, especially home hair dying

: kits, though salons are also guilty
: of having it around too. This

: particular kind of dye can be

: identified as a “P” followed bya

: five or six digit number listed on

the ingredient box. I found this

: ingredients to avoid, and you can

: into whether phenylenediamine

: is harmful to humans is

: inconclusive, what isn’t is its

: effect on the ocean. According

: to The European Union,

: phenylenediamine is highly toxic

: to aquatic organisms and can have :
: long term detrimental effects on

: the ocean environment.

Sodium laureth sulfate, also

: knownas SLES on some product

: labels, isa chemical agent used

: in soaps, shampoos, shower

: gels/lotions, toothpastes, and

: cleansers. Essentially, what it

: does is make them lather or foam
: up, which we have been taught

: to want in hygiene products.

: Depending on how the agent is

: handled, and how the product

: is processed, the sodium laureth

: sulfate could be contaminated

: with 1,4-dioxane, which is

: potentially a human carcinogen.

: This frequent contamination

: also ensures that the product :
: doesn’t degrade properly, meaning :
: that the pollutants and toxins it =:
: contains remain in the water even :
: after it has been filtered through

: a treatment facility. Needless

: to say, that’s pretty bad for the

: environment, and on top of all

: of that, the extra foaming action

: doesn’t actually help you get any

: cleaner—it’s all purely aesthetics!

There are many other

 

: find lists all over the Internet,

: but I found that these were the

? most common. Funnily enough,
: products that avoid these

: ingredients aren’t usually any

: more expensive than products

: that contain them. In fact, in some :
: cases they’re even cheaper.

: Companies looking to promote
: affordable, natural beauty

: and hygiene like Alba, St.Ives,

: and Tom’s do exist, and these

: brands are available in most

: grocery stores. So the next time
: youre in the market, maybe

: think about switching up your

routine and checking out

: some environmentally friendly
: alternatives.

Image via thinkstock