Twelve-year-old middle school student Jasmine Roberts' project won the science fair at her school.
Her results were not what she expected, and have serious implications for everyone.
Her project compared the ice used in the drinks at five fast food restaurants with the water from toilet bowls in the same establishments. Seventy percent of the time, the ice had more bacteria than the toilet water.
In four of the five restaurants, ice from the self-serve machines had more bacteria than toilet water, as did three out of five cups of ice from drive-through windows. Sixty percent of the restaurant ice also tested positive for E. coli, which comes from the feces of animals and can cause serious illness.
While a certain amount of bacteria in water is considered harmless, no amount of E. coli is acceptable, however small.
Soft drinks are one of the worst fluids you could drink. They are the sugary fuel that's displaced white bread as the leading source of calories and ignited the obesity epidemic in America.
If that isn't bad enough, now we find out that soft drinks -- dispensed through insufficiently cleaned fountains or filled with contaminated ice -- can expose you to more health-harming bacteria than toilet water.
Just one more reason to stay away from fast-food restaurants altogether and drink clean, fresh water whenever you can.
Even though consuming soft drinks contributes to major health problems, it remains difficult for many patients to curtail, considering sodas are marketed to children and sold everywhere from elementary schools to health clubs -- and especially since sodas can be as addictive as nicotine.
To assist you and your children during any difficult times you may experience while cutting soda out of your diet, I strongly recommend using the Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT), the energy psychology tool I regularly use in my practice. I suggest using Turbo Tapping, a modification of EFT, that can help you make this transition a quick and easy one.