A prominent heart surgeon has issued a stark warning against one of the world's most popular beverages, describing it as 'liquid death' and urging consumers to avoid it entirely. Dr Jeremy London, a board-certified specialist in general, vascular, and thoracic surgery, regularly shares health advice through social media and interviews. He is among a growing number of medical professionals raising alarms about the detrimental effects of soft drinks on health.
Dr London's List of Avoidances
In a recent Instagram post, Dr London listed four items he personally avoids as a heart surgeon: smoking, alcohol, breads and pastas, and soft drinks. He ranked smoking as the most harmful, stating it 'destroys your lungs, causes lung cancer, high cardiovascular risks, heart attacks and strokes.' Alcohol came second, which he described as 'toxic to every cell in your body.' He added that removing alcohol from his life was 'one of the most transformative decisions' he has made as an adult.
Soft Drinks: 'Liquid Death'
Soft drinks ranked third on his list. Dr London emphatically stated: 'Liquid death. Just don't drink them. Period. Done.' He also advised avoiding breads and pastas made from refined flours and wheats, emphasising that 80% of weight control is diet and only 20% is exercise. 'I guarantee you can out-eat any exercise that you do,' he warned.
In a follow-up interview with Today, Dr London acknowledged that his choice of words was intended to grab attention. 'I think that soft drinks are just a scourge in our society, and so I was really trying to get some attention. Obviously, high-calorie soft drinks and ingesting a lot of calories that people don't realise they're getting with the sugar-based soft drinks is a big no-no,' he explained.
Other Medical Experts Weigh In
Dr London is not alone in his concerns. Dr William Li, a prominent medical researcher, recently told the Zoe podcast: 'Soda is everyone's favourite whipping boy. Rightfully so. The preponderance of clinical evidence, public health evidence, shows that high consumption of soda is associated with everything from metabolic disease to cardiovascular disease to cancer risk.' Dr Li highlighted that the issue is not just sugar but also the additives, colours, flavourings, preservatives, and stabilisers in soft drinks, which contribute to 'accumulated exposure to toxins' over time.
NHS Recommendations
The NHS advises that children should avoid sugary fizzy drinks, squash, and juice drinks completely, as they can damage teeth and increase the risk of overweight. Instead, they recommend swapping sugary drinks for diet, sugar-free, or no-added-sugar alternatives, with water being the best choice for hydration.
