Drinking Your Calories?

Wondering what's behind our expanding waistlines? About 21 percent of calories consumed by Americans over the age of 2 come from beverages, predominantly soft drinks and fruit drinks with added sugars, according to The New York Times. The calories from these sugary drinks account for half the rise in caloric intake by Americans since the late 1970s. But calories from sodas and creamy coffee concoctions are only half the only problem. A report in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition explained that these beverages do little or nothing to curb your appetite, which means that people do not compensate for the calories they drink by eating less. If anything, they may eat more.