http://www.grist.org/article/2011-02-16 ... a-kill-you
Aspartame is not the only thing in diet cola that can kill you
by Tom Philpott
16 Feb 2011
Modern-day commercial colas (both diet and regular) get their characteristic dark hue from something manufacturers call "caramel color." On Wednesday, the Center for Science in the Public Interest formally petitioned
cspinet.org/new/pdf/caramel-coloring-petition.pdf
the FDA to ban the chemicals that fall under that ambiguous label, on the grounds that they've been shown to be carcinogenic. When you think of "caramel," you probably imagine cooking sugar until it turns brown. But that's not quite what soda manufacturers do to blacken carbonated water for cola. According to CSPI, here's what they do:
Caramel Color IV (synonyms: ammonia sulfite process caramel, sulfite ammonia caramel, sulfite ammonia process caramel, acid-proof caramel, beverage caramel, and soft-drink caramel) is prepared by the controlled heat treatment of carbohydrates with ammonium-containing and sulfite-containing compounds.
So, they take carbohydrates and cook them up with ammonia-based chemicals. In addition to dark color, the process also yields a carcinogenic chemical called 4-methylimidazole, or 4-MI for short. CSPI points to studies on both rats and mice fed 4-MI showing significant carcinogenic effects. Evidence of 4-MI's cancer-causing power is so strong, CSPI points out, that just last month, the state of California added
www.oehha.ca.gov/prop65/law/pdf_zip/010711_4MEInotice.pdf
the substance to its list of "chemicals known to the state to cause cancer." "California has determined that [4-MI] levels above 16 micrograms per day pose a significant risk," CSPI reports. How much is in a can of cola? According to CSPI, 130 micrograms -- eight times higher than California's danger threshold.
Moreover, the container soda typically comes in is itself deeply problematic. Nearly all cans used by the U.S. beverage industry contain bisphenol A, commonly known as BPA. Here's how Scientific American describes it: "In recent years dozens of scientists around the globe have linked BPA to myriad health effects in rodents: mammary and prostate cancer, genital defects in males, early onset of puberty in females, obesity, and even behavior problems such as attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder."
www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?i...bisphenol-a-plastics
The Canadian government recently declared BPA toxic.
www.grist.org/article/food-canada-bans-BPA-why-havent-we
A peer-reviewed study
xnet.kp.org/newscenter/pressreleases/nat/2010/052710bpa.html
financed by health-care giant Kaiser Permanante found that BPA is associated with "decreased sexual desire [among men], more difficulty having an erection, lower ejaculation strength and lower level of overall satisfaction with sex life."
What's the FDA doing to get it out of our cans? Not much of anything, as Tom Laskawy reported last year.
www.grist.org/article/fda-on-bpa-our-hands-are-tied
For an in-depth look at the agency's dithering, contradictory approach to BPA, check out its own report on the topic.
www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/PublicHealthFocus/ucm197739.htm
Short version: BPA is pretty scary, but it's so widely used, and used in so many forms, we haven't the foggiest idea of how to remove it from the food supply. So we won't try.
BTW, you can find some Coke and Pepsi products bottled in glass and made with regular old sugar, like it used to be, and NOT high fructose corn syrup (from Mexico - corn grower lobbyists have made it impossible to be done here in the US) at King Soopers and Costco (not sure how long Costco will carry it, but a case of 24-12oz bottles was $19.99 last time I got some). That doesn't remove the issue of the caramel color, but if you don't want to give up your soft drinks, at least this way you aren't getting the high fructose corn syrup or the BPA.
Besides, wine's higher in antioxidants! :thumbsup: 
