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Editor's Comment
Marjorie A. Bowman, MD, MPA
Arch Fam Med. 2000;9:734.
Thus, caffeine may affect the flavor in soft drinks in 2 circumstances: a small minority of people may detect caffeine in concentrations found in common soft drinks, or only at high doses not usually found in soft drinks. While this study was not definitive proof—the numbers of subjects was modest and perhaps caffeine does taste different when combined with other ingredients not tested in this study—I believe it is basically true. In a less controlled setting, we have done taste tests in our home and found our children could not reliably tell the difference between caffeinated and uncaffeinated soft drinks.
Soft drinks are generally of low or no nutritional value. If the caffeine is primarily in soft drinks for its mood-altering affects, encouraging people to drink more nutrition-poor liquid and potentially causing insomnia and withdrawal, we as family physicians should oppose this, particularly for children and adolescents.
RELATED ARTICLE
Is Caffeine a Flavoring Agent in Cola Soft Drinks?
Roland R. Griffiths and Ellen M. Vernotica
Arch Fam Med. 2000;9(8):727-734.
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