Mornings when I don't feel like fixing breakfast, my husband and I boogie over to McDonald's for an Egg McMuffin and a cup of coffee. Now, before you shudder in horror, please know that McDonald's is not a total nutritional wasteland.

You just have to use your head when you order, and decide what and how much you will eat. For example, before I dig in, I sop up as much grease as possible. Next, the meat that is part of the McMuffin goes in the trash or (alas!) my husband volunteers to eat it. You see, he is a child of the Great Depression and doesn't like to see food wasted. In defense of my questionable food choice, when we get home, I take my ton of supplements to compensate for the evil I have done to my body.

Most mornings at McDonald's there is a group of out-of-shape middle-aged women, in workout clothes. I suspect they've been at the gym. They don't buy food -all they order is a super-duper sized soft drink. They do bring along their own cookies, however.

If the women are working to slim down, they will have to work overtime as long as they continue to sip their super sized sodas. And they will need some protein. But what if they are having diet sodas? Aren't they harmless? According to one study, researchers found there was a 41% increase in risk of being overweight for every can or bottle of diet soft drink a person consumes each day.

So, it doesn't matter if it's sugar or non sugar - sodas are not a good thing to put into your body if you want to stay slim.

Sodas and other sugar-laden drinks are health hazards for many reasons, not the least of which is that sodas may be carcinogenic, considering the amount of the chemical benzene detected in them, worldwide. Benzene is not an added ingredient in drinks but forms when chemicals used as preservatives react to form benzene in the presence of heat or prolonged storage.

Benzene is a solvent used in many industries, including as an additive to unleaded gas.

Headlines from around the world show the scope of the benzene problem: "Canada finds benzene in 20 percent of drinks surveyed," "Beverage makers urged to test for benzene" (Australia); "Two diet drinks withdrawn in Ireland due to benzene." The UK is very vocal about the problem. What is the U.S, doing about it? The press gave it fleeting exposure and that was the end of it. The soft drink industry knew about this problem 15 years ago. As the Sonny and Cher song says, "and the beat goes on."

Back to the obesity problem. In reports soon to be published in science journals, researchers hope to add evidence to the theory that sodas and other sugar-sweetened drinks just don't go hand-in-hand with obesity, but actually cause it. Not that the drinks are the only cause; certainly exercise and other factors are involved.

Beverage companies are taking note of bad publicity. Other than ignoring the benzene problem, some are making sodas "healthier" by adding calcium and vitamins and pushing fortified but sugary sports drinks in schools that ban soda.

What's often not understood is that biologically, calories from sugar-sweetened beverages are fundamentally different in the body than those from food. The main sweetener in soda - high fructose corn syrup -- can increase fats in the blood called triglycerides, which raises the risk of heart problems, diabetes and other health problems. But not to worry. The pharmaceutical industry stands ready to sell drugs to lower the triglycerides that may be elevated by epidemic soda consumption.

Benzene, elevated triglycerides and obesity are just the tip of the iceberg. Add to the mix the health warnings about artificial sweeteners in diet drinks, particularly aspartame (Equal) and Splenda. It adds up to a potentially hazardous cocktail.

Does the evidence add up to conviction of soft drinks? One of the nation's leading epidemiologists, the American Cancer Society's Dr. Michael Thun, thinks it does. In fact, he thinks soda cans would be a good candidate for a health warning. "Said Dr. 'Thun, "It's something that should be seriously considered."

If you value your health then cease and desist from ingesting sodas, be they diet or otherwise. Love yourself and your family enough to refuse to spend any more money on drinks that amount to a "dietary pesticide." For the full obesity story, http://www.worldhealth.net/p/soda-targeted-in-fight-against-obesity-2006-03-06.html