Thousands of people around the world drink a deleterious, poisonous beverage daily. Carbonated soft drinks, also known as soda pop, contain an alarming amount of sugar, cancer-causing caramel color and artificial sweeteners, and phosphoric acid. Sugar itself, which has no nutritional value, has proven one of main contributors to obesity, heart attack, diabetes, lowering good cholesterol and calcium levels. Unfortunately even more harmful side effects result. For example, sodas rot teeth with the high acidity in the phosphoric acid. Advertisers proclaim diet sodas as a zero calorie, guilt-free alternative. Ironically, these “diet” substitutes contain toxic artificial sweeteners. Although marketed as lower calorie, artificial sweeteners, such as Splenda or Equal, trick the liver and lead to sugar cravings, weight gain, and cancer, making them almost worse than real sugar. In conclusion, everyone should abstain from soft drinks at all costs to protect their bodies from the harmful effects of sugar, artificial sweeteners and colors, and phosphoric acid.