Sodas have been getting a bad rep for the past decade because of their high sugar content. Well, a study published in the health journal Nutrition and featured on Prevention.com adds an update to the sweet controversy: Contrary to what we've been led to believe, high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS), which is said to be equal parts fructose and glucose, actually has 50 percent more fructose than glucose.

In three independent laboratory tests, scientists evaluated the sugar composition of common soda brands and found out that they contained a fructose-glucose ration of 60:40.

HFCS is considered a red flag in most food labels because while glucose can easily be broken down by our body, fructose is broken down by liver that eventually turns it into fat! “That fat can stay in the liver and cause fatty liver, or it can be circulated to other parts of the body,” says lead study author, Michael Goran, PhD, director of the University of Southern California’s Childhood Obesity Research Center.

Alarming, right? Also, HFCS triggers the reward centers in the brain, and spikes insulin to block satiety signals—this is why you never get enough of sodas!

Are you about to go cold turkey on your favorite sodas? If you feel that this is all too much to handle, try watering down your soda with sparkling water, or sip a cold glass of sparkling water with sliced fruits.

(Photo from iVillage via GeeGee Sosu on Pinterest)