A regular bottle 12 oz (about 350 mls) of sweet drink, soda, contains the equivalent of nine teaspoons of sugar, usually in the form of high fructose corn syrup.

Would you sit down and eat nine teaspoons of sugar, one after another? That’s basically what you do when you drink a sugared soda. It’s liquid lollies, drinkable candy.

Diet soda may not have the sugar or calories of regular soda, but it’s full of other health-draining chemicals, like caffeine, artificial sweeteners, sodium and phosphoric acid.

…would you eat 9 teaspoons of sugar? …

When you drink one of these diet sodas, not only do you miss out on any nutrients provided by the real sugars your body might find useful if consumed in reasonable quantities, you also get a laundry list of suspicious ingredients that work against your body’s effort to maintain healthy balance.

Foremost among these is caffeine. Many of the diet drinks are cola-based or otherwise have caffeine added. Manufacturers use cola to make soft drinks, especially diet soft drinks, seem more substantial. Yes, it gives you a sugar-like “boost,” or seems to, but that caffeine buzz really isn’t giving your body anything it needs. And the complications of caffeine consumption and addiction are well known, with fatigue, chronic anxiety, insomnia, and worsening symptoms of hormonal imbalance topping the list.

Additionally, caffeine is a diuretic, so while you may be thinking that a diet soda quenches your thirst and helps keep you hydrated, the opposite is true. Diet soda often contains sodium, which exacerbates thirst, while the caffeine causes you to lose fluid.

All carbonated sodas also contain calcium-leaching phosphoric acid.

Really, the only time you could possibly benefit from drinking these sweet drinks, diet or regular, is when you are traveling in areas where the drinking water is unsafe.

If you look at the 35 symptons of menopause you notice these signs

• Trouble sleeping through the night (with or without night sweats)
• Crashing fatigue
• Difficulty concentrating, disorientation, mental confusion

which can indeed be symptoms of menopause, but also can be signs that you just don’t have enough energy to get through each day.

Let’s be serious here, a slowing down of your energy and vitality is a sign of aging – but you can stave off the fatigue of approaching old age by consciously striving to maintain and expand your energy.

At our stage of life, we can’t take anything for granted, we have to work to keep ourselves on the ball. Just as we have to work on our memory, keeping it sharp by constant mental exercise, we have to be aware of what we are eating, and try to maintain a proper diet so we have enough energy to go about our daily business. We need more energy than we did before, but it takes a while longer to build up.

How to boost your energy : First and foremost you need a good diet, exercise and plenty of sleep. If you drag yourself out of bed in the morning unable to wake up properly, then a look at your eating habits may be in order.

Kick start your day with energy giving foods, there are plenty to choose from on your supermarket shelf – all sorts of muesli, bran, wheat, rice, soya and nut mixtures. Actively seek fruit to eat, and buy what is seasonal and as fresh as possible.

We all know that we have to pay special attention to our diet now. We can no longer get away with the rushed snacks and the instant fix-it junk food.

Drink plenty of water. Cool, clear water helps you through physical or emotional activity. If you get a craving for an instant energy boost in the form of sugar, have water and fruit juice instead. Sip it slowly. Imagine the clear water filtering through you, cleansing, refreshing and revitalising, sending energy through with each sip. Savour it.

Don’t use coffee or tea to give yourself a fleeting burst of artificial energy, kick start your day with energy giving food.

Note : Are you a little anaemic? If you have been experiencing prolonged or heavy bleeding, a lack of iron could be the problem. Please consult your health care provider if you suspect you may have anaemia.

Exercise Is lack of exercise increasing your feelings of fatigue? If you haven’t exercised in some time, start with walking It’s easy and it’s free.

Getting the right amount of exercise can rev up your energy levels and even help you to feel better emotionally. Exercise benefits every part of you, it makes your body produce endorphins, the chemicals that lead you to feel better when you’re unhappy. Exercising makes you look better too.

You need restful sleep to recharge your batteries. Everybody is tired once in a while, but when it’s a constant feeling, day after day, a common reason is, of course, lack of sleep.

Remember: Fatigue that is not relieved by enough sleep, good nutrition, and a low-stress environment should be evaluated by your health care provider. Because fatigue is a common complaint, sometimes depression, grief or a potentially serious cause may be overlooked.