The Coca-Cola Company’s Role In The Health Crisis In Mexico

Does coca cola have any therapeutic property?

How Coca Cola became among the most consumed brands in many parts of the world is not a mystery. This was a consequence of their employing tactics that included targeting children, undermining efforts by schools to provide healthy alternatives, donating to politicians in order to obtain favourable treatment and more. Well, these approaches (which are certainly not exclusive to the Coca-Cola Company, and are employed by other soda companies) have resulted in health crises in a number of targeted nations.

When a southern Mexican state effectively outlawed sales of sugary drinks and sweets to children to protect public health, the ban made international news. But few people in Oaxaca – even some fizzy drinks distributors and shop owners – are aware of the rule and the authorities have not enforced the potentially unpopular measure, despite tens of thousands of deaths nationally a year linked to sugary beverages, as obesity and diabetes rates soar.

Oaxaca is known as the culinary capital of Mexico, but like elsewhere in the country, diets have shifted towards ultra-processed foods and higher meat consumption – as well as sugary drinks. And yet, in recent years, the state has had the highest rate of child obesity in Mexico and the second highest among adults. But now, the reasons the product has been so dangerously consumed are concerning.

The first reason is that Coca-Cola has been a mainstay of many rituals for many years, particularly in indigenous communities. As the world’s most devoted soft drink consumers, people in Mexico think the beverage uplifts people’s spirits and aids in healing. Some people even think it can help resolve domestic strife.  Dr. Marcos Arana gave an explanation of why people think Coca-Cola has therapeutic properties. In essence, Coke is kept in glass bottles that maintain a very high content of gas. Some in the local population were led to think that the gas that makes them belch is a healing effect. Coca-Cola is used in ceremonies for this reason. However, he claims that this misconception is seriously harming the local population, as Type 2 diabetes is now known to be the primary cause of death in the region.

The second reason is found in the health crisis facing a state in Mexico that consumes more coke than any other place in the world, being the state of Chiapas. In Chiapas, finding a bottle of Coke is considerably simpler than finding a bottle of water, and the price is the same. The town’s population is gradually dying from Coca-Cola addiction. The main town of Chiapas, San Cristóbal de las Casas, has a high prevalence of Type 2 diabetes. In the state of Chiapas, located in the south of Mexico, Coca-Cola is currently a part of popular culture. Some of the locals consume more than 800 liters per year, that is, equivalent to 3,000 small cups. Indeed, the addiction to sugary beverages is so intense that many of the local people feed their babies with Coca-Cola and not milk as advised by health practitioners. Serious ailments have stemmed from this increased uncanny consumption, the most common of which is diabetes; this condition.

In a world where, on average, each Mexican consumes around 160 litres of Coca-Cola per year, and many infants even begin drinking Coca-Cola before they turn six months old, it is apparent that Mexicans are made to get addicted to the Coca-Cola products from very early stages of life. This is nothing short of an intentionally waged war on health, proving that Coca-Cola has certainly functioned as a diabolical corporation waging a war on food, health and nutrition.