Many of these metals, especially lead and cadmium, are classified by the World Health Organization (WHO) as being a “major public health concern.” Lead and cadmium are both known to be carcinogenic, and are linked to causing brain damage and other neurological impairment, not to mention an array of birth defects and reproductive harm in those exposed.

According to reports, the PET plastic bottles used to hold popular soft drinks like those manufactured by Coca-Cola and PepsiCo — as well as thousands of other beverage brands, including those marketed as being “healthy” — are loaded with chemicals that leach into the liquid inside. Whether due to heat, cold, or simple chemical reactions, these noxious substances end up in people’s bodies where they can cause chronic harm.

It was big news back in 2009 that soft drinks containing high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) are often contaminated with mercury. As reported by The Washington Post and others, the process by which most HFCS is made involves exposing the syrupy sweetening substance to the toxic metal, which is especially harmful to developing children, many of whom chug down soda-pop on a routine basis.

Now, it’s clear that soft drinks are a threat in another major way due to other hidden heavy metals that are either coming out of the plastic bottles or somehow making their way into the fizzy beverages during manufacturing. In either case, soft drinks are proving to be a death sentence in the long-term, and possibly even in the short-term depending on how much of it people consume.

Lead destroys the brain, while cadmium finishes off the vital organs

Lead is widely regarded as being one of the biggest environment threats to children, surpassing even that of tobacco smoke. Lead is known known to damage IQ and harm the brain, and at higher levels it can lead to degradation of the central nervous system, resulting in convulsions, seizures, comas, and possible death.