Cola is a sweet carbonated soft drink flavored with vanilla, cinnamon, citrus oils and other flavorings. Most of Cola contain caffeine, an extract from kola nut, which defines the name of the drink. Cola became popular after the invention of Coca-Cola by a pharmacist named John Pemberton in 1886, and then other manufacturers tried to copy the recipe. His non-alcoholic recipe was inspired by the coca wine of pharmacist Angelo Mariani, created in 1863.
Almost modern cola drinks contain caramel color, and are added with sugar and/or corn syrup to make is sweet. A wide range of cola brands spread out worldwide, but the most well-known brands are Coca-Cola and Pepsi Cola. These two big names have been in competition since the 1890s, and the rivalry has started then.
Primarily, the flavoring ingredients in cola drink come from citrus oil (from orange, lime, lemon peels), cinnamo, vanilla, … Each manufacturer tries to change the flavorings to create different taste for its brand, by adding more other ingredients like nutmeg or coriander, but the main base flavorings is unreplaceable: citrus, vanilla, cinnamon.
Some acids are often added, like phosphoric acid, somtime cirtic acid or other isolated acids. Different sweeterners may be added to cola to make it sweet, like corn syrup or sugar, or even some kind of artificial sweeteners to make “sugar-free” or “diet” colas.
The recipe of Coca-Cola until now is still maintained secret.
The color of cola is typically black, but sometimes you can get clear cola or even colorful cola drinks, like Pepsi Blue or Coca-Cola Clear.
There was a study in 2007 found that consumption of colas, with natural sweetening or artificial sweetening, may lead to the risk of chronic kidney disease. This could be caused by the phosphoric acid as it is used in cola production. Other studies recommend that having cola, and other soft-drinks, in a massive volume could be harmful, particularly to young children. Other regular cola-drinking users are reported to have low intake of calcium, magnesium, vitamin C, riboflavin, and vitamin A. Lower bone density is also a result of drinking cola in an unhealthy way. Drinking cola with corn syrup rather than sugar may increase obesity and type-2 diabetes.
Besides it negative effects, drinking cola is still something “addicted” to a large amount of people in this world. Cola is atttactive by its taste and its popularity, as well as its familarity to its users.
