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Diabetes In Teenagers: The Starbucks & Jamba Juice Diet

A few of us (Ed Latimore, Illimitable Men) were having a laugh today over on Twitter about Starbucks, black coffee, and putting half ‘n half in your coffee (who does that?!), but a more serious topic arose.

.@EdLatimore who says a supercharged cookie in a cup isn’t healthy? Ha! pic.twitter.com/8be2ydeXIi

— Kyle Trouble (@TruthfulTrouble) March 15, 2016

DIABETES IN TEENAGERS

That topic is diabetes in teenager, as a family member of mine was just diagnosed with diabetes. They’re in their teens, and halfway through their freshmen year of high school. And now, this. They’ve basically been told not to touch carbs, and that that they need to get their diet, weight, and overall lifestyle under control before it gets too out of hand.

At this point I think it’s prudent to remind you that this is what I used to look like, and also that my father (and grandfather) both have diabetes. So needless to say, I was (and still am) a very high risk for it.

And sure, there are a lot of worse things out there than diabetes. I’d rather get stuck with diabetes if you gave me the option between it and herpes. Regardless, to be diagnosed and forced to live the rest of your life with diabetes before your fifteenth birthday is a scary thought. To top it off, you know the doctors are trying to put a real good scare into my family member – poor thing (not really, I have no heart).

Which begs the question, how prevalent is diabetes in teenagers?

I poked around a bit and came across a range of varying statistics, from 1% of the teen population all the way to 23%. While I tend to lean towards the belief that modern medicine is a bit of a scam (it pays more to treat than to cure, natural supplements like the stuff on this page do work), the fact of the matter is that there really shouldn’t be any teenagers with diabetes. At that age, it’s incredibly easy to be lean and mean, and it’s also incredibly easy to lose it if you are fat (I lost 85 pounds+ in 8 months).

STARBUCKS AND JAMBA JUICE ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR TEENAGE DIABETES

I wasn’t in high school all that long ago, so I can remember clearly what everybody brought to school – all the time.

They usually looked like this:

The below was a common flavor too – except it came from the “healthy smoothie store”, so therefore it was “better” than the cookie in the cup that you see above.

Well, this particular family member probably “ate” at Jamba Juice three times a week. Unfortunately, sugar in a cup is not a meal, and it never will be.

No, it’s not entirely fair to pin this all on the corporations, because people are responsible for their own actions. At the same time, I also can remember what it was like to be a teenager – to deal with the pressures of society, to risk going against the norm, and frankly – to have no self control.

It’s not easy.

When everyone and their mother is drinking Starbucks and Jamba Juice, and it’s the “cool” thing to do…well, at that age, you just do whatever it takes to be cool. Yes, there are exceptional people who find blogs in this corner of the internet and become above-average at an under-average age, but there’s only so much “saving” we can do.

POISON IN A CUP

You think I’m kidding about the “cookie in a cup” jokes?

I’m not at all, and I’d go a step further.

Here is a random grab of the “specialty” drinks at Starbucks that I found at the following link: These drinks are absolute poison. 

Strawberries & Crème Frappuccino Blended Crème – whip (Soy CD Milk)	venti®(24 fl oz)	16	135	15	16.5	750	MORE
Tazo Chai Frappuccino Blended Crème – no whip (Soy CD Milk)	venti®(24 fl oz)	16	106	3	10.5	510	MORE
Tazo Chai Frappuccino Blended Crème – whip (Soy CD Milk)	venti®(24 fl oz)	16	108	15	14.5	640	MORE
Tazo Green Tea Frappuccino Blended Crème with Melon Syrup – no whip (Soy CD Milk)	venti®(24 fl oz)	17	115	3.5	11.5	560	MORE
Tazo Green Tea Frappuccino Blended Crème with Melon Syrup – whip (Soy CD Milk)	venti®(24 fl oz)	17	117	16	15	690	MORE
Vanilla Bean Frappuccino Blended Crème – no whip (Soy CD Milk)	venti®(24 fl oz)	15	96	3	10	470	MORE
Vanilla Bean Frappuccino Blended Crème – whip (Soy CD Milk)	venti®(24 fl oz)	15	99	15	13.5	600	MORE
White Chocolate Frappuccino blended crème – no whip (Soy CD Milk)	venti®(24 fl oz)	20	119	9	13.5	630	MORE
White Chocolate Frappuccino blended crème – whip (Soy CD Milk)	venti®(24 fl oz)	20	121	21	17	760	MORE

And let’s face it, not many teenagers are just drinking straight black coffee. No, they’re drinking the crap above, getting fat, and getting diabetes.

Combine this with shitty reality television and a general lack of exercise, and we’re literally seeing the American youth dying before our eyes.

Some of us have woken up.

Have you?