ML Direct: New evidence shows sugary drinks lead to a higher risk of heart disease and obesity.

If it's not a soda, it's an energy drink filled with sugar. The average 20 oz bottle of soda contains about 16 tsp. of sugar and many popular sports drinks are just as bad.

"I'm not saying that one single coke is toxic, but we`re talking about a life style here and particularly in children," Dr. Jim Dunford President of the American Heart Association San Diego Division said.

Research shows men who drink one sugar sweetened drink a day have a 20% higher risk of heart disease. Sugary drinks have been linked to staggering childhood obesity rates, especially in low-income families. Progress has been made to fight the epidemic in the past few years, but there is still a long way to go.

"In the last 5 to 10 years the slope of obesity and the risk to our own children has really sky rocketed," Dunford said. "This generation of children stands to have a shorter lifespan than their parents unless we do something about what`s happening today."