If you drink carbonated beverages with zero calories, you may soon be able to chug back a bottle of "negative-calorie" soda. Coke and Nestle are planning to launch Enviga, a beverage that manufacturers claim to burn calories by boosting the drinker's metabolism.
A sparkling green-tea drink under the Nestea brand, Enviga will be marketed as "calorie deficient", thanks to a blend of green-tea extracts the companies say are known for boosting metabolism - called Epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG). Enviga has twice the EGCG as leading competitors, and about the same amount of caffeine as an average cup of coffee.
Enviga will lauch later this year and early in 2007 in the United States, so we might expect to see it in Canadian stores after that. It will be marketed in slim 12-ounce cans, in berry, peach and green-tea flavors.
In a story posted on BevNet , Rhona Applebaum, chief scientist for Coca-Cola Co., said that extensive scientific studies showed that three cans a day of the drink will burn a net average of 60 to 100 calories. Tests were not done to show the benefits of a single can, which, based on the three-can result would seem to have a negligible net calorie burn.
The copyline is "invigorate your metabolism." Other package copy rounds out the health message, stating, "By giving your body a little extra boost, Enviga is a simple and positive step you can take toward a healthy and balanced lifestyle."
Before you reach for a bottle (or the recommended 3 bottles), consider whether you believe that 36-ounces of a carbonated, caffeinated beverage daily is a positive step toward health and balance.
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