Effects of Cola as the Only Drinking Liquid on Mice Health

Cola is a kind of carbonated drink with a high content of sugar, which affects glycolipid metabo-lism if drinking excessively. Thus, Cola is generally believed to be a factor of inducing obesity, but this opinion lacks of experimental evidence. In this study, in order to determine the effects of Cola on body weight, glycolipid metabolism and behavior of mice, 6-week-old male C57BL/6J mice were fed with Cola as the only drinking liquid for three months. The results showed the food intake, body weight, fat weight and liver weight of the mice in the Cola-drinking group significantly decreased compared with those of the mice in the water-drinking group. Gene ex-pression analysis revealed that both adipogenesis genes (FAS, PPARγ, aP2) and lipolytic genes (ATGL, LPL, HSL) in adipose tissues were up-regulated in the Cola-drinking group. In the behavioral analysis, Cola-drinking mice showed higher activity in open field experiments, and were more likely to give up struggling in forced swimming and tail suspension experiments. In summary, Cola as the only drinking liquid suppresses mice appetite, reduces body weight and fat accumulation, but increases their activity.