American Dietetic Association Health Wisdom: Watch what you drink!

You know the saying: you are what you eat.  But have you considered, you are what you drink!

Many people don't realize the effect of their liquid choices, says Lalita Kaul, a registered dietitian in Washington, D.C., and spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association. Kaul says one client mentioned drinking cranberry juice, which the woman thought was a much healthier choice than soda. Turns out she was drinking 1,000 calories of juice every day.

"It all adds up," says Amy Jamieson-Petonic, a Cleveland registered dietitian and ADA spokeswoman. She says she sees adults who drink as much as 2 liters of sugared soda a day and children who drink far more than the single daily serving of fruit juice recommended by pediatricians.

What you can do: make smart choices about what you drink.

A recent article in USA Today lists these things to avoid:

• Lots of sugar, from sodas, fruit drinks, sport drinks, energy drinks and sweetened tea.

• Too much fat, in whole and 2% milk, fast-food shakes and coffee-bar drinks.

• High calories from beer and wine.

• Heart pumping amounts of caffeine from coffees, teas, colas and popular energy drinks, some of which contain more than twice the caffeine allowed in sodas.

To learn more about dietary health wisdom visit the American Dietetic Association, the nation's largest organization of food and nutrition professionals with more than 65,000 members.