Conclusion

My results showed that:

• Diet Coke caused the most deterioration of the tripe

• Coke and Sprite also caused deterioration, though not as much as Diet Coke

• Seltzer also caused deterioration although not as much as sweetened or colored sodas

• Fanta did not appear to cause much harm

 

I chose this experiment so I could have actual, scientific proof that soda harms stomach tissue. I hoped to show that soda is not healthy for your stomach in a very easy to see and understand way, so I can convince my family and friends to stop drinking soda since it is bad for them.

 

I started thinking about my experiment, and I asked my parents for their opinion, if they too had heard that soda was bad for you. They agreed that yes, this was what they thought. I did some research on the internet, and did find studies that showed many different problems caused by drinking soda. I also asked my family doctor, Dr. Sabia Ali, and she also said that yes, drinking soda was bad for your health.

 

I then thought of how can I show physical affects, and decided to set up an experiment to demonstrate my hypothesis. I came up with a procedure to soak tripe in liquids and see what changes happened over a few days.

 

I determined that I would not be able to make the tripe exactly the same size, so I decided to check and record sample weight change against each sample’s initial weight. I made a materials list; I bought mason jars, a scale, different sodas and tripe. I put together my samples, weighed and added the fluids, and set them in our refrigerator. I then weighed and recorded changes over time, recording the data.

 

Based on the final table, I accept my hypothesis that soda does damage stomach tissue. See table above titled “All Sample Sets averaged together.”

 

As with any experiment with several variables, there are things that could have interfered with the testing and the results:

• Changing sample temperatures from the refrigerator being opened and closed over time could have affected the samples in the front of the shelf.

• Variations in the tripe might have made some samples more susceptible to deterioration than others.

• Drying the samples with paper towels meant that some samples were wetter than others, affecting the weight and changing the results a little.

 

If I were to continue with this experiment, I would replace the soda every day to see if fresh soda would increase the tripe’s rate of deterioration. I would also be interested in adding other beverages to the experiment, such as coffee, tea, and fruit juices.

In conclusion, I will be telling my friends and family that soda as well as seltzer overall can be very harmful to your stomach.