Citric acid is an interesting ingredient in sodas for several reasons. First off, it is a generally healthy ingredient that most people feel is harmless, though this is not completely true. Secondly, it has several functions and lastly, it frequently does get confused with one other ingredient most of the time.

Citric acid is not necessarily healthy, meaning it doesn't add any health benefits to your diet. However, for the most part, consuming it is not unhealthy. It doesn't make you get extremely fat nor does it stress your liver. It is quickly expelled from your body quickly after consumption and it is both water soluble and organic. In addition, it occurs naturally in fruits and veggies and your body produces it naturally.

Citric acid does do several things. It can be used as a preservative and it can also be used as a flavoring agent. Whenever a tart taste is required or present, citric acid is usually part of the equation. You will even find it in sodas you wouldn't expect to find it in like colas and root beers. In fact, you will likely find citric acid in every soda on your grocer's shelf.

Many people confuse citric acid with ascorbic acid. Both acids occur naturally in fruits and vegetables, however ascorbic acid is vitamin c. Both citric and ascorbic acids can be useful as preservatives and as flavoring agents.

The downfalls of citric acid are actually pretty significant. In fact, most experts felt it was completely harmless until recent years. New research has brought to light that citric acid is incredibly damaging to tooth enamel, and this is more so the case when the acid is delivered through soda as opposed to fruit. Experts believe that citric acid and phosphoric acid are extremely damaging when combined in your favorite soda, so if you love your teeth, you should think twice about excessive soda consumption.