A FRENCH STUDY has found that some of the world’s most popular soft drinks – including Coca-Cola and Pepsi – have trace amounts of alcohol in them.

Research from the National Institute of Consumption, published in the magazine 60 Million Consumers, examined the ingredients of 19 drinks with worldwide popularity after their manufacturers declined to divulge their recipes.

The study discovered that 10 of the 19 drinks contained 0.001 per cent alcohol content, as well as other ingredients not listed on the labels, including allergenic substances and certain spices.

The report – covered by Al Arabiya – prompted the recipes to be changed in the US, but apparently there are no plans to do so in Europe.

Most countries operate labelling laws which requires them only to mark a drink as ‘alcoholic’ if it contains a certain threshold of alcohol, usually around 1 per cent.

The quantity of alcohol in the likes of Coke won’t send you over the edge, however – the trace amount means you would need to drink 2,840 litres of Coca-Cola to replace the effects of one pint of 5-per-cent lager.