I've just been told Diet Coke makes you fat

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  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,122 Member
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    Commander_Keen wrote: »
    mskimee wrote: »
    I've just been told Diet Coke makes you fat (I love Diet Coke)...by a friend who is currently choking down salmon (she detests salmon, but its "good for you" and she does this every January for the whole month. There is also a lot of kale, which she also hates but is "good for you"). She is easily 3st overweight, but apparently my calorie and sugar free drink is going to make me fat because the "chemicals in it make you fat so you drink more and can't lose weight". I'm not sure if this is a rant or a smh moment, but dear god, I just had to tell someone!!

    So.. there are a few different studies out there on this.
    1 -- thought process is this, they can order more food because they are having a coke.
    2 -- Thought process is that artificial sweeteners triggers something in the brain to eat something.

    A few different studies is a major understatement. Aspartame is one of the most studies food additive out there.
  • boothekm1
    boothekm1 Posts: 60 Member
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    Oh my goodness, nothing that I said was false information. Early research suggests that large amounts of artificial sweeteners can lead to forms of cancer. This is why I said "gallons."

    I am fully aware that there are nut case doctors in this world, but my brothers are not part of that group.

    And I'm not sure how encouraging someone to drink 8 glasses of water a day is bad????? Water is the best way to hydrate our bodies and flush out toxins which can make us at a higher risk of getting cancer.



  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,122 Member
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    Bookworm1860 wrote: »
    Unfortunately there is some research showing this to be true, beyond the whole tricking the brain and causing cravings thing. It seems one of the aspartame metabolites may actually change/interfere with metabolic pathways causing fat gain. The study was done with mice but unlike most rodent studies they exposed them to an amount equivalent to what many people consume instead of something equivalent to us drinking 20 gallons in a day. https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/11/161122193100.htm
    Typed as I slug down my morning diet Coke, which I'm trying to wean myself off of :'(

    Then it would probably be good to avoid chicken breasts and fruit or fruit juice. From http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1308408/why-aspartame-isnt-scary
    As mentioned phenylalanine and aspartate are naturally occuring amino acids found in all proteins. Protein is about 5.46% aspartate and about 3.6% phenylalanine on average. So let us say you have a 4oz piece of chicken breast. A small 4oz chicken breast has about 24g of protein. That means that in that chicken breast there is .036*24*1000 = 864mg of phenylalanine and .055*24*1000 = 1320mg aspartate. That means to get the same amount of aspartate and phenylalanine from diet coke as you do from one 4oz chicken breast you would have to drink 18 diet cokes. In my diet I eat around 180g of protein in a day which means to equal the amount I get from my normal diet of whole foods I would have to drink 135 cans of diet coke.

    Methanol is a biproduct of all fermentations. As such it is present in things that ferment, including things that are in the process of ferminting whether we think of them as alcohol or not. That means things like fruit. So how much methanol is present in 1 8oz glass of orange juice for example? Well according to this study of presence of methanol in a variety of orange juices [citation: http://archive.food.gov.uk/maff/archive/food/infsheet/1993/no17/table1.htm] the amount of methanol averages around 125 mg/kg. 8oz is 0.23kg so that means that 8oz of orange juice has about 29mg of methanol in it. Recall that a diet soda the aspartame content would break down to about 18mg of methanol. In otherwords orange juice, or really any fruit juice, has more methanol in it per oz than soda.
  • crzycatlady1
    crzycatlady1 Posts: 1,930 Member
    edited January 2017
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    Zoey2715 wrote: »
    I don't know if Diet Coke makes you gain weight, but I am sure the chemicals it has does not help you in losing weight. With a lot of sodas (even diet) there is a fair amount of sodium that can cause bloat and water retention. Plus, the artificial sweeteners in diet sodas and other "sugar free" foods teaches your body and your mind to crave "sweet" stuff. I was addicted to Sweet-n-Low and why not -- it is four times as sweet as normal sugar! Unfortunately, it caused my insulin (the fat storage hormone) to spike higher and longer than the real white table sugar. Today I only use sugar cubes in my coffee -- one cube per cup -- and it has helped me reduce my sugar cravings immensely! I am of the opinion that for your long term health, it is better to train your body and mind to want less sweet stuff by eliminating the consumption of ALL artificial sweeteners and stick with real sugar (or honey) if you must add sweetness to your drink.

    Diet soda has about the same amount of sodium as regular water does. The can of diet soda I'm drinking right now has 1% of daily recommended sodium intake. That will not cause bloating and water retention.

    Also, the ADA actually recommends diet soda for diabetics because it doesn't cause insulin to spike
    http://www.diabetes.org/food-and-fitness/food/what-can-i-eat/making-healthy-food-choices/what-can-i-drink.html

    And seriously-this is one of the best posts ever created on MFP and really should be read by everyone-lots of fantastic scientific info-
    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1308408/why-aspartame-isnt-scary/p1
  • crzycatlady1
    crzycatlady1 Posts: 1,930 Member
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    ccrdragon wrote: »
    Zoey2715 wrote: »
    I don't know if Diet Coke makes you gain weight, but I am sure the chemicals it has does not help you in losing weight. With a lot of sodas (even diet) there is a fair amount of sodium that can cause bloat and water retention.

    Actually, 1 can of Diet Coke has only 40 mg of sodium (and your daily recommended allowance is 2300 mg) so I don't think you are going to have water retention problems from that tiny amount.

    The generic diet cola I'm drinking right now has even less sodium than that :)
  • boothekm1
    boothekm1 Posts: 60 Member
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    I in no way think that aspartame is scary...like I said, I'm an avid diet coke drinker. I do not think that anything in diet coke will give me or anyone else cancer in this lifetime. That's why I said GALLONS. The point of my original comment was to encourage her not to worry about aspartame and other things in diet coke being unhealthy. Everything in moderation. Again what works best for me is to drink 64 ounces of water on top of the amount of diet cokes I drink in order to cut down on food cravings and overthinking calories.
  • crzycatlady1
    crzycatlady1 Posts: 1,930 Member
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    boothekm1 wrote: »
    I in no way think that aspartame is scary...like I said, I'm an avid diet coke drinker. I do not think that anything in diet coke will give me or anyone else cancer in this lifetime. That's why I said GALLONS. The point of my original comment was to encourage her not to worry about aspartame and other things in diet coke being unhealthy. Everything in moderation. Again what works best for me is to drink 64 ounces of water on top of the amount of diet cokes I drink in order to cut down on food cravings and overthinking calories.

    Thanks for clarifying :)
  • mskimee
    mskimee Posts: 228 Member
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    crzycatlady1 wrote: »
    Zoey2715 wrote: »
    I don't know if Diet Coke makes you gain weight, but I am sure the chemicals it has does not help you in losing weight. With a lot of sodas (even diet) there is a fair amount of sodium that can cause bloat and water retention. Plus, the artificial sweeteners in diet sodas and other "sugar free" foods teaches your body and your mind to crave "sweet" stuff. I was addicted to Sweet-n-Low and why not -- it is four times as sweet as normal sugar! Unfortunately, it caused my insulin (the fat storage hormone) to spike higher and longer than the real white table sugar. Today I only use sugar cubes in my coffee -- one cube per cup -- and it has helped me reduce my sugar cravings immensely! I am of the opinion that for your long term health, it is better to train your body and mind to want less sweet stuff by eliminating the consumption of ALL artificial sweeteners and stick with real sugar (or honey) if you must add sweetness to your drink.

    Diet soda has about the same amount of sodium as regular water does. The can of diet soda I'm drinking right now has 1% of daily recommended sodium intake. That will not cause bloating and water retention.

    Also, the ADA actually recommends diet soda for diabetics because it doesn't cause insulin to spike
    http://www.diabetes.org/food-and-fitness/food/what-can-i-eat/making-healthy-food-choices/what-can-i-drink.html

    And seriously-this is one of the best posts ever created on MFP and really should be read by everyone-lots of fantastic scientific info-
    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1308408/why-aspartame-isnt-scary/p1

    Thank you for this!! So many people (SSSSSSSOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO MMMMAAAAANNNNYYYYYYY) tell me (as i drink my delicious ice cold refreshment) "ya know Diet Coke can give you cancer, right?" as if I'm suddenly gonna see the light, ditch my drink and fall to my knees thanking them for saving my life....

    Kinda ruins my mood. But (Diet Coke) haters gonna hate....
  • A_poetiq
    A_poetiq Posts: 52 Member
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    mskimee wrote: »
    I've just been told Diet Coke makes you fat (I love Diet Coke)...by a friend who is currently choking down salmon (she detests salmon, but its "good for you" and she does this every January for the whole month. There is also a lot of kale, which she also hates but is "good for you"). She is easily 3st overweight, but apparently my calorie and sugar free drink is going to make me fat because the "chemicals in it make you fat so you drink more and can't lose weight". I'm not sure if this is a rant or a smh moment, but dear god, I just had to tell someone!!

    I know I personally can't have diet coke (or any diet drinks) because aspartame is a very serious trigger to my migraines. Honestly, aspartame (according) to my nutritionist is the problem and not diet drinks themselves.

    I had a high aspartame diet as a young child (because my mom was making my sister diet) and I had alot of seizures. Cut the aspartame, cut the seizures. I don't know the scientific reasons behind why, but the stuff scares me.
  • cerise_noir
    cerise_noir Posts: 5,468 Member
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    boothekm1 wrote: »
    Yes this! ^^^^^^
    Zero calorie drinks make us think we can eat more. It's nothing more complicated than that. Plus there are some chemicals in diet drinks that may lead to cancer....but that's if you drink gallons of it a day for years.

    I wouldn't worry too much about it. Just make sure to get in your 8 glasses of water daily too.

    Nope, not for me. Diet drinks don't make me hungrier.
  • galgenstrick
    galgenstrick Posts: 2,086 Member
    edited January 2017
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    If you're counting calories then it's fine. Preliminary research has shown that it triggers more eating in individuals that aren't counting calories though. Indirectly leading to weight gain / maintenance rather than loss.

    https://www.nih.gov/news-events/nih-research-matters/diet-beverages-body-weight
  • GottaBurnEmAll
    GottaBurnEmAll Posts: 7,722 Member
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    Diet Coke is just awful stuff and no one should drink it.

    That's because I think Coke tastes disgusting :p

    Now Diet Dr. Pepper? Diet Orange Crush? Diet Cranberry Canada Dry? That's what's in my refrigerator door right now.
  • crzycatlady1
    crzycatlady1 Posts: 1,930 Member
    edited January 2017
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    paperpudding wrote: »
    A_poetiq wrote: »
    mskimee wrote: »
    I've just been told Diet Coke makes you fat (I love Diet Coke)...by a friend who is currently choking down salmon (she detests salmon, but its "good for you" and she does this every January for the whole month. There is also a lot of kale, which she also hates but is "good for you"). She is easily 3st overweight, but apparently my calorie and sugar free drink is going to make me fat because the "chemicals in it make you fat so you drink more and can't lose weight". I'm not sure if this is a rant or a smh moment, but dear god, I just had to tell someone!!

    I know I personally can't have diet coke (or any diet drinks) because aspartame is a very serious trigger to my migraines. Honestly, aspartame (according) to my nutritionist is the problem and not diet drinks themselves.

    I had a high aspartame diet as a young child (because my mom was making my sister diet) and I had alot of seizures. Cut the aspartame, cut the seizures. I don't know the scientific reasons behind why, but the stuff scares me.


    I don't think anyone is denying that aspartame can have individual effects like this.
    Migraine triggers are so individual. I know people who get migraines from MSG, for example, and my brother seemed to get them from copha.

    Like allergies - nobody is suggesting people who are affected by things should not avoid them.

    It is only when people make generalised claims like ' they are shown to cause cancer' when they are not or 'everyone should avoid them' when they shouldn't - that other posters object.

    Just like they would if someone posted 'I am allergic to peanuts' or 'flashing lights give me seizures' ( both quite reasonable statements) so everyone should avoid them.(unreasonable statement)

    Yep this. My daughter get really sick if she has dairy milk so she needs to avoid it. But that doesn't mean dairy is bad for everyone else. Same with aspartame.
  • shelleyrhoads
    shelleyrhoads Posts: 103 Member
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    According to the commercials I believe snickers are a superfood so Ima just eat that

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