Diet Coke dilemma
Replies
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is your position that if you drink diet soda and are in a calorie deficit that you wont lose weight? I did not know that diet soda contained a chemical that renders math and physics obsolete...
Of course I wasn't suggesting that, the OP said they felt guilty about drinking Diet Coke, i then read a bunch of responses saying there is nothing wrong with it, go ham. The natural devils advocate in me wanted to point out that it isn't perhaps the healthiest of drinks and although it might not directly add calories to your diet it could be unhealthy in other ways and that might be why they felt guilty.
ok, then maybe you should not make statement like this:
"There are lots of studies that suggest diet drinks are directly linked to weight gain..."
Saying that it does not directly add to calories does not equate to it does not contribute to weight gain.
These studies claim a direct correlation (and there are plenty more)
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3714671
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18535548
A lot of the other pieces I've read seem to suggest its more of a psychological/behavioural thing where people overcompensate or increase consumption after "being good" and drinking zero calorie drinks.
Anyhow I have already retracted my original statement, and admit that i didn't do enough fact checking before I regurgitated the info so i wont continue to go on about it
But assuming someone is conscious of their calorie intake (the principle on which this particular app is built), overcompensation or increasing consumption isn't going to be an issue (even if this is accurate).
And overcompensation or increasing calories, iirc, has been associated with other types of foods as well. For example, people who eat salads frequently underestimate the calorie content of their salads and wind up consuming more than they would if they had, say, a sandwich. But we don't blanket salad threads with dire warnings about how people are going to gain weight if they have salads.
We focus on what matters for weight loss, which is CICO. And that can work perfectly well for someone who is consuming diet soda.7 -
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Look_Its_Kriss wrote: »A discussion yesterday with someone i had, we used me as an experiment when it came to diet drinks and honestly, if people are doing the whole "being good" thing and eating higher calories then they need and gaining weight then can we really blame the drink? They are picking that logic themselves and applying it as an excuse to eat X, Y, Z.. the diet drink itself is not being advertised in such a way that its actually telling people its okay to eat more cause they are being good by drinking it.. Its only being advertised as what it is... a 0 calorie soda. I've never understood why its not okay to point the finger at the people over compensating and eating more and gaining, lets just blame the soda..
This. If people don't understand how calories work, then that is what needs to be addressed because simply eliminating diet soda isn't going to help them anyway.
And if they understand how calories work and they're just playing mind games with themselves, then they're simply not in a place to lose weight right now. Maybe they will be someday, but that's still not diet soda's fault.
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is your position that if you drink diet soda and are in a calorie deficit that you wont lose weight? I did not know that diet soda contained a chemical that renders math and physics obsolete...
Of course I wasn't suggesting that, the OP said they felt guilty about drinking Diet Coke, i then read a bunch of responses saying there is nothing wrong with it, go ham. The natural devils advocate in me wanted to point out that it isn't perhaps the healthiest of drinks and although it might not directly add calories to your diet it could be unhealthy in other ways and that might be why they felt guilty.
ok, then maybe you should not make statement like this:
"There are lots of studies that suggest diet drinks are directly linked to weight gain..."
Saying that it does not directly add to calories does not equate to it does not contribute to weight gain.
These studies claim a direct correlation (and there are plenty more)
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3714671
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18535548
A lot of the other pieces I've read seem to suggest its more of a psychological/behavioural thing where people overcompensate or increase consumption after "being good" and drinking zero calorie drinks.
Anyhow I have already retracted my original statement, and admit that i didn't do enough fact checking before I regurgitated the info so i wont continue to go on about it
how do you know it was diet soda that contributed to the weight gain? What if it was cheeseburgers, or bacon, or any other food???
Did you even read the abstract of the fist study that you posted? Here is the quote:
"The data do not support the hypothesis that long-term artificial sweetener use either helps weight loss or prevents weight gain."5 -
Hardcastle99 wrote: »I feel guilty drinking Diet Coke but at the same time it doesn't have any fats carbs or proteins and only 2 calories what's the deal?
You should feel guilty!
Drink Diet Pepsi!!
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I am a pepsi max addict, im gradually reducing how much i drink from 1.5-2 litres per day to around 500ml at the moment and within a week or so i will reduce that to none. There are lots of studies that suggest diet drinks are directly linked to weight gain Caffeine on its own is a nasty thing to consume regularly, Aspertame is a horrible chemical and is broken down into even worse chemicals when its digested, it also triggers the insulin response which is why i cant drink it when i'm fasting and insulin is the arch enemy of weightloss lol While in moderation you can get away with the odd drink, it is by no means a benign beverage and if possibly should be avoided completely imo.
Yeah....no.3 -
I'm so used to water, I don't like the aftertaste.
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Saying that it does not directly add to calories does not equate to it does not contribute to weight gain.
These studies claim a direct correlation (and there are plenty more)
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3714671
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18535548
A lot of the other pieces I've read seem to suggest its more of a psychological/behavioural thing where people overcompensate or increase consumption after "being good" and drinking zero calorie drinks.
how do you know it was diet soda that contributed to the weight gain? What if it was cheeseburgers, or bacon, or any other food???
Did you even read the abstract of the fist study that you posted? Here is the quote:
"The data do not support the hypothesis that long-term artificial sweetener use either helps weight loss or prevents weight gain."
I think the point is that drinking artificial sweeteners could create an insulin response (although I don't see a "smoking gun" article about it on a quick Pubmed search). If it did, it might make you hungry and you would eat more.
Another possibility is that people who are overweight and worried about it are more likely to drink diet soda, so diet soda consumption could just be a correlation with weight rather than a causality. It's very difficult to know for sure.
I have also read (in non-scientific literature) that artificial sweeteners may alter gut bacteria and that this could be bad for you and lead to weight gain.
Aspartame does break down to methanol in your stomach, which is poisonous; but the amount is very small. A packet of Equal contains 37 milligrams of aspartame, a small fraction of which will convert to methanol. A 12-ounce can of diet soda contains around 200 milligrams of aspartame. That's still not much. Note that there are small amounts of methanol in many foods.)
Based on my review of the current literature, I am not worried about it and I use single packets of Equal every day. I avoid drinking "super big gulps" since they upset my stomach.0 -
As a teen, I would drink 4-5 cans a day of Diet Coke (since that's all my parents drank) and as an adult it grew worse. When I joined MFP, I researched health articles and read about the effects of Aspartame and truly didn't understand until I stopped drinking it for a couple days. I had intense migraines and nausea. I know people will say it's zero calories, but water is the way to go. If you can ditch it, you'd be better off. That's my opinion.2
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As a teen, I would drink 4-5 cans a day of Diet Coke (since that's all my parents drank) and as an adult it grew worse. When I joined MFP, I researched health articles and read about the effects of Aspartame and truly didn't understand until I stopped drinking it for a couple days. I had intense migraines and nausea. I know people will say it's zero calories, but water is the way to go. If you can ditch it, you'd be better off. That's my opinion.
Could you link to some of these health articles that you read which indicated Aspartame was dangerous?
Did you happen to read this one?
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1308408/why-aspartame-isnt-scary/p1
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This is a fascinating discussion, lots of insightful comments.
To me, the challenge of aspartame and other artificial sweeteners is more of a psychological challenge. By using these artificial sweeteners regularly, I retain what a "sweetness habit", so that when I am tempted to indulge, I am more likely to cheat with a high-sugar food and get that sugar rush. I'm sure that, for some of the folks here, that's not a problem - you enjoy the sugar rush and then get back down to business. For others, such as me, getting that little taste just makes eating the next snack a real battle of willpower. "Should I cheat? Should I? A little Famous Amos would just be SO DARN GOOD!" If your stomach doesn't talk to you in capital letters, you're probably safe.
When I stop the sugar, it takes about two full days, 48+ hours, to not want more. Then, my body settles down, and I'm all, like, whatever, about chocolate. But when I indulge, I tend to want more. Especially because one sugary snack doesn't really make a difference to weight loss/maintenance. It's when you start stacking them up (ever eaten six donuts for lunch?) that they do make a difference. It feels good, it feels bad, but I have to fight my way back to diet sanity. So--that's why I tend to avoid artificial sweeteners. Not because they are inherently bad or chemically toxic, but because they provide a crutch to an unhealthy mindset - that sweet is good, and more sweet is more better. For me, they make it harder to make good decisions.
As a side note, I had not seen the "Why Aspartame Isn't Scary" discussion - thanks to everyone who linked to that - it was very educational and informative for me.1 -
As a teen, I would drink 4-5 cans a day of Diet Coke (since that's all my parents drank) and as an adult it grew worse. When I joined MFP, I researched health articles and read about the effects of Aspartame and truly didn't understand until I stopped drinking it for a couple days. I had intense migraines and nausea. I know people will say it's zero calories, but water is the way to go. If you can ditch it, you'd be better off. That's my opinion.
Headaches would be from caffeine withdrawal8 -
As a teen, I would drink 4-5 cans a day of Diet Coke (since that's all my parents drank) and as an adult it grew worse. When I joined MFP, I researched health articles and read about the effects of Aspartame and truly didn't understand until I stopped drinking it for a couple days. I had intense migraines and nausea. I know people will say it's zero calories, but water is the way to go. If you can ditch it, you'd be better off. That's my opinion.
Did you replace the caffeine with something else like coffee? Your symptoms are more like caffeine withdrawal.6 -
As a teen, I would drink 4-5 cans a day of Diet Coke (since that's all my parents drank) and as an adult it grew worse. When I joined MFP, I researched health articles and read about the effects of Aspartame and truly didn't understand until I stopped drinking it for a couple days. I had intense migraines and nausea. I know people will say it's zero calories, but water is the way to go. If you can ditch it, you'd be better off. That's my opinion.
I just quit a 30+ year soda intake, (both regular and diet), and I've had absolutely no side effects -no headaches or nausea. I did however replace the caffeine I was getting from the soda, with caffeine from coffee.1 -
Hardcastle99 wrote: »I've just been brought up with the mindset any fizzy pop is bad for you and I just can't see drinking Diet Coke regularly being alright? And no I didn't steal it haha
I see this as a very simple question with a very simple solution. If it makes you feel guilty, don't drink it. There's nothing harmful about it in moderation, but nobody is forcing it down your throat either, and nobody is saying you're a bad person if you don't prefer to drink diet soda.
Make life easy on yourself. If you can move past the guilt and enjoy it in moderation, by all means do so. If you can't, there's no sense torturing your soul over something as simple as a diet soda.4 -
is your position that if you drink diet soda and are in a calorie deficit that you wont lose weight? I did not know that diet soda contained a chemical that renders math and physics obsolete...
Of course I wasn't suggesting that, the OP said they felt guilty about drinking Diet Coke, i then read a bunch of responses saying there is nothing wrong with it, go ham. The natural devils advocate in me wanted to point out that it isn't perhaps the healthiest of drinks and although it might not directly add calories to your diet it could be unhealthy in other ways and that might be why they felt guilty.
ok, then maybe you should not make statement like this:
"There are lots of studies that suggest diet drinks are directly linked to weight gain..."
Saying that it does not directly add to calories does not equate to it does not contribute to weight gain.
These studies claim a direct correlation (and there are plenty more)
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3714671
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18535548
A lot of the other pieces I've read seem to suggest its more of a psychological/behavioural thing where people overcompensate or increase consumption after "being good" and drinking zero calorie drinks.
Anyhow I have already retracted my original statement, and admit that i didn't do enough fact checking before I regurgitated the info so i wont continue to go on about it
Surely you understand the difference between correlation and causation, no?
Here's another correlation for you: I see a lot of obese people exercising. Therefore, exercise is correlated with being obese.
How much sense does that make?7 -
As a teen, I would drink 4-5 cans a day of Diet Coke (since that's all my parents drank) and as an adult it grew worse. When I joined MFP, I researched health articles and read about the effects of Aspartame and truly didn't understand until I stopped drinking it for a couple days. I had intense migraines and nausea. I know people will say it's zero calories, but water is the way to go. If you can ditch it, you'd be better off. That's my opinion.
If you ingest caffeine regularly and then stop ingesting caffeine you will likely end up with migraines, headaches and nausea given that caffeine is a vasoconstrictior. Seems to me the much more likely culprit is a change in caffeine intake.5 -
is your position that if you drink diet soda and are in a calorie deficit that you wont lose weight? I did not know that diet soda contained a chemical that renders math and physics obsolete...
Of course I wasn't suggesting that, the OP said they felt guilty about drinking Diet Coke, i then read a bunch of responses saying there is nothing wrong with it, go ham. The natural devils advocate in me wanted to point out that it isn't perhaps the healthiest of drinks and although it might not directly add calories to your diet it could be unhealthy in other ways and that might be why they felt guilty.
ok, then maybe you should not make statement like this:
"There are lots of studies that suggest diet drinks are directly linked to weight gain..."
Saying that it does not directly add to calories does not equate to it does not contribute to weight gain.
These studies claim a direct correlation (and there are plenty more)
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3714671
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18535548
A lot of the other pieces I've read seem to suggest its more of a psychological/behavioural thing where people overcompensate or increase consumption after "being good" and drinking zero calorie drinks.
Anyhow I have already retracted my original statement, and admit that i didn't do enough fact checking before I regurgitated the info so i wont continue to go on about it
Surely you understand the difference between correlation and causation, no?
Here's another correlation for you: I see a lot of obese people exercising. Therefore, exercise is correlated with being obese.
How much sense does that make?
Another one. All cancer patients drink water so water causes cancer8 -
singingflutelady wrote: »
is your position that if you drink diet soda and are in a calorie deficit that you wont lose weight? I did not know that diet soda contained a chemical that renders math and physics obsolete...
Of course I wasn't suggesting that, the OP said they felt guilty about drinking Diet Coke, i then read a bunch of responses saying there is nothing wrong with it, go ham. The natural devils advocate in me wanted to point out that it isn't perhaps the healthiest of drinks and although it might not directly add calories to your diet it could be unhealthy in other ways and that might be why they felt guilty.
ok, then maybe you should not make statement like this:
"There are lots of studies that suggest diet drinks are directly linked to weight gain..."
Saying that it does not directly add to calories does not equate to it does not contribute to weight gain.
These studies claim a direct correlation (and there are plenty more)
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3714671
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18535548
A lot of the other pieces I've read seem to suggest its more of a psychological/behavioural thing where people overcompensate or increase consumption after "being good" and drinking zero calorie drinks.
Anyhow I have already retracted my original statement, and admit that i didn't do enough fact checking before I regurgitated the info so i wont continue to go on about it
Surely you understand the difference between correlation and causation, no?
Here's another correlation for you: I see a lot of obese people exercising. Therefore, exercise is correlated with being obese.
How much sense does that make?
Another one. All cancer patients drink water so water causes cancer
And that's a complete 1:1 correlation with a large n number in the study group size, too. Well done!5 -
Hardcastle99 wrote: »I feel guilty drinking Diet Coke but at the same time it doesn't have any fats carbs or proteins and only 2 calories what's the deal?
I literally asked my dietician about this hours ago. She said the worst thing about artificial sweeteners is that, for SOME people, they make them crave sweets. They have no redeeming features, but they don't hurt you. They don't affect blood sugar. They don't make you fat. If you want a Diet Coke, go for it.3 -
LadyLilion wrote: »Hardcastle99 wrote: »I feel guilty drinking Diet Coke but at the same time it doesn't have any fats carbs or proteins and only 2 calories what's the deal?
I literally asked my dietician about this hours ago. She said the worst thing about artificial sweeteners is that, for SOME people, they make them crave sweets. They have no redeeming features, but they don't hurt you. They don't affect blood sugar. They don't make you fat. If you want a Diet Coke, go for it.
Common sense is alive and well.3 -
Lmao wow you guys need to look at yourselves a bit. Why vilify a person for making a Mistake AFTER They already apologised and retracted the original statement? People that highlight where I say "cola dinks should be avoided if possible" but neglect to indicate that I stated that was my own opinion and nothing more. Anyhow I shall leave you to gloat and feel superior well done guys1
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Drink Diet Pepsi. Dilemma over.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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I have heard, and I DON'T know this to be true, that for rats at least having fake sweetener in a soda can make your body crave the sweets it was expecting to get. Or at least it did in rats. Is this true?
No idea if this is true. Conversely, I find Coke Zero handy if I'm peckish. A really nice cold can. I use it to stop cravings. It feels naughty but it isn't. Win.0 -
If it causes you no harm, don't feel guilty about it. I'm sensitive to sweeteners, so I can't drink it without discomfort, but I would if I could!2
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To me, the challenge of aspartame and other artificial sweeteners is more of a psychological challenge. By using these artificial sweeteners regularly, I retain what a "sweetness habit", so that when I am tempted to indulge, I am more likely to cheat with a high-sugar food and get that sugar rush.
This is making me re-think my use of aspartame. (I put some on my yogurt/fruit/nut breakfast this morning, to my wife's disgust.) Whereas I don't find it has any particular direct effect, I can believe that it perpetuates a sweetness habit, as you say. I'll have to try cutting it out at some point and see what happens.
I agree wholeheartedly that sugar itself is incredibly habit forming. If I let myself get in the habit of taking candy from the office candy bowl, the day it is empty I feel violated.1 -
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Haha whoa! ok it appears I read something about aspartame (from several sources) and didn't fact check, for that I apologise and retract my comment. It seems that the negative stuff has only been observed only in rats and never in humans and some people have cherry picked certain info to make it sound worse. The info on weight loss is not conclusive so until further study is done the jury is out on that as well. Caffeine is still worth avoiding if possible and personally I find it easier to fast without pepsi max than with so will continue to do so.
Thank you for recognizing the error of your wicked ways and fixing it - not too many people do that, you are a-ok in my books for it.3 -
Look_Its_Kriss wrote: »A discussion yesterday with someone i had, we used me as an experiment when it came to diet drinks and honestly, if people are doing the whole "being good" thing and eating higher calories then they need and gaining weight then can we really blame the drink? They are picking that logic themselves and applying it as an excuse to eat X, Y, Z.. the diet drink itself is not being advertised in such a way that its actually telling people its okay to eat more cause they are being good by drinking it.. Its only being advertised as what it is... a 0 calorie soda. I've never understood why its not okay to point the finger at the people over compensating and eating more and gaining, lets just blame the soda..
It IS okay -- it IS the person's fault - certainly not the zero calorie soda.1 -
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