Opinion on diet sodas and weight loss
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RuNaRoUnDaFiEld wrote: »TimothyFish wrote: »WinoGelato wrote: »TimothyFish wrote: »I doubt that much sodium is good for you, but they won't hurt your weight loss.
If OP is drinking 3 diet sodas per day that's 120 mg of sodium. Why would that be a concern?
The concern is that most people already consume more sodium than is recommended. Why add 120mg in the form of something that serves no purpose?
It serves a purpose to me. It hydrates me and tastes nice.
And 120mg is totally negligible. That seems like a very odd reason to advise against diet soda. Almost like you thought it was full of sodium, found out it wasn't, and are now trying to maintain a position without a basis.16 -
TimothyFish wrote: »WinoGelato wrote: »TimothyFish wrote: »I doubt that much sodium is good for you, but they won't hurt your weight loss.
If OP is drinking 3 diet sodas per day that's 120 mg of sodium. Why would that be a concern?
The concern is that most people already consume more sodium than is recommended. Why add 120mg in the form of something that serves no purpose?
IF YOU DRANK WATER INSTEAD IT WOULD BE THE SAME AMOUNT.
Goddammit.16 -
TeethOfTheHydra wrote: »I quit a hard core Diet Coke habit (I mean really hard core) after about 10+ years and just drink water now. I did it because I wanted to get off caffeine and maybe knock off so much artificial sweetener. An added bonus was a lot of $$$ back in my pocket that I had been gladly handing over for so many years. I had previously been successful at losing weight, gaining muscle, and improving my fitness and have subsequently been successful as well. I think every article I've read claiming diet sodas contribute to weight gain are misleading in that they usually say that something about the soda is unsatisfying and thus, the consumer tends to want to binge eat. I don't believe that and it is an indirect factor, at best, anyways. I did not notice any appreciable change in my appetite after quitting. Perhaps others will share some interesting information to contradict this.
I had the same experience. I was a massive Diet Coke addict pretty much all my adult life. I had lost weight on it before so didn't think it affected anything. But this last time, people said "quit diet soda and you'll lose weight". Their theory was not that diet soda makes me hungrier (it doesn't) nor that it has high sodium to retain water (not sure it has high sodium); rather, their theory was my body would hang on to the sugars I ate since it wasn't getting any sugars when I drank what it perceived to be sweet diet soda due to the artificial sweeteners. I'm not sure whether this holds any water (no pun intended), but I switched to water. I lost weight, but don't know whether this was due to quitting Diet Coke or watching my calorie intake/output (recall: I had lost weight previously staying on Diet Coke). The good news: I now drink massive amounts of water, save a tonne of $$, and I think it's part of my new healthier lifestyle.6 -
I gained weight by eating too much and I'm losing weight by eating less. Doesn't make a bit of difference whether diet fizzy drinks are part of the "less" - I'm still losing weight just fine.3
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I drink gallons of the stuff and I've lost over a hundred pounds
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I've lost 90 pounds. Diet soda has never been an issue.4
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My only concern with diet soda is the potential effects on insulin production, which research has shown can be affected simply by tasting something sweet whether it contains calories or not. But that concern basically disappears if you're consuming them along with food. The only time it would be an issue would be if you drank them alone, between meals.
Maybe it's woo, but not a risk I'm willing to take.17 -
It's woo.6
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Carlos_421 wrote: »OP, only an excess of calories can cause weight gain. Since diet soda has no calories, it has no impact on your weight.
Diet soda could indirectly impact the OP's weight if she is one of the people that has been shown in studies to have increased hunger due to drinking soda and therefore has difficulty maintaining a calorie deficit.7 -
Diet soda does NOT hinder weight loss, though certain behaviors surrounding its consumption can. If you, like me, do not exhibit said behaviors (craving and eating more sweets or other foods in excess, thinking you've freed up more calories than you actually have and overeating, etc) then you may find it immensely helpful.3
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TimothyFish wrote: »I doubt that much sodium is good for you, but they won't hurt your weight loss.
There is less sodium in a can of diet soda than there is in your tap water if you use a water softener. (on average, 25-40 mg per 12 oz serving)1 -
Shameless copypasta (with a couple of small edits)from here: http://physiqonomics.com/aspartame/ (you can get the citations in the article)
Aspartame and Weight Gain
Some people will vehemently argue that aspartame causes weight gain. Firstly, this makes zero sense because, as I noted earlier – aspartame is essentially calorie-free. You’d have to consume an impossible amount of diet drinks for it to have an impact on your weight, and seeing as you’d die from water intoxication first, weight gain would probably be the least of your worries.
Secondly, research disagrees with this idea.
In a six-month long randomised clinical trial (one of many), researchers had participants replace caloric beverages with noncaloric beverages.
And, once again, participants that replaced caloric beverages with noncaloric beverages lost weight.
WHAT A SHOCKER.
So then why do people think aspartame causes weight gain?
It’s because people make false correlations. People who drink calorie-free drinks tend to fall for the Health Halo of Food effect: they assume because they’re drinking zero-calorie drinks they can eat more food. This leads them to consume a greater number of calories and gaining more weight (and fat). People then make a faulty correlation between the two: “Diet drinks cause weight gain”, instead of, “People end up eating more calories leading them to gain more weight”.
Does Aspartame ‘Spike Insulin’?
No. It doesn’t. There is zero evidence to suggest that aspartame spikes insulin levels – in both healthy and diabetic individuals. And the only studies that have found this to be the case were done on, surprise surprise, rats.
Even if it did spike insulin – it doesn’t, but if it did in some alternate reality – so what? Insulin spikes are a perfectly normal function of a perfectly normal and healthy functioning body. Even protein spikes insulin. And if you’re still subscribing to the “insulin causes fat gain” dumbkittenery – it’s time you updated your factz.8 -
I religiously consume diet drinks all year round, especially when dieting. They have no negative effect on my progress and if anything help with cravings so are beneficial to me.2
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My only concern with diet soda is the potential effects on insulin production, which research has shown can be affected simply by tasting something sweet whether it contains calories or not. But that concern basically disappears if you're consuming them along with food. The only time it would be an issue would be if you drank them alone, between meals.
Maybe it's woo, but not a risk I'm willing to take.
Its a huge myth as diet soda does not have sugar... it have non sugar sweeteners.
And even if it did affect insulin, why would it matter? Unless a period had a broken endocrine system, it would be regulated correct.
Op, i lost 50+ lbs drink 2 to 3 diet dews a day. I also drink 120 to 150 oz of water. I drink a lot.3 -
TimothyFish wrote: »WinoGelato wrote: »TimothyFish wrote: »I doubt that much sodium is good for you, but they won't hurt your weight loss.
If OP is drinking 3 diet sodas per day that's 120 mg of sodium. Why would that be a concern?
The concern is that most people already consume more sodium than is recommended. Why add 120mg in the form of something that serves no purpose?
But it has virtually the same sodium as in tap water so unless you are suggesting OP not hydrate at all I'm confused why you would continue to perpetuate this false belief that there is excessive sodium in diet sodas...6 -
I gave up all soda's altogether. Instead I drink either water or flavored carbonated water. I can't stand the taste of artificial sweeteners or how it tends to coat my mouth and teeth.0
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Yes. Unfortunately, this also blows ketoscience to smithereens - that simply avoiding carbs will lower insulin levels (assuming that high insulin contributes to obesity, when it's actually the other way around) Eating a four ounce hamburger patty raises insulin more than a cup of pasta.Does Aspartame ‘Spike Insulin’?
No. It doesn’t. There is zero evidence to suggest that aspartame spikes insulin levels – in both healthy and diabetic individuals. And the only studies that have found this to be the case were done on, surprise surprise, rats.
Even if it did spike insulin – it doesn’t, but if it did in some alternate reality – so what? Insulin spikes are a perfectly normal function of a perfectly normal and healthy functioning body. Even protein spikes insulin. And if you’re still subscribing to the “insulin causes fat gain” dumbkittenery – it’s time you updated your factz.
My 1.5 hour session swimming laps raises my blood glucose as much as 30 points. Raised glucose is followed by raised insulin in order to handle the glucose.2 -
TimothyFish wrote: »WinoGelato wrote: »TimothyFish wrote: »I doubt that much sodium is good for you, but they won't hurt your weight loss.
If OP is drinking 3 diet sodas per day that's 120 mg of sodium. Why would that be a concern?
The concern is that most people already consume more sodium than is recommended. Why add 120mg in the form of something that serves no purpose?
It serves the same purpose as water (hydration) which has about the same amount of sodium. Should we abstain from drinking water since it's likely that we're already consuming too much sodium from other sources?!3 -
My only concern with diet soda is the potential effects on insulin production, which research has shown can be affected simply by tasting something sweet whether it contains calories or not. But that concern basically disappears if you're consuming them along with food. The only time it would be an issue would be if you drank them alone, between meals.
Maybe it's woo, but not a risk I'm willing to take.
Please link to said research.1
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