What kind of damage does Diet Soda pop do?

gieshagirl

the carbonic acid that makes the carbonation actually eats the enamel off your teeth making you 8x more likely to have cavities or tooth shattering with eating. (brittle think enamel) also the bubbles make your whole system more acidic...this can lead to ulcers and skin breakouts. Caffeine is a stimulant and you can become addicted to the rush and get headaches without it.....these are just a few.

gaelicstorm26

Diet soda is fine--in moderation.

I drink one probably every other day or so. I have a love for Diet Crush and Diet A&W. The reason I cut out so much soda is because I'm starting to have problems with my teeth after two back-to-back pregnancies. I'm trying to limit the acid in my diet, and because I was increasing my fruit/veggie intake, the acid in soda had to go.

csuhar

However, since this is a site focused on losing weight - it has been proven that diet soda spurs your appetite. If you can keep the cravings in check, then have at it. If it causes you to miss your daily target, then skip it.

This is what I tend to see reported more regularly- that people who drink it may have increased cravings. And that's something you can detect for yourself. If you find that drinking diet soda makes it harder to stay on target, it doesn't really matter if it's a chemical in the soda.

I haven't really noticed diet sodas having that effect on me, but my daily activity gives me a big enough appetite on its own that it could be hiding them.

Myself, I've been giving these Stevia sweetened sodas a try in lieu of old-school diet sodas. Some variants taste a little like the can they came in, but I've had much worse, before.

pleasurelittletreasure

I drink a lot. I go everywhere with a water bottle in hand full of iced tea or water with a Nuun. I drink that water bottle down at least 4 times a day, sometimes 6 or more. That being said, it is easy to see where diet soda would be a problem for someone like me. If I crack open a can of Diet Coke - my one true love in the soda world - I will not stop drinking it until the entire case is gone. If I am drinking my tea or water, no problem. If I'm doing that with the soda, I get a horrible pain in my side. Like being jabbed from the back with a not-so-friendly ice pick. Moderation just isn't something I am capable of with Diet Coke, so I limit myself to only enjoying it when we go to restaurants and I have learned to be okay with that. I think each person has to figure out what is right for them.

ShrinkinMel

Well if its caffeinated it dehydrates and you need twice as much water to replace. Plus artificial sweeteners used are 100 times sweeter(well so I've read) and a lot more addictive. Surely there is no calories or fat but its not great for your body. On occasion I guess go for it if you like that taste(not for me, YUCK!).


Yes and teeth. ARGH It can destroy your teeth. Wish I had kept from drinking it the first time I gave it up in high school. I may have better teeth. I already have poor enamel issues.

ninerbuff

Diet soda affects your insulin level. Just ask your doctor! They don't allow you to drink diet soda before a fasting blood test because it affects your blood glucose readings. I weaned myself off of soda by drinking carbonated water in a fancy wine glass. And I drink less alcohol at dinner using the same trick. French and Italians already know this trick.

Almost anything you consume will basically affect your blood glucose level though. Diabetes is an insulin disorder. The ADA recommends diet soda as one of the zero calorie drinks for diabetics.

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sstolii123

All things in moderation is my philososophy. I drink 1 diet everyday. I look forward to a can of soda, it takes the place of something (else) sweet.

Soda - all soda - is hard on the enamel of your teeth. Many sodas can contribute to heartburn/acid reflux (root beer is the most mild).

I'm not going to give up sweets for life, so I'm going to have to deal with portion control eventually. I make room a treat everyday. Diet soda is a little helper....but it's not the end solution for me.

+1
I have a diet soda as a treat every once and a while. I know its not the best choice but their are a lot of worse things out there. I got myself hooked on carbonated water with lemon.

lizziebeth1028

As I try to reduce the amount of sugar I consume each day by avoiding prepackaged and processed food. I find myself craving sweets as expected, I realize these cravings should go away or at least be significantly reduced in the next few days to couple of weeks. BUT diet soda pop has zero calories and zero carbs yet still has the sweet taste I am craving. I have heard to give up carbonated drinks to include diet soda pop, also the artificial sweeteners that is used in diet soda may also cause health risks.

Juice has WAY to much sugar in it and so much water a day everyday gets boring. So is Diet soda pop worse than regular pop?

Honestly you will never get a definitive answer on this......especially from this forum. It's a great source of major debate on here. Personally for me - I drink it in moderation. 8 to 12 ounces a day. It has never caused me to crave sweets.

ninerbuff

the carbonic acid that makes the carbonation actually eats the enamel off your teeth making you 8x more likely to have cavities or tooth shattering with eating. (brittle think enamel) also the bubbles make your whole system more acidic...this can lead to ulcers and skin breakouts. Caffeine is a stimulant and you can become addicted to the rush and get headaches without it.....these are just a few.

Dosage matters which is why most things in moderation aren't really an issue to the general population.

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sstolii123

http://thechart.blogs.cnn.com/2013/07/10/diet-soda-may-do-more-harm-than-good/

Here is an interesting article on how diet soda tricks your body and it is only marginally better for you than regular soda!

ninerbuff

Yes and teeth. ARGH It can destroy your teeth. Wish I had kept from drinking it the first time I gave it up in high school. I may have better teeth. I already have poor enamel issues.

Bad teeth are usually the result of bad oral hygiene more than what someone eats or drinks.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness industry for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

BarbieAS

An overdose of certain artificial sweeteners can cause severe neurological symptoms and even permanent damage, I think also seizures and coma are a possibility. I forget what the OD dose was, but I do remember thinking that I couldn't consume that much artificial sweetener over the course of an entire day let alone in a short enough time to OD.

In order to overdose on aspartame, you would have to consume something like 75 cans of diet soda within an hour (in order to achieve the overall proper dose, accounting for the time it takes for the aspartame to break down). I wish I could find the exact math/number, but I've googled and googled and it seems I've lost track of it. At any rate, I'm 100% sure that it was more than 1 can/minute. You'd die of electrolyte imbalances WAY before you'd die of aspartame poisoning.

BarbieAS

Well if its caffeinated it dehydrates and you need twice as much water to replace.

That has been debunked. Even coffee, which has 3-5 times more caffeine per cup than soda depending on the roast and brew strength, has been proven to not actually cause any dehydration. In fact, it was shown to provide similar hydration effects to water. One can certainly extrapolate that soda, with a fraction of the caffeine, would behave similarly. http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0084154

ninerbuff

http://thechart.blogs.cnn.com/2013/07/10/diet-soda-may-do-more-harm-than-good/

Here is an interesting article on how diet soda tricks your body and it is only marginally better for you than regular soda!

It's an article of opinion. Lots of "association", "linked to", etc. but not actual cause. Looking deeper into the article there were some discrepancies on what was omitted from the overall studies.


A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness industry for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

twinteensmom

I have been told by both my doctor and my dentist that limiting dark sodas is a good idea. Apparently, the phosphorous in dark sodas can leech calcium from your bones, including your teeth. Also, my doctor told me that too much soda can damage your kidneys. I have NOT eliminated anything from my diet, including diet sodas. However, I do try to balance it out with lots of water.

rsoice

http://drtague.com/sodas-tasty-addictive-deadly/

http://healthyliving.msn.com/health-wellness/7-side-effects-of-drinking-diet-soda

"According to a 2008 University of Minnesota study of almost 10,000 adults, even just one diet soda a day is linked to a 34% higher risk of metabolic syndrome, the group of symptoms including belly fat and high cholesterol that puts you at risk for heart disease. Whether that link is attributed to an ingredient in diet soda or the drinkers' eating habits is unclear. But is that one can really worth it?"

The link attributed to an ingredient in diet soda OR the drinker's eating habits is unclear.

Just more fear mongering and supposition without supported facts.

One of the real reasons that people are demoninzing soda and diet soda:

Brownell wrote in a 2009 New England Journal of Medicine article supporting a soda tax

I don't know the science but I think google works for everyone and this seems like the ongoing spread of dubious "data".

jenniferv38

Diet coke has been my go to in situations where I am faced with the option of eating something worse. When my husband and kids want to go get ice cream, I can choose to stay home and miss out on spending time with them or I can go and sip on a cold diet coke while they eat ice cream. When I am at a family gathering or with friends, I sip on a diet coke as a way to stay away from all sorts off fatty, salty, sweet delicousness that I could easily inhale. Is it good for you? I don't know. Is it bad for you? I don't know that either. What I do know is that it gives me something to sip on so I don't feel as deprived or tempted. Believe me, there are times when all I want to do is throw my diet coke across the room and put some serious hurt on a plate of nachos (mmmmmm....nachos!). That is clearly something I need to work on...lol.

ValGogo

Diet Pepsi makes me mad. Makes me want to dring a regular Coke, because I hate Diet Coke.

Cathalain

I don't think it's horrible in moderation, but for me it's an absolute no-no. I used to drink it like it was water - really. I probably had the worst diet Coke habit in America - I used to drink a case (yes, a case, 24 twelve-ounce cans) a DAY.

That's overkill. So, for me, obviously I've had to give it up and there's no way I'll go back to it.

But for most, I don't think one a day will do any real harm.

jules0558

What diet soda has Stevia??

RobPA1

For years I drank at least one Diet soda (coke, pepsi, Dr Pepper, Mt dew) per day. read some bad things and gave up all soda about six months ago. Last night I took a sip of my kids Pepsi - it was so sweet and I couldn't imagine drinking it again. I feel better and the water I am drinking has had a positive effect on me.

SnuggleSmacks

What diet soda has Stevia??

Zevia: http://www.zevia.com/


You can find them at Whole Foods and a bunch of other "healthy" supermarkets.

melissa_tn

you've chosen the wrong place to ask this question, lol! You will get answers ranging from you can eat/drink anything and everything, even if it's cow dung, and as long as you stay in your caloric goal range you're good, to the so-named "fear mongers" saying it's not good for you. Do some legitimate research and form your own educated opinion. There are very few things that are one size fits all, so what's good for the goose isn't always what's good for the gander.

having said that, I have never liked diet drinks, so put me in the "don't drink it" category I suppose....

frannieshack

Anything that my husband uses to clean oil from our driveway is likely not the best thing to drink. Pass me the Fuji water, please!

THIS

justdance06

My family is a big Diet Coke family, so I grew up drinking it daily (or almost daily), even throughout college. Now I have cut down to probably 2x per week. I don't monitor it that closely, but like several other people have said it's about moderation and portion control. Try to swap out most juice / pop drinks for water, since usually they contain a lot of sugar or artificial sweeteners. And drink coffee or tea for caffeine. I drink a cup of coffee in the morning and water the rest of the day. Sometimes I will have Diet Coke with dinner.