Is Diet Pepsi Really Bad For Me?

CleanUpWhatIMessedUp

You hear it all the time that drinking soda is bad for you and I am curious why. Now, I know it doesn't matter calorie wise, because diet pepsi has zero calories in it. But is it actually bad for my health to drink diet pepsi. If so, why? Because I don't understand how it could be. I do get that it is probably not that great for my teeth because it is acidic. But other than that, it doesn't really seem to have anything else in it that could be too bad for my health. According to the can there are 35mg of sodium in a 12oz can. Is that a lot? Is sodium the reason it is bad for my health?

jimmmer

<---- lives on coke zero.

Is still alive.

keniaclimaco5

This and other research shows how diet sodas make people fat and sick.

And that diet drinks may be even worse than regular sugar sweetened sodas!!

How does that happen?

Artificial sweeteners are hundreds to thousands of times sweeter than regular sugar activating our genetically programmed preference for sweet taste more than any other substance.
They trick your metabolism into thinking sugar is on its way. This causes your body to pump out insulin, the fat storage hormone, which lays down more belly fat.
It also confuses and slows your metabolism down, so you burn less calories every day.
It makes you hungrier and crave even more sugar and starchy carbs like bread and pasta.
In animal studies, the rats that consumed artificial sweeteners ate more, their metabolism slowed, and they put on 14 percent more body fat in just two weeks – EVEN eating less calories.
In population studies there was a 200 percent increased risk of obesity in diet soda drinkers.

tigersword

It's certainly NOT bad for you. Nutritionally it provides hydration. Discounting any negligible calories, or an allergy to an ingredient in the soda, it's identical to drinking water from a hydration and health standpoint.

WalkingAlong

It's harmless. It's not even particularly rough on teeth. I've been drinking probably 40+ oz. a day for 25 years and I have no issues, teeth or otherwise.

keniaclimaco5

Weight gain and belly fat. Ironically, we actually gain weight from Diet Coke. In two studies conducted by the School of Medicine at The University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio, those “who said they consumed two or more diet sodas a day, experienced waist circumference increases that were 500 percent greater than those of non-users.”

It causes diabetes and heart disease. When waist circumference (belly fat) increases, this contributes to diabetes and heart disease, which a 2010 study in the Journal of General Internal Medicine confirmed.

It makes your kidneys sluggish. Diet soda may interfere with the kidneys, found the Harvard Nurse’s Study, which reported a 30% drop in kidney function with just two servings of diet soda each day.

Aspartame’s been linked to cancer. A lot. Aspartame is “generally recognized as safe” by the FDA while substantial data has shown its link to cancer. The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) cautions against Aspartame because it’s poorly tested, and contains three well-recognized neurotoxins. Aspartame was found to increase cancer risk if exposure begins in the womb, reported a study at the Cesare Maltoni Cancer Research Center. And various studies have linked lymphoma and tumors in rats. And beware the BPA of cans and caramel coloring, reports Grist.

Frood42

There were or are concerns in some camps about artificial sweetners.


Me, not overly concerned.
I am of the mind that moderation is where it is at.
.

granturismo

..Artificial sweeteners are hundreds to thousands of times sweeter than regular sugar activating our genetically programmed preference for sweet taste more than any other substance.
They trick your metabolism into thinking sugar is on its way. This causes your body to pump out insulin, the fat storage hormone, which lays down more belly fat.
It also confuses and slows your metabolism down, so you burn less calories every day.
It makes you hungrier and crave even more sugar and starchy carbs like bread and pasta.
...

What she said.

Also, 35mg Sodium is not a lot - your mfp should have a sodium limit when you enter your daily food entries.

tigersword

This and other research shows how diet sodas make people fat and sick.

And that diet drinks may be even worse than regular sugar sweetened sodas!!

How does that happen?

Artificial sweeteners are hundreds to thousands of times sweeter than regular sugar activating our genetically programmed preference for sweet taste more than any other substance.
They trick your metabolism into thinking sugar is on its way. This causes your body to pump out insulin, the fat storage hormone, which lays down more belly fat.
It also confuses and slows your metabolism down, so you burn less calories every day.
It makes you hungrier and crave even more sugar and starchy carbs like bread and pasta.
In animal studies, the rats that consumed artificial sweeteners ate more, their metabolism slowed, and they put on 14 percent more body fat in just two weeks – EVEN eating less calories.
In population studies there was a 200 percent increased risk of obesity in diet soda drinkers.

Weight gain and belly fat. Ironically, we actually gain weight from Diet Coke. In two studies conducted by the School of Medicine at The University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio, those “who said they consumed two or more diet sodas a day, experienced waist circumference increases that were 500 percent greater than those of non-users.”

It causes diabetes and heart disease. When waist circumference (belly fat) increases, this contributes to diabetes and heart disease, which a 2010 study in the Journal of General Internal Medicine confirmed.

It makes your kidneys sluggish. Diet soda may interfere with the kidneys, found the Harvard Nurse’s Study, which reported a 30% drop in kidney function with just two servings of diet soda each day.

Aspartame’s been linked to cancer. A lot. Aspartame is “generally recognized as safe” by the FDA while substantial data has shown its link to cancer. The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) cautions against Aspartame because it’s poorly tested, and contains three well-recognized neurotoxins. Aspartame was found to increase cancer risk if exposure begins in the womb, reported a study at the Cesare Maltoni Cancer Research Center. And various studies have linked lymphoma and tumors in rats. And beware the BPA of cans and caramel coloring, reports Grist.

All of this is false.

WTramontana

Soda, in particular of the cola variety, is poor for your health because it's acidity alters pH levels of the body until the body can regulate and equalize back to homeostasis.

--

W. Tramontana | NREMT

bajoyba

35mg is not a lot of sodium. If you have issues with your overall sodium consumption, I doubt a soda here and there is the deciding factor. The only thing I personally have issues with is caffeine. I limit my caffeine intake because too much caffeine just doesn't agree with me, but if it doesn't bother you then no worries there.

You hear a lot about the dangers of artificial sweeteners, but this thread should help with that: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1308408-why-aspartame-isn-t-scary

jimmmer

Weight gain and belly fat. Ironically, we actually gain weight from Diet Coke. In two studies conducted by the School of Medicine at The University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio, those “who said they consumed two or more diet sodas a day, experienced waist circumference increases that were 500 percent greater than those of non-users.”

It causes diabetes and heart disease. When waist circumference (belly fat) increases, this contributes to diabetes and heart disease, which a 2010 study in the Journal of General Internal Medicine confirmed.

It makes your kidneys sluggish. Diet soda may interfere with the kidneys, found the Harvard Nurse’s Study, which reported a 30% drop in kidney function with just two servings of diet soda each day.

Aspartame’s been linked to cancer. A lot. Aspartame is “generally recognized as safe” by the FDA while substantial data has shown its link to cancer. The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) cautions against Aspartame because it’s poorly tested, and contains three well-recognized neurotoxins. Aspartame was found to increase cancer risk if exposure begins in the womb, reported a study at the Cesare Maltoni Cancer Research Center. And various studies have linked lymphoma and tumors in rats. And beware the BPA of cans and caramel coloring, reports Grist.

When I've finished this cut and am back to sub-10% bf whilst drinking diet coke what will your bollocks research say about that?

That_Girl

<---- lives on coke zero.

Is still alive.

Doesn't mean your cells are healthy.

My grams smokes. She's still alive.

likitisplit

Weight gain and belly fat. Ironically, we actually gain weight from Diet Coke. In two studies conducted by the School of Medicine at The University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio, those “who said they consumed two or more diet sodas a day, experienced waist circumference increases that were 500 percent greater than those of non-users.”

It causes diabetes and heart disease. When waist circumference (belly fat) increases, this contributes to diabetes and heart disease, which a 2010 study in the Journal of General Internal Medicine confirmed.

It makes your kidneys sluggish. Diet soda may interfere with the kidneys, found the Harvard Nurse’s Study, which reported a 30% drop in kidney function with just two servings of diet soda each day.

Aspartame’s been linked to cancer. A lot. Aspartame is “generally recognized as safe” by the FDA while substantial data has shown its link to cancer. The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) cautions against Aspartame because it’s poorly tested, and contains three well-recognized neurotoxins. Aspartame was found to increase cancer risk if exposure begins in the womb, reported a study at the Cesare Maltoni Cancer Research Center. And various studies have linked lymphoma and tumors in rats. And beware the BPA of cans and caramel coloring, reports Grist.

When I've finished this cut and am back to sub-10% bf whilst drinking diet coke what will your bollocks research say about that?

YOU ARE GO8ING TOE DIE1111!!!!

That_Girl

Weight gain and belly fat. Ironically, we actually gain weight from Diet Coke. In two studies conducted by the School of Medicine at The University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio, those “who said they consumed two or more diet sodas a day, experienced waist circumference increases that were 500 percent greater than those of non-users.”

It causes diabetes and heart disease. When waist circumference (belly fat) increases, this contributes to diabetes and heart disease, which a 2010 study in the Journal of General Internal Medicine confirmed.

It makes your kidneys sluggish. Diet soda may interfere with the kidneys, found the Harvard Nurse’s Study, which reported a 30% drop in kidney function with just two servings of diet soda each day.

Aspartame’s been linked to cancer. A lot. Aspartame is “generally recognized as safe” by the FDA while substantial data has shown its link to cancer. The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) cautions against Aspartame because it’s poorly tested, and contains three well-recognized neurotoxins. Aspartame was found to increase cancer risk if exposure begins in the womb, reported a study at the Cesare Maltoni Cancer Research Center. And various studies have linked lymphoma and tumors in rats. And beware the BPA of cans and caramel coloring, reports Grist.

When I've finished this cut and am back to sub-10% bf whilst drinking diet coke what will your bollocks research say about that?

Dude. GOOD for you! Yay you!

srslybritt

I drink at least one Diet Pepsi per day. Really, it's going to boil down to what you want to believe. I have yet to see a reliable scientific study that links diet soda with harmful affects. The only ones I've seen have been flawed pretty fundamentally (mainly that they use rats in their studies known to spontaneously sprout tumors unrelated to environmental factors).

Do some research and draw your own conclusions. You'll meet people on either side of the issue that will insist they are correct. If you have any adverse effects after starting artificial sweeteners, see a doc and get tested for PKU, because it worsens over time and can really negatively impact your health.

As for sodium, if you do not have cardiovascular issues or are not at risk for cardiovascular issues based on genetics and your medical history, it's probably mostly irrelevant. I don't track sodium at all, unless I feel bloaty, in which case I will turn to that. Sodium intake isn't as important as long as you're hydrating yourself. If you ingest a lot of sodium, you'll need to drink extra water to prevent bloating.

Hope this helps. Also read:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1235566-so-you-re-new-here?hl=so+you're+new+here

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/974888-in-place-of-a-road-map-2k13

Edited to add this (seriously, read it): http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1308408-why-aspartame-isn-t-scary

It's got a lot of big words and is really intimidating, but he does an amazing job of breaking it down and references the things I said above. I couldn't find it when I did my search (couldn't remember what it was called ver batim), so thank you person!

George_Baileys_Ghost

Nope. Odds are, you're fine. Enjoy!

JoRocka

Weight gain and belly fat. Ironically, we actually gain weight from Diet Coke. In two studies conducted by the School of Medicine at The University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio, those “who said they consumed two or more diet sodas a day, experienced waist circumference increases that were 500 percent greater than those of non-users.”

It causes diabetes and heart disease. When waist circumference (belly fat) increases, this contributes to diabetes and heart disease, which a 2010 study in the Journal of General Internal Medicine confirmed.

It makes your kidneys sluggish. Diet soda may interfere with the kidneys, found the Harvard Nurse’s Study, which reported a 30% drop in kidney function with just two servings of diet soda each day.

Aspartame’s been linked to cancer. A lot. Aspartame is “generally recognized as safe” by the FDA while substantial data has shown its link to cancer. The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) cautions against Aspartame because it’s poorly tested, and contains three well-recognized neurotoxins. Aspartame was found to increase cancer risk if exposure begins in the womb, reported a study at the Cesare Maltoni Cancer Research Center. And various studies have linked lymphoma and tumors in rats. And beware the BPA of cans and caramel coloring, reports Grist.

please read more and post less. seriously.

williams969

35mg is not a lot of sodium. If you have issues with your overall sodium consumption, I doubt a soda here and there is the deciding factor. The only thing I personally have issues with is caffeine. I limit my caffeine intake because too much caffeine just doesn't agree with me, but if it doesn't bother you then no worries there.

You hear a lot about the dangers of artificial sweeteners, but this thread should help with that: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1308408-why-aspartame-isn-t-scary

Another DIet Pepsi drinker. Definitely read the OP in the above link (and the other 500 responses, if you've time, or not, lol). I have a medical need to limit my sodium, yet my doctor is perfectly fine with my 2 a day Diet Pepsi intake. To put it in perspective, a big fist full of raw, organic spinach and veggies in my daily salad has MORE sodium than my Diet Pepsi.

PS: OP--yeah, the only thing to worry about in the soda is probably the acid on your teeth. But, the same acid is in fruit and many other foods, too. Meh, don't gargle it or swish it in your mouth, or use a straw, right?

rejectuf

No studies have found that artificial sweeteners have any appreciable effect on insulin. So yeah, drink diet soda if you want. I'd be more worried about the caffeine in it than the artificial sweeteners to be honest.

MizTerry

Yes! It is da debil!

We're all going to DIE! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA