What are the true SCIENTIFIC facts that diet soda is bad for

puggleperson

Does anyone have any good hard SCIENTIFIC proven facts regarding this topic.. Please share if you do... I hear a lot of hear say but I have never heard from a Doctor or scientist... I drink a lot of diet coke and I will quit if there is a need to but if not, why quit when I enjoy it?? Thanks yall!

Really pissed that James Durbin got kicked off of Idol tonight BTW! Pissed!

qued3point14

My doc TOLD me to drink diet soda because I drink so much fluid I need the extra sodium. IDK, i think it's BS.

qued3point14

The only thing I DID hear that sounded reasonable, was that it CAN make you hungrier and eat more and some people when removing regular soda from their diet and replacing with diet will overcompensate with food calories. I can see this happening.

absolament

It's not naturally occurring. That should be reason enough that the body doesn't need it.

Elzecat

I decided to stop drinking it because it's all chemicals...I also stopped eating a lot of processed foods for the same reason.

A really good friend of mine told me her dentist recommended she quit because the diet soda she was consuming was eating away at the enamel on her teeth. That was enough for her to quit cold turkey.

I've read a few things that say it stimulates the appetite (certainly something we don't need when we're trying to curb the calories!) but I haven't read any actual scientific studies. I'm sure there are some out there.

nikki_zav

This is a pretty good article.
http://www.womentowomen.com/healthyweight/dietsoda.aspx

Obviously, you aren't going to keel over and die from a few Diet Cokes...everything in moderation, right?? The overall health benefits of not drinking an excessive amount of diet sodas is growing tremendously, especially for long term. If you google "Diet Coke is good for you" most of the articles that come back are the negative side effects of diet sodas. Search some of the threads in MFP too and see how many people rave about their weight loss when quitting soda....diet or regular.

oxavecamourxo

Look up the affects of aspartame and the BPA that lines soda cans.

SoFLYFireman

Diet sodas and sodas themselves are not natural, as the person above stated. its also packed with this....


http://aspartame.mercola.com/

that itself is enough of a reason to stay away

chevy88grl

There have been a lot of studies that had to do with artificial sweeteners - such as aspartame. The result, from what I've read, of those studies is they aren't sure how our bodies react to these sweeteners long term. Some studies have shown they can cause cancer and such in lab rats.

For me personally, I know sugar isn't good for me -- but, I'd much rather put natural sugar into my body than put any kind of artificial sweetener in. However, it is hard to get away from them - so, I try and limit how much of it I have. Here's the thing you'll quickly learn - you can find a study, experiment or "expert" for anything you want to know about -- the internet is FULL of articles about EVERYTHING.

LauraLLee

diet coke appears to have links to loss of memory and possibly dementia over long term use. My mother has been drinking diet coke and before that tab for 40 years and it has affected her. No doubt about it. Be keep in mind that is all she was drinking. No water, milk or anything healthy.

Noctuary

I drink Diet Dr Pepper every day.

Luthorcrow

Diet soda has been found to be linked to weight gain in several scientific studies. Here is the full text of one conducted by the University of Texas.

LINK: http://www.nature.com/oby/journal/v16/n8/full/oby2008284a.html

It makes sense considering a lot of factory farms use the same sweeteners to fatten cows.

It is not conclusive but my general rule is water should be 90% of what you drink. Besides clearly, it is easier on your kidneys.

jrp31

Here's a link to why soda and cola in general is probably bad for your bones: http://www.eatingwell.com/nutrition_health/bone_health/can_drinking_seltzers_sodas_or_other_carbonated_drinks_harm_bones

KnightOwl

One word. Formaldehyde. Yeah...the stuff they used to use to EMBALM people with... that's why drinking diet soda everyday is bad for you. When aspartame is ingested it produces metabolites. One of these metabolites is methanol (an alcohol that is the main ingredient in antifreeze, windshield was, gasoline). Methanol can then be further metabolized by some body tissues into formaldehyde. Yup, that's right, your body converts aspartame into formaldehyde. Formaldehyde binds to tissue protein and, in the first study below and several others, has been linked to increased radioactivity in those proteins. Formaldehyde was also shown to bind to thymocytes (cells of the thymus-an organ that produces T-cells for your immune system) and can actually cause cell death at high doses (second study). You want more studies? Google Scholar aspartame... see what you find... you'd be amazed. Check out the third one I put on here about how it affects appetite stimulation. Oh yeah, and the International Agency for Research on Cancer has classified formaldehyde as a class 1 carcinogen...along with arsenic, asbestos, cadmium, gamma rays... yeah. bad stuff.

I don't know about you, but the thought of putting something that turns into formaldehyde in my mouth grosses me out. For all of you biologists or scientists out there who have ever dissected various things and smelt the lovely aroma of formalin (formaldehyde in water)... think about that every time you put a diet soda to your lips. BLECK.

Sorry... I know this is long and overly detailed.... that's what happens when a science nerd is bored at work at four in the morning >.<

1. http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&amp;_udi=B6T99-3THHCW2-3&amp;_user=1935081&amp;_coverDate=06/26/1998&amp;_rdoc=1&amp;_fmt=high&amp;_orig=gateway&amp;_origin=gateway&amp;_sort=d&amp;_docanchor=&amp;view=c&amp;_searchStrId=1751581202&amp;_rerunOrigin=scholar.google&amp;_acct=C000055451&amp;_version=1&amp;_urlVersion=0&amp;_userid=1935081&amp;md5=7e6b99a59d9b498fe4a1a43152b06ea4&amp;searchtype=a

2. http://www.springerlink.com/content/42jf0utmw8xp4m31/

3. http://agris.fao.org/agris-search/search/display.do?f=1987/US/US87248.xml;US8731275

carolynmittens

I strongly, STRONGLY recommend anyone here who finds the labels "diet" or "low fat" or "sugar-free" enticing to read the book "Skinny B-tich" by Rory Freedman and Kim Barnouin. Here's what they say on diet soda:

"Now don't go patting yourself on the back if you drink diet soda. That stuff is even worse. Aspartame (an ingredient commonly found in diet sodas and other sugar-free foods) has been blamed for a slew of scary maladies, like arthritis, birth defects, fibromyalgia, Alzheimer's, lupus, multiple sclerosis, and diabetes. When methyl alcohol, a component of aspartame, enters your body, it turns into formaldehyde. Formaldehyde is toxic and carcinogenic (cancer-causing). Laboratory scientists use formaldehyde as a disinfectant or preservative. They don't f--king DRINK it. The FDA has received more complaints about aspartame than any other ingredient to date. "

carolynmittens

oh by the way, the authors cite all their sources, which i was too lazy to include :flowerforyou:

carolynmittens

My doc TOLD me to drink diet soda because I drink so much fluid I need the extra sodium. IDK, i think it's BS.

this is a terrifying statement, but it's not really surprising since the amount of training an MD has in nutrition is.................

2 credit hours.

2 hours!!!! people, please do not ask your doctor nutrition advice. go to a doctor if you have a broken arm, see a nutritionist if you need advice on nutrition.

Valtishia

A co-worker sent me a video after seeing me drink a diet pepsi... and after giving me crap for drinking said diet pepsi lol

The video didn't especially attack diet soda, so much as just soda (regardless of type)

From what I understood, it messes with your PH balance. Acidic food vs Alkaline foods in your system. Soda is considered highly acidic.

I have also heard of different things with aspartame, but haven't read much into it.

Valtishia

My doc TOLD me to drink diet soda because I drink so much fluid I need the extra sodium. IDK, i think it's BS.

this is a terrifying statement, but it's not really surprising since the amount of training an MD has in nutrition is.................

2 credit hours.

2 hours!!!! people, please do not ask your doctor nutrition advice. go to a doctor if you have a broken arm, see a nutritionist if you need advice on nutrition.

I totally agree with this!!! My old doctor kept telling me over and over, that I was eating too much and needed to cut all these things out of my diet. However, not once did he ask me what or how much I ate. After each visit being told these things, I eventually ended at 1 meal a day and gaining. I didn't worry about the foods cause I didn't eat them anyways. I had to fight for a nutritionist referal. The nutritionist had me do a food diary for a bit and when she looked at it, told me that my choices were good but i wasn't eating nearly enough. I told my doctor that, he said he didn't believe that for one second that the nutritionist would tell me something so silly. Needless to say, I stopped going to that doctor....

sweet_lotus

The EFSA (European Food Safety Authority) recently did a scientific review on aspartame, the sweetener used in diet sodas, here: http://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/supporting/doc/1641.pdf

They go through the current scientific literature in detail. They didn't find enough data to suggest that aspartame, at an acceptable daily intake, causes cancer or neurotoxicity in humans.

But, read it and decide for yourself.

The only thing that I saw of concern was that there is some evidence that artificial sweeteners might have "modulating affects on satiety and appetite" but notes that actual effect on food intake has not been studied.

ashleigh2311

IDK what articles say, i love pepsi max, artificial or not.

Maybe one day i will give it up but its not doing me any harm now and if it fills me up and stops me unhealthy snacking then i am going to continue drinking it

plus i need the caffeine.

Airbear3

I love soda! i was brought up on it! addicted! i switched to diet! but all the talk scares me so noe i have limited to one at the end of my day! its my treat after ahard days workout and eating right!

TrainingWithTonya

Here you go:

Increased risk of Metabolic Syndrome and Type 2 Diabetes
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19151203

Increased risk of Kidney Function Decline
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20884773

redfroggie

I gave up soda over 3 years ago. I drink water ALL day long. I also have 2 cups of coffee a day. I don't miss soda at all. I occasionally take a sip of hubbys just to confirm that it's nasty. Now don't get me wrong, I was badly addicted. I tried the switch to diet soda. I found that I was experiencing mood swings and migraines. I went to my doctor and the only change to my diet was switching to diet soda, she told me I was having an allergic reaction and could not have artificial sweetners at all. I don't ingest anything with aspartame, splenda..anything, I have not had a migraine in over 10 years.
I've read the studies and it's f'ing scary what that stuff does to you. I tell everyone and anyone, if you must drink soda, please don't drink diet.

I'm loving these articles, I have a friend who is very morbidly obese, he goes everywhere with a special stool so he can sit down. He thinks that diet soda is not contributing to his weight gain, I am going to flood him with these articles.

Lleldiranne

I don't have the research to quote, but aspartame, splenda, and sacchrine can be bad for you in HIGH amounts. Basically, though, you'd have to eat a whole lot every day, though, before seeing effects (unless you happen to be one of the people who are sensitive to them). All the studies I've ever seen that say anything more than that are either anecdotal ("it happened to these people" without statistical analysis to back up claims), spurious (the relationship between both is coincidental or caused by some third factor more likely to be responsible for both) or merely correlational (which does not imply causation). This goes for all the cancers and disorders they supposedly cause and for the "links" to increased appetite.

That said, we know that carbonic acid can dissolve calcium deposits (think, teeth!) and phosphoric acid isn't good for your body either. Again, in moderation (a couple of sodas a week) won't kill you. But if you're consuming several a day (especially those enormous cups you get at convenience stores) you're probably not doing your body any favors. Caffeine is also an addictive substance, and in large amounts can cause health problems, but again, in moderation is generally safe.

Basically, soda in any form is a junk food. Drinking diet soda doesn't really make it any better for you, except you're not getting the extra sugar and calories. Try to have them for a treat instead of part of your daily fare.

geraintf

The atrifical sweetner in diet drinks basically tells your body "get ready for sugar" but then you don't get any sugar so you end up eating/craving sweet things.

A experiment was done with a rugby team. The team was split up into two groups. After a training session group a drank water, group b drank diet coke, both groups then went to an all you can eat buffet and they found that player who had drunk the diet coke ate twice asmuch more as those who drunk water

stariera

I can tell you where to look there is a husband/wife team
Robert O. Young and Shelley Redford Young they wrote a book about The pH miracle and how balancing your diet the right way helps you to shed the pounds to get down where your natural body weight should be.

They did extensive tests on alot of foods... they approached it from a biological side of things and how the different foods actually affect our body.

Most artificail sweeteners are more acidic then processed sugar. Stevia being from a natural plant does not fall into this. It is on the alkaline side of things. From what I read the acid causes you body to produce fat to protect your organs from the acid. They even have pictures of the blood before and after People ate given foods and how it affected the bloos cells.

sbwood888

Something in carbonated drinks leeches calcium from your bones (according to my doctor). I hate to hear that, but I drink my diet Dew Anyway. Hopefully my calcium supplements are making up for my bad diet soda habit.