the real deal on diet soda?

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  • Schwiggity
    Schwiggity Posts: 1,449 Member
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    When filtering out all the nonsense diets and cliche's.........everything in moderation is what works. Calories in vs. calories out......and once in a while a diet soda is perfectly fine! Trainers don't know it all, Dr's will tell you that in moderation it's fine. I am trying to cut back on diet soda, because that is ALL I drink, I"m trying to add more water to up the health factor.

    I thought I remembered reading that trainers aren't even supposed to give you nutritional advice since they're not a qualified nutritionist.
  • nhgirl30
    nhgirl30 Posts: 52 Member
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    The sodium in soda is what makes it not the healthiest choice. The topic of fake sugar being bad is still up for debate. I say enjoy the diet soda a couple times a week.
  • Lleldiranne
    Lleldiranne Posts: 5,516 Member
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    No soda is good for you, diet, regular, caffeinated, caffein-free, etc.
    Which is worse can depend on you. For example, if you're diabetic, regular soda is like poison, and diet is better. But if you're one who is sensitive to aspartame, diet soda is worse.

    I'm not saying drink no soda at all. I'm just saying, always regard soda as a treat. One or two a day (talking 12 oz cans here, not the gallon-sized cups you can get at the convenience store) might not hurt, but it's better to use even more moderation. Save it for a party or going out to movies or dinner or something. You'll actually enjoy the taste more when you're not drinking it all the time! (At least I do).
  • leilaphoenix
    leilaphoenix Posts: 839 Member
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    I'm the editor of this science blog - you should read this

    http://euroscientist.com/2011/04/pivot-points-is-your-diet-cola-blinding/

    In my personal opinion - diet sodas are not harmful but not healthy either. If you like it, then drink it but not as a substitute for water. Its not evil.
  • LorinaLynn
    LorinaLynn Posts: 13,247 Member
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    The sodium in soda is what makes it not the healthiest choice. The topic of fake sugar being bad is still up for debate. I say enjoy the diet soda a couple times a week.

    Sodium, in moderation, isn't a bad thing, though. There's a lot more in a sports drink (Gatorade, Powerade, etc) than in soda. A serving of Diet Pepsi has 25mg, vs 100 mg or more in the same size serving of Gatorade.

    For that matter, there's been a study that says that beer is best post workout. :D

    http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/3312579/Beer-after-sport-is-good-for-the-body.html
  • supershiny
    supershiny Posts: 170 Member
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    I say drink your diet coke! I personally don't due to the citric acid (my family has a history of enamel erosion AND I have GERD) and the aspartame (as it is a major trigger for migraines...). Like someone else said, we all react differently. There are studies out there that will tell you that eating grilled meat is going to give you cancer (it has carcinogens! :OO) but in reality since we aren't chewing on charcoal we are probably fine.

    That said, I did have a roommate who drank ~15-20 diet cokes a day and had to switch to coffee for her caffeine fix (I think the diet coke was too expensive or something like that...), and she went into physical withdrawal, even though she was drinking the same amount of caffeine from the coffee. We're pretty nerdy people so we were really fascinated by her reaction and did a bunch of research on why. We don't know what caused her to have such a severe reaction, but she still drinks 1-2 cans a day :)

    Edit: oh, one caveat is that I don't drink ANY pop b/c of the citric acid... so bad for my teeth :( I also don't drink/eat citrus really for the same reason. Boo!
  • mandie26
    mandie26 Posts: 59
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    I won't say if it's good or bad for you, as there is so many studies and evidence provided for both sides of the argument.

    I will say, however, that you should be drinking water instead of soda, but that's a given. Having a soda or a fizzy drink occasionally won't affect you at all, but drinking soda everyday (especially multiple times a day) might mean you're not getting enough water.

    My general rule of thumb is to never eat or drink things with ingredients I can't pronounce/don't know what they are (well, i stick to this 90% of the time, anyway..heh). so natural foods, organics and fresh produce FTW :)
  • dfd1231
    dfd1231 Posts: 1
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    Sodas are bad for you. Period. They rob your bones of calcium making them brittle and porous. Diet sodas are the worst of all. They use artificial sweeteners which cause problems too numerous to mention here. Research nutrasweet, sweet & low and now splenda. Do yourself a favor and quit drinking all sodas. I quit over 30 years ago. There is no nutritional value to them at all. I hope all the best to you.
  • wildon883r
    wildon883r Posts: 429 Member
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    I don't drink soda but on the rare occasion that i do it will be a regular Pepsi or Coke. Nothing healthy about diet soda.
  • Gettinfit2
    Gettinfit2 Posts: 254 Member
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    If you think it's bad for you don't drink it.

    I don't totally but into the good food - bad food hype. Too much of anything is bad.
  • mzabelny
    mzabelny Posts: 3 Member
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    I just got back from my doctor's office to discuss my weight gain. She told me to cut out soda, that would make a noticeable difference right away. I said I only drink diet, maybe one a day... she said the diet soda is worse than regular. Stop it right away. If I must have, I should have a small amount of regular soda, it's better than diet. On a different note, she also said a good night's sleep, going to bed before 10:00pm makes a noticable difference. Who knew?
  • mapexdrummer69
    mapexdrummer69 Posts: 445
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    I just got back from my doctor's office to discuss my weight gain. She told me to cut out soda, that would make a noticeable difference right away. I said I only drink diet, maybe one a day... she said the diet soda is worse than regular. Stop it right away. If I must have, I should have a small amount of regular soda, it's better than diet. On a different note, she also said a good night's sleep, going to bed before 10:00pm makes a noticable difference. Who knew?


    Did she happen to mention the reasoning behind her claims?
  • mzabelny
    mzabelny Posts: 3 Member
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    I was on the way out, but she quickly explained, at my age (46) the body acts differently. (well anybody at any age, each one is different) the sodium and the bloating from the carbonation have an adverse affect. And diet soda can make you crave more food. (kind of like Chinese food makes you hungry an hour later) Also it's effect on your liver and kidneys creates a chain reaction. It's just better to skip it all together, or have just regular soda as a treat once in a while. On the sleep thing, a full night's sleep allows your body time to metabolize. I didn't get an extensive research paper, but that's what I got. lol It's worth a shot.

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