Diet soda

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airforceman1979
airforceman1979 Posts: 94 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
First off I understand diet soda have zero calories I understand you have to have calories to affect weight what I don't understand is if I drink diet soda I do not lose weight I've done this 2 or 3 times to test it I'll drink diet soda for 2 or 3 weeks at a time and I don't lose weight I switch back to water and I lose tons I don't understand how a zero calorie drink can affect weight loss
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Replies

  • nosebag1212
    nosebag1212 Posts: 621 Member
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    water weight
  • guinevere96
    guinevere96 Posts: 1,445 Member
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    I don't know the science behind it but personally when I drink diet soda I tend to hold on to a lot of water weight, its not an actual gain its just my body retaining fluid. Your body tends to drop that after while or at least it balances out.
  • graywing2911
    graywing2911 Posts: 2 Member
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    On March 30th of this year, there was an article online in MedScape, titled Artificial Sweeteners - A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing, that really got my attention. Here is the link: http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/860431. It talks about how artificial sweeteners do indeed have zero calories, but that doesn't mean they have no effect on how our bodies are functioning. One area of research is how these chemicals affect the microflora (bacteria, etc.) that live in our digestive tracts. Apparently, there is a real shift in which bugs live inside us when we regularly drink diet drinks. This shift is believed to affect how our bodies respond to carbohydrates, even leading to glucose intolerance. The author presents the evidence that is available so far, and says that more research is needed, but it was enough for me to kick a 20-year-long diet soda habit.
  • elisa123gal
    elisa123gal Posts: 4,287 Member
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    I think it is smart of you to take note of what makes you lose weight and what doesn't .. I know my husband does the Adkins diet and in the book they say for some unknown reason drink diet soda with aspartame stalls weight loss .. They couldn't find concrete evidence as to why. But they said it was just a fact.

    On Dr. Oz. .he says the sugar substitutes send false signals to the brain. that you're eating something caloric and sweet.. therefore it never gets truly satisfied and keeps sending signals of hunger to the body. So they suggest to cut out sugar substitutes.

    I've naturally cut down on diet soda a lot and am happy for it. It sort of defies nutritional logic to drink anything with artificial sweeteners.
  • Seffell
    Seffell Posts: 2,222 Member
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    airforceman1979 wrote: »
    First off I understand diet soda have zero calories I understand you have to have calories to affect weight what I don't understand is if I drink diet soda I do not lose weight I've done this 2 or 3 times to test it I'll drink diet soda for 2 or 3 weeks at a time and I don't lose weight I switch back to water and I lose tons I don't understand how a zero calorie drink can affect weight loss
    It doesn't. It is a coinsidence. Something else is affecting your weight loss.
  • ronjsteele1
    ronjsteele1 Posts: 1,064 Member
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    I'm not going to get involved in the artificial sweetener debate. I have very strong opinions and experience with them. I do want to throw out that blue sky makes a zero calorie soda made with stevia. I'm not a fan of stevia's flavor at all but I do okay with the blue sky. Zevia is another brand although I don't like it near as much. Where nutrasweet made me crave more diet soda (and did serious damage to me), the stevia has no affects on me in that way. There is a noticeable difference between the two in how I feel and cravings when I drink/drank them. So if someone wants an alternative those would be worth looking in to. Hansen's might also use stevia but I've not ever checked to verify that.
  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
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    I lose weight while drinking diet soda - I've never seen a reliable study that proves otherwise. Like @gebeziseva said it's just coincidence.
  • graywing2911
    graywing2911 Posts: 2 Member
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    gebeziseva, I disagree. Our bodies store energy in two main ways, glycogen (a complex form of glucose) and fat. In the article I referred to above, Artificial Sweeteners - a Wolf in Sheep's Clothing?, the author talks about how our intestinal flora (bacteria, etc.) change when we consume artificial sweeteners. This leads to what the writer calls "a profound effect on the metabolic consequences related to dysbiosis [an imbalance of our gut bacteria]", and one of the consequences is the way our bodies handle carbohydrates. It may very well be that these changes lead to storage of more glycogen in the body (as well as fat). This can raise weight rather rapidly.

    Most dieters have had the experience where they loose a high number of pounds at the onset of the diet. This is attributed to water weight. What is actually happening, is that when we eat fewer calories, our body first turns to its store of glycogen for energy. The metabolic processes involved in using glycogen produce a lot of water, which we then urinate out, leading to the rapid loss we see in the first days of a diet. It may be that something like this happens when airforceman1979 has a period of weeks where diet beverages are consumed, then a period of weeks where they are not.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,509 Member
    edited October 2016
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    graywing2911 wrote: »
    gebeziseva, I disagree. Our bodies store energy in two main ways, glycogen (a complex form of glucose) and fat. In the article I referred to above, Artificial Sweeteners - a Wolf in Sheep's Clothing?, the author talks about how our intestinal flora (bacteria, etc.) change when we consume artificial sweeteners. This leads to what the writer calls "a profound effect on the metabolic consequences related to dysbiosis [an imbalance of our gut bacteria]", and one of the consequences is the way our bodies handle carbohydrates. It may very well be that these changes lead to storage of more glycogen in the body (as well as fat). This can raise weight rather rapidly.

    Most dieters have had the experience where they loose a high number of pounds at the onset of the diet. This is attributed to water weight. What is actually happening, is that when we eat fewer calories, our body first turns to its store of glycogen for energy. The metabolic processes involved in using glycogen produce a lot of water, which we then urinate out, leading to the rapid loss we see in the first days of a diet. It may be that something like this happens when airforceman1979 has a period of weeks where diet beverages are consumed, then a period of weeks where they are not.
    Well almost. Glycogen is the energy we have stored for PHYSICAL ACTIVITY. Most people increase their physical activity when then diet in some form, so they tend to burn more calories which taps glycogen, but it gets restored when you consume food again. Especially with exercise because the body is anticipating that physical activity will resume which is why it's NOT UNCOMMON to gain weight when taking on physical activity along with dieting. We lose BODY FAT at rest. But if our body is in a regular surplus, you're not going to lose body fat.
    Yes we have bacteria in our guts, but I believe that current research is lacking. You know who's guts they should be studying? Prison inmates. They eat horribly low quality, low nutrient dense foods 3 times a day, yet for some reason don't have the same obesity issues. And they aren't dying from the food they are eating either.

    My personal opinion is this research on gut microbiata is majoring in the minors. If people aren't losing weight, is usually because of a couple of things. They either are eating more than they need to and don't know it, exercising less than they think they are but logging it as a lot, or they have a genetic/health issue that's impeding their progress.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
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    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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  • Cerealsensei
    Cerealsensei Posts: 1,625 Member
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    i dont know the exact science behind it but I pretty much only drink water and green tea and it's definitely made a huge difference. I'd suggest probably cutting out sodas altogether, or maybe just have one every once in awhile ( I still enjoy the occasional sprite) the thing is even if it's low in calories i'd imagine diet sodas still have some kind of high sugar content which isn't the best thing for you/
  • WinoGelato
    WinoGelato Posts: 13,454 Member
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    airforceman1979 wrote: »
    First off I understand diet soda have zero calories I understand you have to have calories to affect weight what I don't understand is if I drink diet soda I do not lose weight I've done this 2 or 3 times to test it I'll drink diet soda for 2 or 3 weeks at a time and I don't lose weight I switch back to water and I lose tons I don't understand how a zero calorie drink can affect weight loss

    I'm not really understanding what you are saying, can you help clarify?

    What beverages do you normally drink? Water? Soda (regular)? Juice? Coffee? Tea?

    Then when you do your experiment, what are you changing? Which of the above do you substitute the diet soda for?

    What is your total diet like? How many calories are you eating per day? Are you logging accurately, ideally using a food scale? What is your maintenance calorie level or TDEE?

    When you do your experiment with diet soda, are you changing any other factors, like the foods you are eating or your total calorie consumption?
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,509 Member
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    Cerealsensei wrote: »
    i dont know the exact science behind it but I pretty much only drink water and green tea and it's definitely made a huge difference. I'd suggest probably cutting out sodas altogether, or maybe just have one every once in awhile ( I still enjoy the occasional sprite) the thing is even if it's low in calories i'd imagine diet sodas still have some kind of high sugar content which isn't the best thing for you/
    Diet sodas are void of sugar. There are sodas with less sugar, but they aren't diet sodas.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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  • AnvilHead
    AnvilHead Posts: 18,344 Member
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    elisa123gal wrote: »
    I think it is smart of you to take note of what makes you lose weight and what doesn't .. I know my husband does the Adkins diet and in the book they say for some unknown reason drink diet soda with aspartame stalls weight loss .. They couldn't find concrete evidence as to why. But they said it was just a fact.

    On Dr. Oz. .he says the sugar substitutes send false signals to the brain. that you're eating something caloric and sweet.. therefore it never gets truly satisfied and keeps sending signals of hunger to the body. So they suggest to cut out sugar substitutes.

    I've naturally cut down on diet soda a lot and am happy for it. It sort of defies nutritional logic to drink anything with artificial sweeteners.

    The bolded part should be your clue to stop paying attention. Whenever Dr. Oz opens his mouth, garbage comes out. He was admonished by the U.S. Congress for telling lies to the American public about weight loss and nutrition. He apparently was once a respected cardiothoracic surgeon, but he sold out in the name of the almighty dollar and is now nothing more than a sleazy snake oil peddler.

    As to the OP, there is no evidence that diet soda stalls weight loss or causes weight gain. Weight loss is about calories in < calories out, and a zero calorie drink does not affect that balance. I've drank diet soda for many, many years - I've gained weight while drinking it, I've maintained my weight while drinking it and I've lost weight while drinking it. In all cases, it had nothing to do with the diet soda - it had to do with my overall calorie intake.
  • Nachise
    Nachise Posts: 395 Member
    edited October 2016
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    Diet sodas, well...all sodas contain sodium, which in high amounts, can affect kidney function and cause you to retain water weight. Additionally, this is complicated by the amounts of potassium and phosphorus in diet sodas, both of which will adversely affect kidney function. If you are knocking back more than a couple of 12oz diet sodas a day, you may want to look at dropping those altogether and switch to water. Being kind to your kidneys will help you lose weight. If I need a caffeine kick, I'll drink coffee or tea.

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