While you may save yourself around 200 calories a "pop," there are a multitude of drawbacks to consider when choosing diet soda over regular –– as presented in this article and by conducting your own investigation.
Furthermore, David S. Ludwig, MD, PhD, Harvard Professor, in his article –– Artificially Sweetened Beverages Cause for Concern, which was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) in December 2009, challenges the notion that artificial sweeteners are risk free and he makes three important points:
- Our body gets confused by artificial sweeteners
- We’re “Infantilizing” our taste sense
- Long term effects unclear
And, if you think that just because you drink "diet soda," you are immune from weight gain, think again. Surprisingly (not to those of us in the fitness industry), a 2005 study reported by WebMD declares, "people who drink diet soft drinks don't lose weight. In fact, they gain weight." Seemingly, diet soda may not be the direct cause of weight gain and obesity, but it does give a false sense of "dieting" and a license to splurge in other areas.
Bottom line on soda:
What you drink does impact your diet –– positively and negatively, and the evidence is clear, drinking soda –– diet or regular –– is not good for your health or fitness level, especially if you are consuming more than one a day –– and warning for those "six-pack a day" people. But will having a soda from time to time "kill" you? I don't think so. How do I know this? Because one of my vices is Diet Coke and I'm still alive to write about it. That being said, as a 30-year veteran in the fitness industry and a retired fitness competitor, drinking soda –– diet or regular –– is not what I recommend on your "fit path," particularly if your goals involve weight loss and optimal health.
Article comments
1 - Brian aka Guppusmaximus
Nice Article....
Though, I still argue that anything in excess can be very bad for you. With that in mind, your next article should cover 100% fruit juice because sugar IS sugar. Your body converts all sugars into fat and it doesn't discriminate nor can it tell the difference between glucose or fructose.
So, people shouldn't feel safe in consuming an excess amount of fruit just because it is natural.
2 - Christine
Yes, Brian, I agree. However, with fruit you get some vitamins and minerals, while "white sugar" is empty (stripped of all it's nutritional value). And if you eat whole fruit you get the added fiber. Again, not so with "white sugar."
3 - Brian aka Guppusmaximus
Still, that doesn't change the fact that you could have weight issues if you eat too much fruit.Especially, if you choose the juice route or canned fruits. Again, moderation is the key (along with a proper exercise plan).
As for your opinion about milk, I believe it totally depends on what your idea of a healthy diet really is. If you're looking to just to be thin with no concern about strength training then, in my opinion, that doesn't really support any of the claims that all fat is bad for you nor is it necessarily healthy either.
When someone merely focuses on cutting out their fat intake but overlooks the amount of protein their cutting out as well then they really are doing a disservice to their body. Milk has plenty of nutrients that have been proven beneficial to a diet that includes a strength training regiment which isn't limited to just heavy duty bodybuilders. Again, skinny doesn't equate to healthy...
4 - Brian aka Guppusmaximus
*Oops* I also meant to add:
If you really are concerned about weight management issues when having dairy products, but you still enjoy them, have them in the morning for breakfast.
Secondly, I really don't see the difference between supporting the consumption of yogurt & cottage cheese but not milk...can you explain?
5 - Brian aka Guppusmaximus
Still no answer Christine?
Oh and I want to apologize for not reading your article all the way through. But, now that I have, I am quite disappointed that you would take the alarmist / conspiracy route that you have in regards to artificial sweeteners. I could care less about the amount of books that Dr. Mercola has sold. His site screams of marketing propaganda based on fear & intimidation by way of conspiracies... Please, spare us.
Again, I agree that no one should base their beverage intake solely on ones with artificial sweeteners(Moderation is key),but, to infer that this stuff could cause cancer without any hard evidence to prove it is, well, irresponsible. And, even though you try to dismiss your own involvement in perpetuating this propaganda by stating "to err on the side of caution" is rather pretentious.
All I know is that right now, at this moment, that:
"Aspartame, the sweetening ingredient in Equal has been documented in more than 200 objective scientific studies. The safety of aspartame has been confirmed by regulatory authorities in more than 100 countries, including the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Health Canada, and the European Commission's Scientific Committee on Food, as well as by experts with the United Nations' Food and Agricultural Organization and World Health Organization"
And Splenda:
"has been the subject of extensive safety testing, with more than 20 years of research and over 110 scientific studies. Its safety is well documented and the Food and Drug Administration, along with regulatory, health, and food safety authorities from around the world, have concluded that it is safe."
So your claim that some of these "fake" sugars,"have not been on the market long enough to confirm whether or not they are truly safe and at what levels." is,again, irresponsible and shows your lack of research.
Sorry Christine, I just don't appreciate that kind of propaganda or speculation from a fitness trainer / nutritionist.
6 - Igor Griffiths
As someone who hates to gym style exercise, swimming lengths irritates me, why bother going to the other end just to swim back again! I managed to lose 4 waist inches using a low carb diet whilst my foot was dead for 3 months due to a trapped nerve after exercising on a rowing machine.
However my digestinal tract is now hyper sensitive to polyols as result of switching my body to lower carb diet, so I have to avoid a lot of sugar free foods.
As regards diet drinks, especially the colas I would much rather drink water, but half the time at vending machines, its cola or nothing and then its back to the addiction with cola and caffeine. At my worst I was drinking 6 litres of Diet Coke most weekends.
Whatever you eat it would always be better to choose the real food item and avoid the foods that need science degrees to understand.
However, being a healthy eater does not make me a good consumer and therefore the market will try and keep me addicted to cola and fast food, it is doing well.