Diet Soda

[W.DeBord]

I just read someone talking about how bad it is, in the "healthy eating" thread.

I always think "it's mainly water, and diet soda is low in fat".

Please just facts if anyone knows any....is diet soda really bad for you? How come? I understand water is best, but is diet soda worse then most 'sweetened' or flavorful choices?

TIA

[kokopuffs]

IMHO you can either have calories (as in sugar) or you can have carcinogens (as in artificial sweeteners). IMHO, of course.

Personally I'll take regularly sweetened soft drinks - which I hardly consume at all.

[annie]

Hummm. For years I've 'heard' the buzz that aspartame kills brain cells - just like alcohol?! I read something about this, linked with sugar metabolism and diabetes, in New Scientist recently, and decided to give up diet coke
I just tried to log on to NS, but I need my subscription number, which is on the plastic wrapper, that I used to pick up dog poo yesterday. So until next week's NS arrives, here's a link to the American Diabetes Association (which says it's ok):
http://www.diabetes.org/main/communi.../aspartame.jsp
and urban legends at about.com (double hummm):
http://urbanlegends.about.com/library/blasp2.htm

[W.DeBord]

O.k. Kokopuffs, but wouldn't these sweeteners be banded by the fda if they were? I know fda isn't perfect but, jeeze.. this has been sold for many years now. Do you know this because of some facts you've read? or is it speculation?

[W.DeBord]

Thanks for the references annie, I did read them. I was hoping that the myths might include something I've heard warnings about and thats about weight link....my sister insists that DIET sodas cause her to gain and retain weight that she couldn't loose weight until she quit drinking it.

Has anyone else here that before and think there is any truth to it? Or is it just that now she's drinking tons of water and that curbs some hunger and helps flush your system?

Thanks

[annie]

Daer W=
Help, I'm losing it. I know that I too have read something in the past 6-8 months on aspartame and carbohydrate craving - that's why I stopped the diet coke. Although I haven't lost any weight!( )
So, I've searched the New Scientist archives
(Sept. 1, 01 they did a big article on deadly effects of sugar),
PubMed,
and googled.
I can't find the reference! ARRRGH!

I hope someone can post some information.

[W.DeBord]

Wow, I'd like to see that article if you can ever find it....I'm a HUGE HUGE carbo junkie!

Annie did you crave the carbs and how about after quiting?

[ziggy]

When I was on Weight Watchers I remember a lot of people talking about how they lost weight when they gave up diet soda, though I don't remember an "official" or more importantly scientific reason....the only thing I can think of is 1) I think some of these drinks have sodium in them? I don't drink any sodas myself so don't have a can that I can look at and 2) when they gave up they diet soda they started drinking substantially more water which will help in the weight loss battle.

[kokopuffs]

Although I can't give you numbers, soft drinks are VERY HIGH in salt, therefore sodium. I was a lab technician who tested them for radiation, and part of the dissolution process involved dispensing hydrochloric acid into the solute, what remained after evaporation.

Upon dispensing the acid into the solute, a yellow gas would evolve. The yellower the gas, the higher sodium content. And soft drinks were notorious for their elevated sodium content.

[CompassRose]

I also found that I craved carbohydrates -- more specifically, SUGAR, as sugary as possible -- when I drank/ate lots of artificially sweetened things.

I gave it up during a three-day raw-food thing I went on at the beginning of this month... and oddly, during those days, I ran into several articles and reports saying that for some people, the TASTE of something sweet actually somehow triggers the body into prepping for metabolizing the sugar. Then, if the promised carbs don't materialize, blood sugar crashes, and voila! you are on a hunt for the biggest bag of jellybeans you can find.

I've gone back to small amounts of real sugar, and drinking water, and my little candy problem seems to have resolved itself.

[phatch]

Most sodas are 30-50 mg sodium per 12 oz. Most americans consume 5,000-8,000 mg of sodium per day. Even drinking 2 liters of soda only contributes about 200 mg of sodium.

When you factor in a low sodium diet of 2000 mg or less, soda consumption needs to be considered but not for people on more normal diets.

Phil

[kokopuffs]

Salt also stimulates the appetite not to mention thirst. Sugar also stimulates thirst.

I remember way back into the 60's when LAY's potato chips tasted the saltiest of all chips on the market. Betcha' can't eat just one.

[Shimmer]

Diet soda isn't a lot of bad stuff, but it isn't a lot of good stuff either.

If you need something sweet, drink some juice, something packed with vitamins and calcium. Fruit juice or tea would be better choices for your health.

Usually, diet pop (soda) has a lot of caffeine, which does the opposite of water. It will actually dehydrate you and do all the nervous things caffeine can do. And since it makes you thirstier, you might drink more, increasing those problems.

I don't know about the losing weight thing. Sometimes that is so psychological, people believing they are doing something will help them and BAM there it goes. I always wonder.....

Still, when I want low-sugar low-fat snack, I sometimes make a diet-coke frozen yogurt float.....

~~Shimmer~~

[nancya]

Most diet soda is low sodium. I know, it used to be high sodium but I'm watching these things!

Now, about the carb craving. Something that was told to me years ago [and I really ought to try to find more information about this....] is that when you are first changing your diet, your body is actually releasing insulin in anticipation of you eating carbohydrates. Because your body is used to eating carbs, it anticipates that it will need the insulin. If you are type 2 Diabetic or insulin resistant, your body may be creating even more insulin to try to make up for the insulin resistance common to type 2's. Then, you will crave carbs particularly when your body thinks it is getting something sweet - such as when shifting from regular to diet soda. This seems to go away after a month or two.

Ok, what's driving me crazy right now is I have a really good link for the sweetener question. But I can't find it right now. I will tell you that as Annie said, the ADA has listed them as safe for diabetics. I have only seen ancedotal evidence to suggest that some people have problems with them. I have friends that retain water or get headaches on aspartame. No one I know has had problems with Splenda.

I'll post the link when I find it!

Nancy

Sure...All I have to do is push the button and then I find the link!

Here Goes: Sugar Substitutes

N

[danno]

this may be helpful or it may just be informing
http://www.isabru.org/frameset.html