DIET SODA DOESN'T HELP WEIGHT LOSS AND CAN BE HARMFUL FOR HEALTH

Diet beverages and other non-caloric, artificially sweetened foods and drinks may not be the healthy choice to manage weight that they appear, according to a Purdue University expert's review of recent scientific studies. "Public health officials are rightfully concerned about the consequences of consuming sugar-sweetened beverages, such as soft drinks, but these warnings may need to be expanded to advocate limiting the intake of all sweeteners, including no-calorie sweeteners and so-called diet soft drinks," said Susan E. Swithers, a professor of psychological sciences and a behavioral neuroscientist. "Although it seems like common sense that diet sodas would not be problematic, that doesn't appear to be the case.

Findings from a variety of studies show that routine consumption of diet sodas, even one per day, can be connected to higher likelihood of heart disease, stroke, diabetes, metabolic syndrome and high blood pressure, in addition to contributing to weight gain."

Diet soda and obesity
Artificial sweeteners used in these drinks are meant to give you the taste without the calories but a major review of scientific studies suggests they may instead interfere with the body's normal energy regulation. In a paper published in Trends in Endocrinology and Metabolism Susan Swithers says sweet tastes normally trigger a psychological response that signals the arrival of nutrients in the stomach. However, research shows when artificial sweeteners are consumed no such energy burst follows the taste and over time this appears to weaken the body's natural response to a sweetness.

In a previous study, Swithers showed that when we substitute artificial sweetener for real sugar, the body learns it can no longer use its sense of taste to gauge calories. So, the body may be fooled into thinking a product sweetened with sugar has no calories and, therefore, people overeat. "Historically, we knew that our body learns that if the food is thick, such as whole milk, it tends to have more calories than compared to a thinner liquid such as skim milk," Swithers said. "Now, our research reinforces this and takes it one step further, showing that our bodies translate this information about perceived calories into a gauge to tell us when to stop eating." As a result, the body's natural ability to regulate food intake and body weight may be weakened when this natural relationship is impaired by artificial sweeteners.

 A study presented at a meeting of the American Diabetes Association in 2011 showed that drinking diet soda is associated with a wider waist in humans. In the study, researchers collected height, weight, waist circumference and diet soda intake data from 474 elderly people who participated in the San Antonio Longitudinal Study of Aging. They were followed up an average of 9.5 years later, according to the research. Researchers found that the diet soda drinkers had waist circumference increases of 70 % greater than those who non-diet soda drinkers. And people who drank diet soda the most frequently -- at least two diet sodas a day -- had waist circumference increases that were 500 % greater than people who didn't drink any diet soda, the study said.

Diet soda and diabetes
The American Diabetes Association found that people who drank diet soda are at increased risk of diabetes by 67%. 
Artificial sugar didn't produce any better results in a test on mice. Researchers for this test found that diabetes-prone mice that were fed a diet that included aspartame for three months, had higher blood glucose levels than mice not given aspartame.
And in a study published earlier this year in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, French researchers found an association between Type 2 diabetes and self-reported diet soda consumption. Plus, when comparing the diabetes risk of drinkers of diet with drinkers of regular sodas, researchers found that diet drinkers had the higher diabetes risk.

Diet soda and heart disease
Researchers from the University of Miami and Columbia University found that people who drink diet soda every day have a 43% higher risk of experiencing a vascular event over a 10-year period, compared with people who didn't drink soda. Plus, this association held true even after taking into account known stroke and heart risk factors like diabetes and high blood pressure.

These studies are observational. It's unknown if the diet soda is actually causing these conditions, or if people who are already at high risk for a heart attack, stroke and Type 2 diabetes tend to drink diet soda in an effort to lead a healthier lifestyle.
If diet soda really was causing heart attacks and strokes, there would have been spikes in these conditions in recent years. Rather, it's more likely a result of the fact that people who eat a lot of artificial sweeteners may not have the healthiest diet. "At that point, the less healthier the diet, the more prone you are to cardiovascular disease," says Dr. David Katz, the founding director of Yale University's Prevention Research Center. "It's a sign that there's something wrong with the dietary pattern overall."

Diet soda and kidney problems
A study published in Harvard Medical School’s Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology found that women who drank 2 or more cans of diet soda per day were more likely to suffer decline in kidney function.

Diet soda and depression
A recent study has linked soft drinks to depression – with diet versions particularly problematic.
The finding comes from US researchers who studied the drink consumption of 265,000 men and women aged 50 to 71. Ten years into the study, the volunteers were asked if they had been diagnosed with depression in the previous five years. Those who drank more than four cans of soft drinks a day were 30% more likely to have had depression than those who drank none, the American Academy of Neurology conference heard. The risk seemed greater among those who preferred diet drinks. The researchers said this may be due to the presence of the artificial sweetener aspartame. Making the link does not prove soft drinks cause depression. But researcher Honglei Chen said: "While our findings are preliminary and the underlying biological mechanisms are not known, they are consistent with a small but growing body of evidence suggesting that artificially sweetened beverages may be associated with poor health."

 
Diet soda and teeth damage
Although regular soda may be worse for your teeth, diet soda can still do damage. The high acidity of diet sodas causes erosion, resulting in weak, ugly and unhealthy teeth.

Tips to stop drinking diet soda
Breaking any habit or stopping any unhealthy behavior requires willpower, confidence, and most important, a good plan.

Start getting rid of any diet soda in your home, workplace, car, ...
Then switch to healthy alternatives:

• Infused water. Commercial brands deliver a calorie-free water with a hint of anything from cucumber to lemon to blueberry -- but these sips are just as easy (and less expensive) to make at home. Simply cut up your favorite fruit or vegetable and leave in a pitcher of water for at least three hours, according to Martha Stewart's recipe. You can also add herbs like mint or rosemary for an extra flavor punch.

• Flavored Seltzer. Flavored seltzer can stave off cravings for the sweeter stuff. Although they are low-calorie and caffeine-free, they are full of flavors like raspberry, lemon-lime or black cherry and are just as refreshing. 

• Iced Tea. This iced treat is an easy way to control the terms of your tea: caffeinated varieties like black, green and white tea make nice, strong iced teas -- but herbal options also abound for those of you who care to stay caffeine-free. Simply brew a strong tea -- if you like your drinks sweet, add a hint of honey. Leave in the refrigerator until cool and then pour over ice. The tea also delivers a burst of polyphenols -- an antioxidant found in tea tannins -- that can help stave off some cancers and regulate cholesterol.

• Iced Coffee. For those who get a kick from caffeine, flavored water just can't beat a Diet Coke. That's where iced coffee comes in: highly adaptable (add or skip the sugar! use dairy milk or a substitute like almond!), relatively inexpensive and with a strong, almost caramel-like flavor, a cold, eye-popping coffee can serve as a lower sugar alternative to your favorite soda. And research shows that coffee may have health benefits that extend well beyond weight management: helping to protect against several types of cancer, Type 2 diabetes and more.

• Fresh Juice. Unlike bottled varieties, freshly juiced fruits and vegetables have no added sugar. By selecting the ingredients, you can also control sugar portions by tempering sweet fruits like mangoes, grapes and melons with low-sugar, high-fiber fare such as kale, celery and lettuce. 

Sources: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/11/, http://www.huffingtonpost.com/