Instead of sugar, they use Artificial sweetenersWhat aspartame, cyclamates, saccharin, acesulfame-k, or sucraloseto sweeten them.
Almost every sugar-sweetened beverage on the market has a “light” or “diet” version under the Diet or Zero names.
Related news
Diet soft drinks were first introduced in the 1950s for people with diabetesalthough they were later marketed for people trying to control their weight or reduce their sugar intake.
Although contain no sugar or caloriesthe health effects of diet drinks and artificial sweeteners they are controversial.
Diet soda is not nutritious
Diet drinks are essentially a mixture of carbonated water, natural or artificial sweetener, colors, flavors and other food additives.
It usually has very few or no calories and does not have significant nutrition. For example, a 350 ml can contains no calories, sugar, fat or protein and 40 mg of sodium.
Nevertheless, Not all soft drinks that use artificial sweeteners are low-calorie or sugar-free. Some use sugar and sweetener together.
While recipes differ from brand to brand, some common ingredients in diet sodas include:
- Carbonated water. While sparkling water can occur in nature, most soft drinks are made by dissolving carbon dioxide in pressurized water.
- sweeteners. These include common artificial sweeteners such as aspartame, saccharin, sucralose, or an herbal sweetener like stevia, which are 200 to 13,000 times sweeter than regular sugar.
- acids. Certain acids, such as citric, malic, and phosphoric acid, are used to add tartness to soft drinks. They are also related to the erosion of tooth enamel.
- Colors. The most used colors are carotenoids, anthocyanins and caramels.
- flavors. Many different types of natural juices or artificial flavors are used in diet soft drinks, including fruit, berries, herbs, and cola.
- preservatives. These help diet sodas last longer on the supermarket shelf. A commonly used preservative is potassium benzoate.
- Vitamins and minerals. Some diet soda manufacturers add vitamins and minerals to market their products as healthier alternatives without calories.
- Caffeine. Like regular soft drinks, many diet sodas contain caffeine. A can of Diet Coke contains 46 mg of caffeine, while Diet Pepsi contains 35 mg.
Effects on weight loss are mixed
Since diet sodas generally contain no calories, it would be natural to assume that they could help lose weight. However, research suggests that the association may not be so simple.
Several observational studies have found that the use of artificial sweeteners and drinking large amounts of diet soda is associated with a increased risk of obesity Y metabolic syndrome.
Scientists have suggested that diet soda can increase appetite by stimulating hunger hormones, alter sweet taste receptors and trigger dopamine responses in the brain.
Since diet soda has no calories, these responses can cause a higher intake of sweet or high-calorie foods, resulting in a weight gain. However, the evidence for this is not consistent in human studies.
Another theory suggests that the correlation of diet sodas with weight gain can be explained by people with poor eating habits who drink more. The weight gain they experience may be due to their existing dietary habits, not diet soda.
Experimental studies do not support the claim that diet soft drinks cause weight gain. In fact, these studies have found that replacing sugar-sweetened beverages with diet soda can result in weight loss.
One study had overweight participants drink 710 ml. of diet soda or water per day for 1 year. At the end of the study, the diet soft drink group had experienced an average weight loss of 6.21 kg, compared to 2.5 kg in the water group.
However, to add to the confusion, there is evidence of bias in the scientific literature. It has been found that studies funded by industry of artificial sweeteners have more favorable results than non-industry studies, which may undermine the validity of their results.
Overall, more high-quality research is needed to determine the true effects of diet soft drinks on weight loss.
Some studies link diet sodas to diabetes and heart disease
Although diet sodas have no calories, sugar, or fat, they have been linked to the development of type 2 diabetes and heart disease in several studies.
Research has found that just one serving of an artificially sweetened beverage per day is associated with an 8 to 13% higher risk of type 2 diabetes.
A study in 64,850 women noted that artificially sweetened beverages were associated with a 21% increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes. However, this was still half the risk associated with regular sugary drinks. Other studies have observed similar results.
In contrast, a recent review found that diet soft drinks they are not associated with an increased risk of diabetes. Also, another study concluded that any association could be explained by the existing state of healthchanges in weight and body mass index of the participants.
Diet soft drinks are also have related with a higher risk of arterial hypertension and heart disease.
A review of four studies involving 227,254 people found that for every serving of artificially sweetened beverage per day, there is a 9% increased risk of high blood pressure. Others studies have found similar results.
Also, one study has linked diet soda to a small increased risk of stroke, but this was only based on observational data.
Since most of the studies were observational, it is possible that the association could be explained in another way. It’s possible that people who were already at risk for diabetes and high blood pressure chose to drink more diet soda.
More direct experimental research is needed to determine if there is a true causal relationship between diet soda and increased blood sugar or blood pressure.
Diet soft drinks and kidney health
Drinking diet soda has been linked to an increased risk of chronic kidney disease.
A recent study looked at the diets of 15,368 people and found that the risk of developing end-stage kidney disease increased with the number of glasses of diet soda consumed per week.
Compared with those who consumed less than one glass per week, people who drank more than seven glasses of diet soda per week had almost twice the risk of develop kidney disease.
One suggested cause of kidney damage is the high phosphorous content of soda, which can increase acid load in the kidneys.
However, it has also been suggested that people who consume large amounts of diet soft drinks may do so to compensate for other poor dietary and lifestyle factors that may independently contribute to the development of diabetes. renal disease.
Interestingly, studies investigating the effects of diet soft drinks on the development of kidney stones have found mixed results.
An observational study noted that diet soda drinkers had a slightly increased risk of developing kidney stones, but the risk was much lower than the risk associated with regular soda consumption. Also, this study has not been supported by other research.
Another study reported that the high citrate and malate content of some diet soft drinks can help treat kidney stones, particularly in people with low urine pH and uric acid stones. However, more research and human studies are needed.
Other effects
There are several other documented health effects of diet soda, including:
- Can reduce fatty liver. Some studies have shown that replacing regular soda with diet soda can reduce fat around the liver. Other studies have found no effect.
- No increase in reflux. Despite anecdotal reports, carbonated beverages have not been found to worsen reflux or heartburn. However, the research is mixed and more experimental studies are needed.
- No strong links to cancer. Most research on artificial sweeteners and diet sodas have found no evidence that they cause cancer. A slight increase in lymphoma and multiple myeloma was reported in men, but the results were weak.
- Changes in the gut microbiome. Artificial sweeteners can alter the intestinal florawhich lowers blood sugar control and potentially increases the risk of type 2 diabetes. One study found that all six Artificial sweeteners tested damaged the gut microbiome in different ways. Another found that the way people’s gut flora reacted to Artificial sweeteners It was highly individualized.
- Increased risk of osteoporosis. Diet and regular cola are associated with loss of bone mineral density in women, but not in men. The caffeine and phosphorous in cola can interfere with normal calcium absorption.
- Dental cavities. Just like regular soft drinks, diet sodas are associated with dental erosion due to its acidic pH level. This comes from the addition of acids, such as malic, citric, or phosphoric acid, for flavor.
- Linked to depression. The observational studies have found higher rates of depression among those who drank four or more diet or regular sodas a day. However, experiments are needed to determine if diet soda is a cause.
While some of these results are interesting, more experimental research is needed to determine if diet soda causes these problems or if the findings are due to chance or other factors.