Truths About Diet Sodas You Need To Know

Diet sodas are a calorie and sugar-free drink that has long been marketed as a means to losing weight. It has been said to prevent sugar-related diseases such as diabetes. There are no calories in diet soda, but there are also no significant health benefits associated with the drink. In fact, it has been discovered through a variety of studies, that diet soda can have numerous health risks associated with it.

Diet Soda And Diabetes

Diabetes is infamously associated with sugar and obesity. Specifically, diabetes is a chronic condition that is associated with unusually high levels of sugar, or glucose, in the bloodstream. Insulin produced by the pancreas helps to lower blood glucose, however, an insufficient production of insulin or the body cannot use insulin properly, results in the development of diabetes. It was believed that a calorie conscious and sugar-free soda would help prevent the development of diabetes in some individuals, however, this theory is not true. A study that included over 6,000 participants from the ages of forty-five to eighty-five, showed that consuming one diet soda every day increased their risk by sixty-seven percent of developing Type II diabetes, rather than helping to prevent it while still enjoying the bubbly beverage. Women were especially prone to developing Type II diabetes if they consumed diet sodas on a regular basis, as their risk increased by more than six percent.

Next, learn how diet soda can be linked to mental health.

Diet Soda And Mental Health

Studies show that diet soda puts an individual at risk of experiencing depression, but consuming the fizzy beverage is not a primary cause of depression. Specifically, a study conducted by the National Institutes ofHealthconducted an experiment involving over 250,000 individuals between the ages of fifty and seventy-one. Subjects who drank more than four cups of diet soda a day were thirty percent more likely to develop depression than those who did not. Therefore, there is a connection between mental health and diet soda consumption. Regular soda is also a contributor to depression, however, the adults who drank diet specifically were at a higher risk for experiencing bouts of depression.

Studies have also confirmed that diet soda can have an adverse effect on one's neurological health. For one, aspartame, a leading chemical found in diet soda, has been known to give some individuals headaches. Some will even suffer from migraines, which immediately stops once they eliminate diet soda from their diet.

Keep reading to uncover the truth about weight loss and diet sodas now.

Weight Loss Or Weight Gain?

The predominant reason diet soda became incredibly popular decades ago was due to the idea that diet soda could greatly help an individual shed a few pounds. Statistically, this is not the case, as most individuals do not lose any significant amount of weight when they switched from regular to diet soda. In fact, it can even put some individuals at risk of gaining weight due to the number of artificial sweeteners in it, as these sweeteners can increase a person's appetite, resulting in them eating more. This is in comparison to the effects sugar has on someone's appetite, which it does not affect at all.

Another study conducted showed that diet soda drinkers had a seventy percent increase in their waistline compared to those who did not consume diet soda on a regular basis. Within the same study, those who drank two or more diet sodas daily experienced a five-hundred percent increase in their waistline. Experts say that artificial sweeteners confusing the body is a factor, however, the psychological factor is just as equally as important. Those who assume diet sodas are in fact a healthier choice than regular soda are generally not going to make the right food choices when it comes to eating healthy or to lose weight.

Continue reading to discover why the body reacts negatively to diet soda.

The Body Reacts Negatively

There are a variety of ways that diet soda can cause the body to have a negative reaction. When mixed with hard liquor or other kinds of alcohol, diet soda and alcohol can cause an individual to become intoxicated much more quickly compared to other beverages. Studies have proven that cocktails mixed with diet soda contained a greater alcohol concentration. Experts explain that the bloodstream absorbs artificial sweeteners, which are found in diet soda, faster than regular sugar. The body can also become confused when a person consumes too many artificial sweeteners due to the intense flavor that comes with it. As a result, individuals can become desensitized to the taste of naturally sweet foods, such as fruit. Artificial sweeteners can also trigger insulin, which makes the body store fat, resulting in weight gain, as previously mentioned.

Finally, reveal how diet soda can lead to tooth decay and other oral health problems.

Can Lead To Tooth Decay

Remember how our parents always reminded us that drinking too much soda or eating too much candy would rot our teeth out of our heads? Well, there is some truth to that myth when it comes to diet soda. When a person drinks too much diet soda, they risk having major oral health problems. A dentistry journal did research against the effects of cocaine and methamphetamine, and discovered that diet soda has the same level of erosion on teeth. The study concluded that diet soda is incredibly damaging to the teeth due to the citric acid found within the sugary drink, which destroys tooth enamel and causes erosion.

It is okay to indulge once in a while, but just remember that too much diet soda can greatly hinder your health rather than benefit it!