Does diet soda make you fat? Are sugar-free soft drinks just as bad for your health and your weight loss as the full-sugar alternative? Find out here…
I’m going to start off by asking you all a question… Hands up if you’ve ever chosen diet soda because it’s the “healthy” option.
Yep, that’s quite a few hands I see raised in the air.
Now, hands up if you’ve ever been standing at a vending machine, out for a meal or in a store and heard somebody else comment on their choice of diet soda.
“I’m on a diet, better get the diet soda.”
Or my personal favorite:
“I can drink as much diet soda as I like because it is calorie and sugar free!”
Just as I thought, even more hands waving at me!
Better put them down now though, you look kinda weird sitting there waving your hand at the screen 
Well it might surprise you, and all of those other diet soda drinkers you were just thinking about, to learn that there is absolutely NOTHING even remotely healthy about diet soda.
Learn about the crazy “Health Foods” that are SABOTAGING your Fat Loss!
Artificial Sweeteners Can Cause You To Gain Weight
It might sound crazy, but even though the artificial sweeteners in sugar free drinks have no calorific value (zero calories) there is evidence to show that they cause you to gain weight.
Even more frightening, there is a good chance that “diet” drinks are actually MORE fattening than their full-sugar brothers and sisters.
Wait a minute, what the deuce!?
Hormonal Response To Artificial Sweeteners
Did you know that it is NOT the number of calories you eat and drink every day that causes you to gain weight? It is actually your body’s HORMONAL RESPONSE to the calories you ingest.
In the case of diet soda there are no calories, but the chemicals you are drinking trick the body into believing it’s eating something sweet.
Let’s take Aspartame for example (found in Diet Coke). This chemical actually blocks your brain’s production of serotonin (controls mood and appetite amongst other things).
And what does your body do when it is suffering from low serotonin levels? It tells your body to go and get some of the foods that it knows will stimulate the release of the chemical.
And guess what, this just happens to be the waistline expanding, high-calorie, carbohydrate-rich, processed “junk” foods that every dieter fears!
So sugar free sodas are actually fueling your sugar and junk food cravings. Not good.
Insulin Response
Scientists also suspect that no-calorie sweeteners trigger the release of insulin in your body. (Insulin is released by your pancreas to allow your cells to absorb blood sugar and provide energy).
The problem is that artificial sweeteners are tricking your body into releasing insulin because they taste sweet. But there is no sugar to feed your cells. And as soon as your body figures out there is no food, it decides that it better go and get some! This, of course, triggers your appetite!
And again you’ll be craving sugary foods that produce a quick “spike” in blood sugar levels, quickly followed by a “crash”. This is how we get into a hunger-craving-snacking cycle that adds on the pounds.
Just think about how many time you’ve told yourself “man, I need a sugar hit”. You know that candy bar is bad for you, but you NEED it! Wouldn’t you like to get rid of these cravings or control them if you had the chance?
Drinking Diet Soda Causes Obesity?
Nobody has yet actually taken the time to prove scientifically that diet soda causes obesity. But there is one study from the University of Texas that proven a very strong link between the two.
Sharon Fowler and colleagues conducted an 8-year study on the links between soft drink use and weight gain.
“What didn’t surprise us was that total soft drink use was linked to overweight and obesity,” Fowler tells WebMD. “What was surprising was when we looked at people only drinking diet soft drinks, their risk of obesity was even higher.”
In fact, the researchers found that nearly all of the obesity risk came from diet sodas.
“There was a 41% increase in risk of being overweight for every can or bottle of diet soft drink a person consumes each day.”
Read more on the study at WebMD.
The results of this study are pretty conclusive. If you had any lingering doubts, it proves that there is absolutely NO place in your life for soda, diet or otherwise, if you care about your health and your body.
Artificial Sweeteners – If It’s Not Sugar, Then What Is It?
Saccharin – Discovered in 1879 by a chemist researching coal tar derivatives.
Sucralose – Developed as a pesticide in the 1970s. Re-branded as a no-calorie sweetener. (Actually contains trace amounts of chlorine).
Aspartame – Discovered by a chemist looking to create an anti-ulcer drug in 1965. Finally approved for human consumption in 1980 after years of wrangling over its alleged contribution to cancer in lab rats.
So next time you feel like reaching for a sugar-free soft drink, why not just take a moment to remind yourself of what you will be drinking. “I’ll have a dose of pesticide, coal tar derivative or anti-ulcer drug please.”
And remember, the next time you feel like reaching for a “diet” drink, there is absolutely NOTHING “diet” about it.
Artificial sweeteners and other man made foods are making you FAT. Find out more here…
Clever stuff:
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Hi,
Interesting article, just a few questions though.
You mention Saccharin is a coal tar derivative. But so what? I feel we need a bit more info before choosing to avoid the sweetener!
Also you say Sucralose “contains trace ammounts of chlorine”. But doesn’t salt contain far more chlorine than anything your going to get from artificial sweetener. NaCl…
Just some thoughts.
Hi Grant,
I’m glad you found the article interesting, and thanks for the intelligent questions!
Here’s some more information about Saccharin: Discovered by a chemist in 1879! But this chemist wasn’t researching a new sweetener; he actually discovered that it tasted sweet completely by accident (who knows how – I’ll leave that up to your imagination!). But let’s just say I wouldn’t go tasting unknown chemical compounds.
More alarming than its discovery though is that it has been accused of being a carcinogen (a substance that causes cancer in humans and animals). The US National Toxicology Program actually put Saccharin on its official “cancer-causing list”, and this happened all the way back in the 1970s.
There is a lack of official studies into the human cancer connections. But in my mind, anything that can possibly increase the chances of developing cancer is worth avoiding.
Secondly, I’m glad you brought up the whole chlorine-sucralose issue. You’re right in saying that salt contains more chlorine than sucralose. However, it all comes down to atomic structure of this chlorine.
The chlorine in salt is bonded to the sodium with a naturally occurring ionic bond. However, sucralose is bonded to chlorine with a covalent bond. Unlike the ionic bond, covalent bonded chlorines are not meant for human consumption.
I hope this clears things up for you.
Dave
thanks for this post. I have been doing a bit of research on this and all the data point that the promise of calorie free diet sodas is too good to be true.
Switching back to the best no calorie drink; water!
Couldn’t agree more, Al. Water is where it’s at!
Sounds like a misleading bit of research ….everything in moderation, even diet drinks will have little effect on your metabolism…the simple rule still holds true…input =output..no weight gain…decrease your calories or increase your exercise..or both and you must lose weight,,,although not as quickly as you would like….no amount of diet drinks will change that rule
Hi Blaz,
I agree, a diet soda every now and again isn’t really a problem. But the aim of this article is to dispel the myth that diet soda is a healthy alternative to the full-sugar version.
In other words, don’t think that you can switch out your regular soda for the diet alternative and believe you’re making a healthy choice. You need to cut soda out all together if you’re really looking to make a change for the better.
Just a point on your input vs output argument. Remember, it’s about your body’s hormonal response to the things that you put in your mouth that makes the difference, not the input in terms of calories. If you’re taking in the right nutrients then you actually increase your “input” and still be in better shape (and better health) than if you consume fewer calories from junk and processed foods. Regardless of your “output”.Check out my article on calorie counting for more info.