IS DIET SODA GOOD FOR YOUR HEALTH?

Most health conscious people pick diet soda rather than the regular sugary soda because it’s believed to be beneficial. Disclaimer; diet soda isn’t nutritionally beneficial as such, it just doesn’t have harmful sugar like the others, simple.so should we take diet soda or not? The best way to answer this is to weigh out the pros and cons. Let us start with the pros:

Aspartame

Aspartame is actually the main ingredient in a diet soda. There is still so much debate as to whether it’s carcinogenic or not. Carcinogenic substances cause cancer, a leading health concern I the world today. So many things we consume have been attributed to cancer, is diet soda one of them?  Research has also been done widely in Ivy League university but still, there is no evidence to these allegations. We can therefore agree that this I just some biasness due to the fact that Aspartame is manufactured in the same labs that manufactured Napalm for the war in Vietnam. Professors, like Professor Seal of Newcastle University has assured health fanatics that Aspartame is actually safe and non-carcinogenic.

Phenylalanine

While Aspartame may not be a problem as such, 1 in every 10,000 people suffers from a genetic condition phenylketonuria. This condition makes the patient metabolize aspartame hence producing phenylalanine. The catch however is, phenylalanine is found in most fast foods like hamburgers and fries. Diet soda only has a negligible amount; fast foods have 9 times the aspartame found in a soda bottle of 300 ml.  You may consider ditching fast foods altogether.

Methanol

There are those who have replaced diet soda with fresh juice altogether, claiming it’s healthy. Methanol is still double dosage in a glass of fresh juice in a 300 ml bottle of diet soda. The danger with methanol is that it can damage the optic nerve causing blindness on the spot. This shouldn’t be a cause for alarm as it can only happen when you take 500 bottles of soda at once.

Weight loss and dieting

When people begin their weight loss regimen one of the things to be dropped off the list is definitely soda. While it is true that soft drinks are notorious for causing weight gain, diet soda is actually very safe as it has zero sugar. In fact, caloric drink that people prefer for their fitness programs are the real culprits; sugar results in weight gain.

While I want to sanctify diet soda when it comes to weight gain, it is important to note that it actually plays no role in aiding weight loss. Anyone who sells you the idea that diet soda aids in weight loss is running a fad diet program. Diet soda does nothing to us nutritionally, apart from quenching our thirst.

With all the pros of diet soda, let us now look at the cons:

Acidity

I know this has come as a surprise to most but did you know that diet soda is acidic? All soda is acidic, including diet soda. Research has also shown that most of the population is dealing with acid related complications like gastritis and ulcers. While treating acidity can be long term, and this usually include dieting, it I important to avoid the triggers altogether. Diet soda will definitely irritate acid patients, hence it not worth enjoying bottle and rush or medication.

The acid in diet soda also erodes the teeth. Eroded teach discolor or become brittle overtime. It would be better to avoid diet soda altogether. This reminds me, there is usually an experiment done in schools where a bone is dropped into a glass of soda. It fizzes before it eventually disappears in the drink. More research should be done to show u if there is correlation between the experiment and what soda actually does to our bodies. Does soda come into contact with bones in our bodies? If no, we can agree that teeth are in danger of erosion.

Not nutritious

For any health fanatic, eating should be deliberate, that’s why people eat in potions according to the role each food is going to play in the body. Energy drinks have sugar, which aid in giving energy for a work out. This brings us to the question; what nutritional value does a diet soda have? It is good that it doesn’t have calories or sugar, but what nutritional value does it have? None. Diet soda is basically just for our taste buds, nothing significant added to our bodies nutritionally.

Weight gain

National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) have shown a correlation between diet soda consumption and weight gain in adults. Its causative not correlated. Diet soda in itself has no sugar or calories to cause weight gain, it however has safe sweeteners which however, will stimulate the taste bud and make one overeat. On person may think thy made the right choice by picking a diet soda, but once the taste bud have been activated, by the diet soda itself, they would be eating anything they can lay their hands on. Sounds familiar?

Taking diet soda can also make one overestimate how much calories they have actually consumed hence making them overeat to reward themselves by eating more. This could cause weight gain, though I think it’s far-fetched to blame diet soda for this.

It seems like the biggest issue with diet soda is the acidity factor. It may not be correlated to weight gain but it is causative in that in triggers overeating. The sweeteners used to sweeten it are safe enough and do not directly cause weight gain. I would therefore say it’s safer to take diet soda if you are watching you weight. What’s your take? Would you take a bottle after your workout? I would. Quench your thirst.

The danger here is the excessive consumption of anything, including diet soda. Even medication becomes poisonous when overdosed. Take a reasonable amount of diet soda, do not overindulge.