Professor Susan E. Swithers of Purdue University has reviewed and analyzed a variety of recent studies related to the use of diet beverages. Her work aims to address some of the confusion that exists regarding the use of artificial sweeteners and maintaining a healthy weight.
She concluded that, “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.” At the same time, she notes that the correlation alone may be caused by other factors.
She and her colleagues used mice to show that sugar substitutes in diet sodas can fool the body into thinking it has received actual sugar. The diet soda creates a situation that confuses physiological reactions such that when the diet soda drinker ingests food with real sugar, the body does not react properly. It may not release enough of the hormones that regulate blood pressure and blood sugar. About 30% of adults and 15% of children in the United States consume artificial sweeteners. Many of those who do so choose the artificial sweeteners as a way to control calories, but that choice may be counter-productive.
While part of the problem appears to be physiological in the mice, there is a behavioral component as well. Consuming zero-calorie beverages or other diet foods may help weight watchers justify other higher calorie items at another meal, thus increasing total caloric intake. In addition, when diet soda drinkers consume more than a few sodas a day, the increased levels of other ingredients, such as the caffeine in 8 or 10 sodas, can pose much more of a risk to a person’s health than consuming just 1 to 3 sodas per day.
Among scientists there is overwhelming consensus that the healthiest people maintain a balanced diet, engage in regular physical activity and minimize the use of sweeteners of any kind. Generally, dieticians and nutritionists support the guidelines put forth by The United States Department of Agriculture’ “Choose My Plate” website.
The extent to what degree artificial sweeteners and/or sugar impact a person’s overall health is being more carefully scrutinized in a new round of research aimed at vetting out other issues such as overall food choices, genetics, activity level, age and other contributing factors.
References:
http://www.purdue.edu/newsroom/releases/2013/Q3/prof-diet-drinks-are-not-the-sweet-solution-to-fight-obesity,-health-problems.html
http://www.webmd.com/diet/features/diet-sodas-and-weight-gain-not-so-fast
