You think diet soda with no calories or sugar can give you a balanced diet? Not quite. A study by researchers at the John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health will make you think again.
The researchers observed the drink habits and calorie intake in adult across the United State. The study showed that those who drink diet soda end up consume more calories overall than those who choose sugary beverages. The result is people end up gaining weight instead of losing weight. In fact, those who opt for diet soda have a higher BMI (Body Mass Index) than those who drink regular soda because they eat more food and snack.
The main ingredient in diet drink that causes people to eat more is perhaps artificial sweeteners, which inactivate appetite control as the brain's sweet sensor doesn't function properly. Cheryl Forberg R.D., author of Flavor First, explains "when our taste buds sense sweetness, the body expects a calorie load to accompany it. When that doesn't happen, it may cause us to overeat because we crave the energy rush our body was expecting." Even worse, artificial sweeteners might also bore your taste buds, causing you eat consume more high-calorie food to satisfy your taste.
Diet soda doesn't only cheat you that you are going to shed the pounds, it also harms your body. Caramel color present in soda is not innocent as you thought. The International Agency for Research on Cancer said that that caramel coloring might cause cancer to humans. A study in the journal Epidemiology, presents an impressive result that drinking two or more colas a day might increases two times a risk of having kidney disease. What's more, natural flavors in soft drinks, even though disguised in the name of 'natural', it doesn't mean that they are natural or healthy for body.
Conclusion: Be wise in choosing drinks! The tempting zero-calories soda doesn't mean it's best choice for a healthy diet. Those who look for losing or maintaining weight should look at again the decision to switch from sugar drinks to diet drinks!
Check out 5 side effects of Diet Soda
