Reader Request: I drink a cup of diet coke everyday - its like my 'coffee' fix. I know not to drink too much but do you think this amount is ok in moderation?
Some will argue that anything in moderation is ok, and in many cases, I’d agree. Moderation 'however' means different things to different people and I feel its not what we do sometimes that affects our health; but what we do daily.
When it comes to fizzy drinks, the amount of sugar and additives is beyond high that I don’t think “moderation” exists for this category of products.
Unfortunately this substance is often consumed instead of water (which many people already don’t drink enough of), it contains absolutely no nutrients or beneficial properties whatsoever, and is jammed packed with sugar and artificial additives that make it harmful, even addictive.
Bottom line - stop drinking all fizzy drinks…your health with thank you!
Here are the ins and outs of what it contains and why I take a hard stance on eliminating these products!
Here's the ingredients:
Diet Coke contains: Carbonated water, caramel color, aspartame, phosphoric acid, potassium benzoate (to protect taste), natural flavors, citric acid, caffeine. PHENYLKETONURICS: CONTAINS PHENYLALANINE (Phenylalanine can cause irreversible brain damage and death, especially when used in high quantities or during pregnancy)
And for those that were wondering about regular coke:
Carbonated water, high fructose corn syrup, caramel color, phosphoric acid, natural flavors, caffeine.
Sugar Content
A single can of fizzy contains roughly the equivalent of 10 teaspoons of sugar. This quantity of sugar, especially in liquid form, skyrockets the blood sugar and causes an insulin reaction in the body. your body is in no way designed to deal with this massive fluctuation of sugar and over time, this is proven to lead to diabetes or insulin resistance, trouble with weight gain and other health problems.
Artificial Sweeteners
In diet coke and other diet drinks, aspartame is used as a sugar substitute, and can actually be more harmful. It has been linked through multiple studies to almost a hundred different health problems like diabetes, seizures, multiple sclerosis, brain tumors and emotional disorders. It converts to methanol at warm temperatures and methanol breaks down to formaldehyde (the product used for embalming dead bodies) and formic acid. Diet sodas increase the chance of metabolic syndrome, which causes belly fat, high blood sugar, raised cholesterol and general inflammation in the body.
Phosphoric Acid
Phosphoric acid interferes with the body’s ability to absorb calcium; leading to osteoporosis and teeth cavities. Phosphoric Acid interacts with stomach acid causing the digestion process to slow down and inhibits nutrient absorption.
Caffeine
Anything containing caffeine wakes you up and it does this by forcing your adrenals to pump out more adrenaline to help you get out of danger fast. In this case its kind of warranted. Run away and don't look back at that bottle of fizzy ever! Caffeine is addictive, it is not ideal to drink anything containing caffeine if you are stressed already as it only exacerbates the stress response which leads to a host of health consequences.
Weight gain/Obesity
Harvard researchers have positively linked soft drinks to obesity. The study found that 12 year olds who drank soda were more likely to be obese than those who didn’t, and for each serving of soda consumed daily, the risk of obesity increased 1.6 times. Why they trialed this on 12 year old's is beyond me, but there are multiple other studies showing similar results across the age categories.
Lack of Nutrients
There is absolutely NO nutritional value in diet or regular fizzy drinks whatsoever. Not only are there many harmful effects of soda, but there are not even any positive benefits to outweigh them. To put it plainly it is an unnatural substance that harms the body.
Dehydration
The combination of the sugar, sodium and caffeine content dehydrates the body and over a period of time can cause chronic dehydration which slows all body system processes.
No pearly whites
Drinking fizzy regularly causes plaque to build up on the teeth, an overgrowth of bad bacteria which will lead to cavities and gum disease.
To sum it up I'll ask you this...
Would you put even a moderate amount of diesel in a petrol car? Are you sure? Why Not?
Now apply that answer to your own amazing creation of a body!
Here are some healthy alternatives:
Club soda flavored with a squeeze of lemon or lime or some fresh ginger root
Kombucha– You can make this at home and it is naturally fizzy and packed with probiotics. Many cafes stock kombucha so maybe try as an alternative when you go out.
Homemade water kefir– this has the same fizz and sweetness but with a boost of probiotics
It can be really difficult for those who consume fizzy daily to just stop drinking it. This makes sense when you think about how it affects the body and creates positive feedback loops in the brain thanks to its sugar content and we all know caffeine is addictive. Slowly reducing the amount you drink by 1/2 a cup every 2days can prevent the negative side effects like headaches and irritability.