It's right around that 3 p.m. mark when many of us feel like we're living in a commercial for 5-Hour Energy. We gravitate to something caffeinated, and for many of us, the go-to is a diet soda. Diet because we figure it's calorie-free, so it must be better than the real stuff -- which isn't even "real," because it's laden with lab-made high fructose corn syrup. But it's a trap. A toxic FAT trap!
New research has found that not only did people who drank two or more diet sodas a day see their waist measurement expand five times more than people who didn't touch the stuff, but the fake sweetener aspartame caused higher blood sugar, triggered appetite, and also inhibited brain cells that help you know when you're full.
The fact that these beverages are making us fatter, messing with our blood sugar, and handicapping our brains should be a big red flag that diet soda (and hell, soda in general) belongs in the same dangerous category as cigarettes.
If you happened to be around in the '50s and '60s or ever watch Mad Men, you know that smoking was considered the glam norm until Reader's Digest published the first study linking cigarettes to cancer in 1952. And in 1964, the U.S. government suggested a causal relationship between cigarettes and cancer. Sure, people continued to smoke for years and still do, but it was all downhill from there. It would never be seen as a "smart" or "cool" thing to do again.
And now it's become painfully clear that diet soda consumption should fall under the same umbrella. It's not going to make us pop stars a la Michael Jackson or Britney Spears or whoever has promoted it in multimillion-dollar ad campaigns over the past however many decades. (Like we'd want to follow in their footsteps anyway, yeesh!) Instead, persisting in sucking soda down so frequently that the caramel fluid practically runs through our veins (which, I'm sorry to say, is the case for many of my media colleagues) will most likely lead to weight gain (putting us at risk for heart disease, diabetes, etc.) and potentially lead to heart attacks and strokes, kidney stones, depression, and cancer.
The good news: People quit smoking all the time! Quitting or significantly cutting back on diet soda's GOTTA be a bit easier! (Personally, I quit the stuff a couple of years ago, because I figured the last thing I need is something toxic making it hard for me to stay at a healthy weight!) And hey, if it's about the caffeine, there's always Zevia, unsweetened coffee, or tea. If it's not about the caffeine, there's always -- gasp! -- WATER.
Do you think the risks associated with diet soda put it on par with cigarettes?
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Comments 62
amen!!! there is even soda made from real sugar (not HFCS) and stevia or xylitol if you're a diabetic. options people!
You have an amazing gift for managing to insult whatever group you're trying to "educate". I've read these news reports, and was actually trying to cut back. But your drivel makes me want to run out, buy a 64-ounce Diet Dr. Pepper, and down it in 15 minutes. *BUUUUUURP*
What I would genuinely like to see is less people organizations and goverment agencies trying to save me from myself. If they start making me drink my Diet Dew outside 30 yards from the nearest door I am going to pitch a fit like you have never seen! I have to wear a helmet, a seatbelt, and i can't smoke ANYWHERE anymore. I know this opinion isn't popular with the mom's on here, but I am tired of people stepping in and telling me what is for my own good. There are some of us out there who don't care about adding another 20 years to our already overlongish life span. Which 20 years would I be adding? Oh, thats right, the ones where I play nursing home bingo, eat strained peas through a pipe up my nose, and don't remember who my friends and family are. Frankly, if i shave THOSE 20 years off my life, you can color me happy. I'm gonna go have a diet Dew and a smoke.
i agree with ashjo and jen walls. in fact, i think i may just go crack open a can of diet coke now... i am feeling kinda thirsty....
Good point Ginger....I too lost a gazillion pounds (ok...30) when i switched to diet soda. And I have kept it off without effort. Turns out 90 percent of my pudge was coming from consuming my daily caloric intake in regular soda alone. As soon as i made the switch, the pudge came off. And as for diet soda making you more hungry, I doubt I am alone when I say I reach for that diet soda when I'm hungry instead of a snack. Hard to eat a cheese danish when your sloshing around like a human keg of Diet Dew.
I seriously think you're the ignorant one. Have you ever thought that maybe if you have something worthwhile to say, saying it nicer may be the way to go? You have a really high opinion of yourself Oh High And Mighty One.