Many dieters turn to diet drinks and sodas while following a weight loss plan. It seems like the right thing to do is to cut back on sugar intake and reduce daily calories. Diet sodas allow you to experience the same great taste as a regular soda, as well as the caffeine high, without getting excess calories.
The Truth about Diet Drinks and Sodas
Low sugar, sugar free diet plans have people using artificial sweeteners as a sugar alternative. Artificial sweeteners are sweet like sugar and manufacturers boast that the product has no calories, offers no insulin surge and no side effects. The latter has yet to be proven. Many people swear by the fact that their illnesses have been caused by drinking diet sodas with all their added chemicals and preservatives.
Researchers at the University of Texas Health Sciences Center found that there is a 41% increase in risk of being overweight for every can of diet soda you consume each day. The study found that diet soda drinkers gained more weight than those who drank regular soda. One reason for this is that diet soda fools your body into thinking it’s getting calories. When it doesn’t get the calories, it craves them. This may lead you to eat more when you drink diet instead of regular soda. Additionally, diet sodas have caffeine, which act as a diuretic. This leaves your body dehydrated. You confuse thirst with hunger and turn to food to solve the problem. The caffeine addiction alone leaves you feeling sluggish, anxious and unable to speak.
The Dangers of Aspartame and Other Artificial Sweeteners
Aspartame may cause what is now dubbed as aspartame disease. Aspartame may become toxic because it promotes the formation of formaldehyde agents. This artificial sweetener causes slow, long-term damage to your body. Numerous reports have been made that claim diet sodas including artificial sweeteners, chemicals, preservatives, and caffeine are the cause of major illnesses.
Soft drink studies also show that Aspartame also stimulates the appetite, causing you to crave more calories and therefore gain weight.
Carbonation is another problem. The carbonation in diet sodas is unhealthy for the body. It throws your body into a pH imbalance because your system becomes acidic. To lose weight, the body needs to be at a 7.4 pH, which is slightly alkaline. Too much acidity prevents natural detoxification; thus halting fat loss. These aren’t the right conditions for weight loss.
Essentially, diet drinks and diet sodas are bad news for anyone wanting to lose weight. These drinks cause thirst and hunger. In addition, they cause more damage to your health than obesity alone. Don’t let the word diet fool you into thinking that diet sodas are a healthy alternative to aid your weight loss. In fact, diet sodas have the exact opposite affect and cause you to gain weight.
If you are struggling with an addiction to diet soda or other diet drinks, it’s best to get them out of your system completely and drink purified water throughout the day. This will purge your system of the ill effects of artificial sweeteners, chemicals, preservatives and caffeine. Eat healthy organic and whole foods and snacks in regular intervals to avoid becoming overly hungry and exercise for a natural boost to get you through the day without relying on caffeine.
Add these weight loss tips to your simple plan for losing weight and watch your success grow; pound by lost pound.