Is Diet Soda bad for you?

I have a friend; When we go out to eat, she orders a salad and a diet coke. Every time. She is heavier than I am, so I began to wonder…is the diet soda really doing her any good? Now, when I was younger, I loved cola. I was addicted to it. And no, I never made the switch to diet drinks. Although over the years I tried to get used to them, I always hated that aftertaste. As the years went by, and I did more research on sugar and carbonated beverages, I realized that soda (or pop if you’re from the Midwest) is not only NOT good for my waistline, it was doing a lot more harm than I had realized. It was setting me up for osteoporosis, diabetes, kidney disease and other nasty things. I have since given up soda altogether but, I always wondered about my friend. Was diet soda just as bad? Or not?

It’s zero calories, zero sugar. How can that be bad? If I’m not consuming calories, it seems that it shouldn’t affect my weight. Our bodies are more complex than a simple calorie in, calories out formula. I didn’t find definitive reasons for the fat diet soda drinker. Dr. Weil’s opinion is that if the brain is getting a message that sweet calories are coming and they don’t arrive, the void may set you up for cravings that ultimately lead to consuming more calories.

Quite frankly, eating or drinking anything artificial is just going to do damage to your body. Studies have linked diet soda drinkers to greater risk of diabetes, stroke, heart attack and decline in kidney function.

I have another friend that gave up her diet soda and lost 5 pounds in 2 weeks. Now, that would motivate me!

Bottom line is this: Soda in general can do more harm than good. Switch to green tea (you’ll get your caffeine) and it’s good for you. Little changes can add up to big rewards in our life. In the book, “The Slight Edge” by Jeff Olson, he explains that what you do today is not going to make a difference. But do that same thing over time, and it will move you toward better health (or better finances, etc). Think about 5 years worth of drinking green tea vs. drinking soda….now THAT’S a big difference!

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