Diet Soda Actually Gives Us a Bigger Belly, New Study Finds

Choosing sugar-free soda over regular one may not keep us safe from developing a belly, new study suggests.
The latest study was published in the journal of the American Geriatric Society and according to its findings, it looks like drinking diet soda on a regular basis can lead to belly fat, especially when we’re getting older.

The researchers who conducted the study collected and analyzed data from749 participants, adults who are older than 65. The data was gathered by the scientists from the official database of San Antonio Longitudinal Study of Aging.

According to the experts, out of the 749 participants to the study, those who consumed diet soda on a daily basis over the course of approximately 10 years, had a waist circumference double than those who did not consume the soda drinks.

The study revealed that those who drank diet soda had a waist circumference enlarged 2.11 cm over a period of 9.4 years. The waist of those who weren’t diet soda drinkers expanded only with 0.77 cm.

The study showed that those who only drank diet soda occasionally had a waist enlarged by only 1.83 cm.
The researchers were surprised to discover that there weren’t any relevant links between the consumption of regular soda and extra kg on the belly. However, there are numerous studies that linked sugary sodas to weight gain.

The researchers say that gaining abdominal fat can lead to an increase in blood pressure, cardiovascular disease like coronary heart disease, diabetes, depression, albuminuria and other dangerous health conditions.

According to the experts, as we get older, we become more susceptible to an expanding waistline and accumulating more body fat. This is the type of fat that is responsible for serious diseases, mainly because it accumulates around important organs like the pancreas, liver and intestines.

The scientists explain that diet soda, although it doesn’t contain any sugar, can cause the waistline to expand and other health risks because of a main ingredient that is found in most types of soda, regular or diet. That ingredient is called phosphoric acid.
Sharon P.G. Fowler, one of the authors of the new study, explained that all sodas, be it diet or regular, have a similar acidity level, which can sometimes lead to “frightening” health risks.

But since many people, in order to avoid the extra calories, choose to drink less regular soda and more diet one, they presume that the diet soda is healthier, which is very wrong, according to the experts.

Also, the artificial sweeteners in diet sodas are known to cause kidney problems, cell damage and metabolic syndrome. All these conditions are caused by the potassium benzoate and the sodium benzoate diet sodas contain.

Sharon P.G. Fowler is a specialized in epidemiology and medicine at the University of Texas at San Antonio.
Although diet sodas don’t have any sugar, which is very harmful, the phosphoric acid they contain has been linked to numerous health problems, and the list is growing as we speak.

In order to make people better understand the risks they are facing when consuming diet soda, professor Fowler compared the human gut to a rainforest that is full of tiny organisms. These microorganisms need a certain balance in order for our bodies to be healthy.
If we pour diet soda on these organisms because we assume it’s healthier than regular soda, all we do is destroy a delicate ecosystem by consuming large amounts of acid.

According to Fowler, if someone consumes any type of soda drinks, it’s like having acid rain poured down on the guts’ “rainforest”. Fowler adds that no soda can be good for our health, diet or no diet.

After the new study was published, the Calorie Control Council, which is an international association that represents the industry that deals with low-calorie food and drinks, said that this study cannot determine a cause and effect, but can only indicate that there could be a link between drinking diet soda and gaining weight, especially around the abdomen.

Fowler advises that instead of focusing on whether diet soda is less dangerous or not than regular soda, we should gave up drinking any of them and start drinking beverages that have no sugar in them, such as tea, coffee, mineral water, natural fruit juices or simply just plain water with a slice of lemon.
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Christina Langfold

Remember that weird girl in school who never quite managed to fit in? Who was always silent and strange? That was me during my entire teenage life. A few years after finishing college (with a degree in arts) I decided that the best way to become more sociable, while also feeling safe, is to test my people skills online.