Diet drinks can be a way for you to enjoy a flavored beverage with almost zero calories. If you are trying to limit your beverage calories or reduce your overall caloric intake, diet drinks can benefit you. However, even though the American Dietetic Association indicates that 90 percent of Americans choose to drink and eat artificially sweetened foods and beverages, there may be health reasons to limit or avoid these drinks.
Artificial Sweeteners
All diet drinks contain some type of artificial sweetener, which allows the diet sodas to be almost calorie free. Katherine Zeratsky, R.D., at the Mayo Clinic indicates that the sweeteners used in diet sodas are generally acceptable for most adults to consume. The sweeteners commonly used in diet drinks include acesulfame-K, sucralose, neotame, aspartame and saccharin, according to the Harvard School of Public Health. Each of these sweeteners is much sweeter than sugar, with little or no calories.
Weight Control
Even though diet drinks have few calories, drinking diet drinks may make it difficult for you to maintain your weight. Researchers are not certain why drinking zero calorie drinks may make it difficult for adults to avoid weight gain or maintain weight. Ruth Kava, registered dietitian for the American Council on Science and Health examined a study presented at an American Diabetes Society meeting in 2005 that found that the participants who drank diet soda were more likely to gain weight than participants who drank regular sodas. Kava hypothesizes that the participants may add extra food calories because they believe they are cutting back on beverage calories.
Increases in Metabolic Syndrome Risk
Metabolic syndrome is a cluster of risk factors that includes high blood pressure, abdominal obesity and a body mass index of greater than 25, high glucose levels, and an abnormal lipid panel that includes low levels of high-density lipoprotein and high levels of triglycerides. Metabolic syndrome can increase your risk of developing heart disease or stoke. The April 2009 issue of the journal "Diabetes Care" published an article that found that participants who consumed diet sodas each day had a greater risk of developing both type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome.
Decreased Nutritional Intake
If you drink large amounts of diet drinks, you may inadvertently drink less healthy drinks such as water, 100 percent fruit juices and milk. Milk contains calcium, which is essential to the strength of your teeth and bones, according to the National Institutes of Health. Drinking water gives your body necessary hydration, which a caffeinated diet drink does not do, because caffeine can cause you to urinate more frequently or become dehydrated, making it difficult for your body to absorb nutrients in the foods you eat.
References
- American Dietetic Association; Position of the American Dietetic Association: Use of Nutritive and Nonnutritive Sweeteners; 2004
- MayoClinic.com; Diet Soda: Is It Bad for You?; Katherine Zeratsky, R.D., L.D.
- Harvard School of Public Health: Sugary Drinks or Diet Drinks: What's the Best Choice?
- American Council on Science and Health; Diet (?!) Soda and Obesity; Ruth Kava, Ph.D., R.D.; June 2005
- Family Doctor; American Academy of Family Physicians; Metabolic Syndrome; March 2010
- "Diabetes Care"; Diet Soda Intake and Risk of Incident Metabolic Syndrome and Type 2 Diabetes in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA); Jennifer Nettleton; April 2009
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