Does Drinking Water Help You Lose More Weight Than Diet Soda?

Losing weight comes down to one basic rule: expend more calories than you take in. A variety of dieting methods exist to help you stick to this basic rule, including the recommendation to switch from high-calorie beverages to those with low to no calories, such as diet soda. However, excess intake of diet soda does have health implications and can still contribute to weight gain. In a healthy weight loss plan, water is your best fluid choice to maintain zero-calorie hydration, but it is not the only beverage you must drink.

Water

Elect water as your primary beverage during weight loss and after because it affords you a host of health benefits. A cold glass of refreshing water quenches your thirst. It is free of calories, fat, cholesterol, caffeine and added sugars. Consumption of water throughout the day helps your body maintain natural fluid balance to keep your kidneys working efficiently and your digestive system regular, which is highly important when trying to lose weight. Water facilitates nutrients and oxygen to your cells and this aids in nourishing your muscles and maintaining proper heart rhythm.

Diet Soda

A variety of tasty flavored diet sodas exist to satiate thirst without adding calories, but they may also contain caffeine, flavor additives and phosphoric acid to maintain bubbly carbonation. Moderate caffeine consumption, 300 mg or less per day, is not harmful but if you drink several caffeinated diet sodas a day, you risk side effects like headaches, jitters and heart palpitations. One 12-oz. caffeinated diet soda has 35 to 55 mg of caffeine. The artificial sweeteners and additives can perpetuate your cravings for sweet treats, which may make you seek real, high-calorie sugar foods. Too much phosphoric acid in your diet may also deplete your body of the mineral calcium, which is essential for healthy bones.

Diet Soda and Weight Loss

A longitudinal study conducted by researchers at the University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio found that daily consumption of diet soda correlated with increased waist circumference in human subjects. The premise of the study was to determine the relationship between weight and drinking diet soda. The 474 study subjects were enrolled for two decades with follow-ups to measure height, weight and waist circumference at each interval check-in. Compared to non-diet soda drinkers, the diet soda users as a group experienced a 70 percent increase in waist expansion even in the users with the lowest consumption of two diet drinks per day.

Conclusions

The occasional diet beverage does not ruin your diet, and if you choose to switch from regular soda to diet in the beginning of a weight loss plan, you may see favorable results. In the long-term however, drinking diet soda daily has an impact on your health but may also inhibit weight loss. Drink water throughout the day to manage your thirst. Add a squeeze of lemon to your water or mix it with some fresh juice to change the flavor. Enjoy a diet soda now and then but avoid drinking it daily.