Even not a few years ago, diet soft drinks were used to be promoted as one of the KEY items to help lose weight. However, the buzz may fizzle out soon as experts have called soft drinks “no better” than their regular soda counterparts.
Diet soft drinks, once promoted as a healthy alternative to regular sodas, are under experts’ scanner and they don’t think highly about the so-called better versions.
Recently, a study has revealed that both diet soft drinks and regular sugary soda water increase insulin levels, as measured from saliva.
Oph! Researchers Bust the Myth
The news is not good, especially for those who have always favoured “No Sugar” alternatives to their favourite soda drinks (for example, Zero Sugar Fanta, Diet Coke etc) as healthy options.
Dietician Karen Z Berg has told Medical News Today that it is surprising to see that insulin levels in both groups increased after ‘drink’ consumption.
Diet sodas have been heavily promoted for both blood sugar control and weight loss. However, more and more research shows that consuming these beverages produces adverse effect, Berg has added. However, Berg was not a part of the research team.
A research team from the University of Sao Paulo, Brazil conducted the test in a small cohort of 15 healthy participants, to figure out the effects of regular soft drinks, diet soft drinks, plain water, plan water with a small amount of added sucrose and mineral water with artificial sweeteners, as per a report by New York Post.
Researchers procured saliva samples from participants and analysed the same for alpha-amylase (an enzyme that helps digest body sugar), total protein, aspartame and insulin levels.
Aspartame was detected in saliva samples for a long period of time. The finding indicates that the artificial sweetener stays in the body for an extended period of time, which can significantly affect how the body responds to the sweetener.
Researchers found that consumption of diet soft drinks and regular soda drinks had increased insulin levels. According to them, salivary insulin level is intimately related to blood levels of insulin.
“Insulin release is an essential part of blood sugar regulation, cellular metabolism, and muscle growth,” Dr. Brian Black, an osteopathic physician in Greencastle, Indiana, told Medical News Today.
According to Black, high insulin levels can cause complications such as weight gain due to excess fat deposition. On a serious note, high insulin level is also correlated to cardiovascular risks due to high blood pressure and atherosclerosis.
High and abnormal long-term insulin exposure is responsible for myocardial infraction, stroke, kidney disease, retinopathy, neuropathy and even erectile dysfunction.
However, researchers need further studies to confirm data on direct and adverse health measures. “However, health messaging should note that substituting sugary beverages with aspartame beverages may not lead to health benefits and could cause harm.”
The latest study has been published in Food Research International. It has added to the already obtained evidence that diet sodas and foods sweetened by aspartame may not be healthy at all.
Earlier 2023, a leaked report from the WHO (World Health Organization) rung an alarm that aspartame might be declared as a “potential carcinogen”.
The WHO released a set of new guidelines in May 2023, to warn public not to consume non-sugar sweeteners for weight loss, adding that these might do more harm to body than good.
