A growing number of studies link the consumption of diet soda to weight gain, higher BMI and a host of other potential health problems. Here is a roundup of some of the recent findings:
Calcium loss — A study by Noelle Larson, MD, at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center, showed that diet soda leaches calcium from our bodies. Over the course of two days, Larson had 20 healthy young women drink 24 ounces of diet soda. (The control group drank only water.) Three hours after the diet-soda-drinking group had their last soda, Larson analyzed the women’s urine: The diet-soda group lost on average 6.85 milligrams more calcium and 41 milligrams more phosphorous than the water-drinking control group.
Neurological damage — The short-term effects of the synthetic sweetener aspartame, which is used in many diet sodas, can include headaches, mood swings, dizziness and memory loss. But the real danger, says Sharon Fowler, MPH, a researcher at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, might be the long-term, cumulative effects of drinking the artificial sugar substitute. Studies have linked high intake of aspartame to developing lymphoma, leukemia, cancerous tumors of the liver and peripheral nerves, and nerve-cell death within the brain.
Metabolic syndrome — Drinking diet soda increases the risk of developing metabolic syndrome by 34 percent, research indicates. Metabolic syndrome is a group of symptoms that includes extra weight around the midsection, elevated insulin levels and increased blood pressure. When these symptoms occur together, they put a person at greater risk for diabetes, heart disease and other illnesses.
(For more on diet soda and weight gain, read “Poor Substitutes.”)
UPDATE:
The article above spurred spirited conversation among our readers (see comments section, below). Our response, below, replies to the concerns raised by one reader who questioned the validity of the research we referenced in our coverage. For your convenience, you’ll also find links to the full studies below.
Thanks for your feedback, Tech Talker. We appreciate your point of view.
Here’s our take: While it is true (and typical of evolving scientific investigations) that not all studies in this area have reached the same conclusions, a growing body of research continues to highlight the potential dangers in drinking diet soda, and this is particularly true of research not connected to industry interests. We believe it’s important to highlight this research for health-conscious readers who want to make informed decisions about what they eat and drink.
We would also like to point out that on the Duke page you reference (as well as the other blogs and resources turned up in your quick Google search), most of the experts quoted largely conclude that “more research is called for.” They do not refute the studies we report on or directly oppose their conclusions; these individuals simply posit that, as of yet, the scientific jury is still out and the evidence is not, in their view, conclusive.
In our view, there has long been enough evidence for concern, and to merit our ongoing research and reporting on the topic. What we discovered in our most recent investigation of this topic is that the majority of the research we cited in “Diet Soda Debacles” supports a significant body of earlier research with similar findings.
For example, the study by Noelle Larson, MD, that shows that diet soda can contribute to calcium loss was preceded by a 2003 study by Tufts researcher Katharine Tucker, PhD, that linked soda consumption (including diet and caffeine-free varieties) with decreased bone density. A 2006 study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition surveyed 1,413 women and 1,125 men for bone mineral density and found an association between soda drinkers and reduced bone density. Likewise, a long string of studies have linked aspartame to possible neurological dangers. A 1996 study by Washington University Medical school called aspartame “a promising candidate” to explain the increase in malignant brain tumors. For those interested, we’ve provided links to several additional, well-regarded studies on diet soda’s link to metabolic syndrome and obesity.
In conclusion, we’d like to emphasize that in our coverage of this and other health-related issues, we rely on well-vetted research from peer-reviewed journals, and we fact-check our reporting carefully. We understand that not all of our readers, or all experts, will agree with our conclusions in every instance, and we welcome opportunities for thoughtful debate. That said, based on our review of the research to date, we feel comfortable standing by our reporting on this important topic.
Additional Studies (PDFs):
- Yang Artificial Sweeteners and Neurobiology of Food Cravings; 2010
- ARIC Diet Soda and Metabolic Syndrome; Lutsey, et al, 2008
- Davidson and Swithers; 2004
- Dhringa Framingham Data With Soft Drinks; 2007
Thank you for your comments, Tech Talker. Please refer to the updated portion of the article body to find our response.
I can’t open the links that ExperienceLife “relied on” at the bottom of the page. Can anyone else open them?
Our apologies for the problems with the links — we have fixed them and you can now download the PDFs. Thanks for letting us know! — Jamie Martin, Experience Life Manager of Digital Initiatives
I can’t open the PDF files ExperienceLife links at the bottom, is anyone else able too?
You should now be able to download the PDFS as we have updated the links — Jamie Martin, Experience Life Manager of Digital Initiatives
Mr. or Ms. Szymanski,,
Thank you for your email. We are grateful to have such savvy readers like you. However, our advertising is handled by our parent company and we have limited control over ad content. We will pass this message along to our advertising department, and we are also hoping to cover this topic in an upcoming issue.
Best in health,
Experience Life magazine
Just read this article on diet soda yesterday in my latest issue. Imagine my surprise when just a few pages later, I saw a full-page ad for Powerade Zero….which contains the artificial sweeteners sucralose and acesulfame-K, per their website. Overall I love your magazine, but I feel that this looked a tad hypocritical.
You can find stuff on the internet to refute or support virtually any position you wish to take. It’s your health! Are you willing to take the chance?
@Reason – 20 years ago they told pregnant women not to walk or exercise much because it could hurt the baby. When Hal Higdon started running, they told him jogging more than 15 miles per week was dangerous and counterproductive to his health. Margarine was supposed to be better for you, and eggs were going to kill us all. By “Are you willing to take the chance?” do you mean “are you willing to live based upon currently accepted and peer reviewed studies that are substantiated, rather than living your life on old wives tales or refuted and poorly conceived research?” then the answer is a resounding yes!
To be clear, I am not condoning or promoting diet soda as a healthy choice, I am merely bemoaning the poor journalistic job that was done here, and the effect of spreading error and misinformation in what is otherwise a quality mag.
It’s sad to see a generally useful magazine continuously fill it’s pages with misinformation, half truths and refuted studies. This article in it’s entirety is a horrible (and yet another) example where you guys have not done your research and instead just reprinted myths and garbage … I see better info in the random chain emails that go around.
Please look into these things a little bit before publishing – many people look to your magazine for health direction as well as info on working out and human interest stories like the fantastic interview with Joe Esposito. Generally, I think you’d be better off staying away from the health stuff – you tend to get way more of it wrong than you add helpful insight.
All of the reported “facts” here have been well handled by Duke University’s Medicine Dept:
http://www.dukehealth.org/health_library/health_articles/diet_soda
And here’s a few links I found in literally 30 sec of Google search about aspartame:
CNN: http://thechart.blogs.cnn.com/2010/03/18/is-aspartame-safe/
WebMD: http://www.webmd.com/cancer/news/20060404/aspartame-cancer-link-refuted
MedPedia: http://wiki.medpedia.com/Aspartame_and_Cancer
PLEASE stick to the recipes, workouts, and other stuff that you do so well and leave the medical issues to those qualified and knowledgeable enough to address them properly.
good reading