We have all been hearing about the popularity of diet sodas in recent times and their effects on the body at large. Dieters often find that all their efforts have not been fruitful owing to poor consumption habits. This puts a spanner in the works and leads to weight gain all over again. Are diet sodas are prime culprit in this regard? Read on to find out more on the same.
Are diet sodas really harmful?
Experts and nutritionists have been debating for long with regard to the contents of items like diet sodas and supposedly low calorie beverages. This has led to many anxieties and worries relating to diet sodas which often cause doubts in the mind of dieters and health enthusiasts. Some of these purportedly unhealthy components are high intensity sweeteners such as saccharin, aspartame, potassium, sucralose, Stevia and acesulfame potassium among others. Do they actually help in controlling weight? Well, safety indicators are unbiased with regard to the apparent harmlessness of these products in most cases. You can thus relax when it comes to the overall safety of consuming diet sodas.
However, there is another school of thought which can reveal some unpleasant findings. According to many experts and tests, saccharin content in meals has actually led to more weight gain as compared to sugar sweetened items. This happened in spite of apparently low consumption of saccharin sweetened items. Sugar sweetened beverages on the other hand, were found to induce a total lack of hunger control mechanisms and rampant overeating in some individuals as compared to others who consumed artificially sweetened liquids. More research and observational studies are required to put things into perspective in this case. High intensity sweeteners are contained in many diet sodas and other similar beverages. Manufacturers of these beverages do not prefer to fund any research initiatives owing to fear of bad results and findings. Independent research is the need of the hour in this regard so that consumers get a clear idea of the pros and cons of consuming diet sodas.
What you should do
You should go by the contents of the diet sodas that you purchase. In some cases, these beverages have been found to restrict weight gain and this is only applicable if you use these items in a wise manner. You should replace all sugar induced sodas and beverages with these diet sodas to consume lesser calories as seems to be suggested by many experts and professionals in the industry. Alongside, these diet sodas may actually be quite beneficial while you are actively losing weight. This is because if you are prone to uncontrollable urges for sweets, these diet sodas will help you replace harmful sugar fixes with high intensity sweeteners.
These items work best in a transitional format helping you make the switch from sugary beverages to ones that ensure that you consume lower calories. As a result, diet sodas may work but they have to be used with caution and not with gay abandon.