So! You can’t win!
First you learn that sugars and refined carbohydrates can be the reason for your excess body fat. Now I tell you that sugar-free products are also a no-no?
How can that be when the food industry has told us for years that diet sodas, sugar-free drinks, and low-calorie drinks are the solution to healthy weight loss? The shelves are packed with these products!
Quite simply, the evidence is now the opposite. Recent research has concluded that people who regularly drink sugar-free/”diet” beverages are just as likely to be obese as those who consume the full-sugar alternatives. It seems that when your brain registers the sweet taste of the artificial sweeteners contained in such products, it triggers a biochemical response similar to that required to process natural sugars.
An independent study conducted by researchers at the Framingham Heart Study in Massachusetts showed results indicating that diet soda consumption is correlated with increased metabolic syndrome. [abnormal response and ineffectiveness of insulin on blood glucose]. Of the 9,000 men and women studied, 4,320 of the subjects were at increased risk of weight gain and elevated blood sugar levels.
Sharon P. Fowler, MPH, and colleagues at the University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, reported that total soft drink consumption was not only related to being overweight and obese, but also to obesity risk. it was even higher in people who drank only diet soda. In fact, when the researchers took a closer look at their data, they found that almost all of the obesity risk from soft drinks came from diet sodas. There was a 41% increased risk of being overweight for every can or bottle of diet soda a person consumed each day.
And then there’s the issue of artificial sweeteners. Artificial sweeteners are just that – artificial!
They are controversial, non-food products, typically man-made, that offer no nutritional value and have long been linked to serious illness. Despite the health concerns associated with aspartame, saccharin, and others, there seems to be no letup in how quickly manufacturers can incorporate them into our diets.
A preliminary study by Hannah Gardener of the University of Miami linked daily consumption of diet sodas with a 61% higher incidence of “vascular events” such as strokes and heart attacks.
Once again, it’s really shocking to find out that products that manufacturers claim are healthy and promote weight loss are actually quite the opposite, isn’t it? When can we expect honesty and transparency in food advertising?