Quote:
Originally Posted by Numina
I am curious about switching from pop to Crystal Lite --- why is drinking an artificially sweetened drink like soda bad but drinking an artificially sweetened drink like Crystal Lite ok?
I think you've got to realize that there are many opinions on the water issue, and people draw their "battle lines" in different places, and sometimes there are valid reasons and sometimes not so much.
For myself, I'm not worried about artificial colors or sweeteners or caffeine, although I know there are more nutritious and healthier choices, so I'm trying to drink more tea. I'm also not worried about drinking my water with nothing in it, because there is no such thing, except distilled water, which is actually not recommended because it's lack of mineral content could actually pull minerals from the body. The theory that the body "processes" plain water better than other liquids just isn't true, your kidneys deal with liquid in any form very well. In fact, you could get all of your fluid requirements from food, especially if you eat a lot of moist foods like fruits and vegetables.
One reason carbonated beverages may be worse than non-carbonated ones(whether they contain other artificial ingredients or not), is there is as theory that drinking carbonated beverages may leach calcium from the bones or it may be that people who drink carbonated beverages drink less milk, and therefore intake less calcium. As a result, I take calcium supplements "just in case," because I do enjoy my diet soda and I don't care for milk (I do try to get yogurt and light cheeses in, but I'm just not the dairy fan my husband is). I alternate or take half doses of both calcium carbonate and calcium citrate (calcium citrate is more easily digested, but also much more expensive). I'm trying to wean myself off carbonation, but I love fizziness.
I've also read that aspartame can make a folic acid deficiency worse. I try to limit aspartame more than Splenda, but I'm using both, but much less often than I once did. I'm also taking folic acid supplements because they were prescribed by one of my doctors for my fibromyalgia, so I do think I've got a little bit of "insurance" against small amounts of aspartame.