I've recently gotten hooked on Coke Zero (not the Splenda version). I know it's not good for me, but I wanted something sweet since I stopped using Splenda in my coffee and other things. Splenda was just horrible on my stomach. Anyway, I realized I was going overboard (1 a day), and have stopped drinking them again. I think I could handle 1 or 2 a month as a treat, but 1 a day is too much for me (again, stomach problems). Sweeteners just don't agree with me, and as a pre-diabetic, I can't do sugar, either.
We don't really keep pop in the house. Partially because it's healthy this way, but also because it is so much cheaper to keep it out of the house! I still buy lightly sweetened iced tea for hubby since he doesn't like to drink water straight. For myself it is: water, tomato juice, coffee or milk these days. Once in a while some wine.
The idea of pop in general to me is horrible! It is horrible for our bodies and very expensive when compared to other options. When pop was first made it was meant to be used as a treat. Not something that people drink tons and tons of each day.
I make my own green tea. It's cheaper than in the bottle and I can make it a little darker, which is how I like it. I put some lemon in it, and a *little* bit of sugar. It's so yummy! That and water is pretty much all I want now.
To me, Soda is too sweet and Diet is too FAKE sweet... I don't like any artificial sweeteners. I've tried my hardest. They're just no goes for me. lol
In looking at the studies, there are several explanations for the results of the studies mentioned asides from blaming the sweetener. In the human longitudinal study it showed that those who drank more diet soda had larger waists - but while the aspartame may have contributed to the weight/waist gain - another possibility is that people who saw their waistline increasing (that is saw they were gaining weight) started drinking diet soda (an effect, not a cause of the expanding waistline).
Likewise in the case of the mice, it's likely that the sweetness in the chow made it taste "better" and so encouraged the mice to eat more (it's actually not surprising, both animals and humans have a tendency to overeat "yummier" foods). I would bet that it wasn't the aspartame the directly caused the blood sugar - it was the carbs in the chow. The sweetener may have gave them a bigger appetite for their chows (a high carb food), so the added food quite likely (I'd even say probable) caused the blood sugar spike, not the sweetener itself.
The advantage to being a human being though, is being able to keep a food journal and control your calorie level. Even though sweeteners may increase our appetite and interest in sweet and higher carb foods, unlike lab mice we have the ability to use our food journal to decide whether or not to indulge.
I've dieted with and without diet sodas and artificial sweeteners, and I didn't experience enough of a difference to say there was one. Calories and to a lesser degree carbohydrate level had a lot more to do with my weight loss (or lack of it) than the diet sodas.
If you don't count your food in some way (calories, exchanges, WWpoints...), it may make sense to drop the artificial sweeteners (because there are several studies that suggest artifical sweeteners can increase appetite or cravings), but if you're counting your calories, it may not matter.
You have to weigh the possible risks with the possible benefits. I've discovered (by analyzing my food logs) that real sugar fires up my appetite far more than artificial sweeteners do, so if I'm going to have something sweet, a diet soda makes more sense than something with real sugar (but perhaps only because I'm counting). If I weren't controlling my calories through my exchange plan, giving up all sweet foods would probably make sense - as well as virtually all high-carb foods, because I've found that all high-carb foods, even healthy ones like fruit and whole grain pasta result in appetite spikes. To keep hunger under tight enough control to lose weight, I would have to eat lower carb than I'm comfortable doing. So for me, it's either strict carb control with very few carbs and no artificial or natural sweeteners either, or a counting plan.
For years I was a real diet soda addict -- used to be diet coke, then coke zero. A few months ago I was drinking 4 or 5 a day. I decided to have less artificial sweetener and tapered off over a couple of weeks. FWIW I don't notice faster weight loss and years ago I got to a goal of 125 on WW while drinking diet drinks regularly.
Sense I gave up diet drinks a few months ago I mostly drink water, some True Lemonade and occasionally Crystal Light Pure. I do buy some foods with a little Splenda and don't mind stevia and even a small amount of sugar (such as in True lemonade but still it is only 5 cal per serving and counts as 0 carbs, I think it is about 1/2 a carb really). When I eat out I do get diet drinks and occasionally will buy one.
I'm not sure that aspartame is unsafe or that it increases sugar cravings but I decided I just wanted to largely avoid it nonetheless, at least not have it every day.
I've dieted with artificial sweeteners, caffeine, and diet sodas - and I've dieted without them (sometimes giving up one, sometimes giving up all three), and I've found no difference with my weight loss. In my experience my calorie level, my activity level, (and to a lesser degree, my carb level) has more to do with my degree of weight loss than whether or not I use caffeine or artificial sweeteners (or specifically diet sodas).
My experience is similar. I'm drinking one or two diet sodas a day and very pleased with my weight loss, and I've always lost weight in the past while having a similar amount of it.
I drink over 100 oz of water every day, but sometimes, it's nice to have something sweet and flavored.
I don't even like the taste of non-diet soda, it tastes far too sweet and syrupy to me, so even when I'm not actively watching my weight, I choose diet soda for the taste of it.
I don't even like the taste of non-diet soda, it tastes far too sweet and syrupy to me, so even when I'm not actively watching my weight, I choose diet soda for the taste of it.
I don't drink regular soda for the same reason. The only regular soda I have a distinct memory of drinking when I was really little (and the only diet sodas were Tab and Fresca) was cokes and Crush orange in tiny 6-8 oz bottle).
I don't drink diet soda because I think it helps with weight loss. I don't even eat fruits and vegetables to help with weight loss. What helps my weight loss is restricting my calories (and to a lesser degree carbs) and being more active.
I don't like regular soda, but I do like flavored beverages (I like plain water too, as long as it's ice cold. I'm not a fan of tepid water). Even if I liked regular soda, it would be difficult to fit into my calorie budget.
I do think artificial sweeteners do prime your sweet tooth, but I think sugar and refined carbohydrates are worse. After reading David Kessler's, The End of Overeating, I'm convinced that sweetness (and especially the sweet/salty/fat flavor combination) is addictive. The more you have, the more you want.
I could eliminate all sweetness (including fruit) from my diet. Some people have success with that, but I'm reluctant to go to that extreme because I LIKE sweetness and don't want to elminate it, entirely.
I do try to manipulate my sweet tooth, but diluting sweet foods, and that does help, because for me it's the intensity that seems to be the issue. Dried fruit is more addictive to me than diet soda, because it's far sweeter (and it's actual sugar and the calories are concentrated too).
I think there are a lot of differences between people, and that only keeping a food journal can help you find what works and what doesn't for you.
For years I have struggled with my overactive appetite. I tried everything to get back into control of my overeating. A few weeks ago I read an article on diet sodas and aspartame. It said those who drink diet sodas tend to weigh more.
So I quit cold turkey. Just to see what would happen. 2 diet Dr. Peppers a day down to none. Just water. You know what? My compulsion to overeat... Gone! I actually feel hunger again! I don't think about food 24/7! I totally believe the aspartame made me crave sugar and junk food. It's been 2 weeks and I feel like I can do this now. I feel so more in control. I lost a few lbs. and I know it's because I am just not that interested in eating. I eat, but normal amounts now. I am not eating all day long anymore!
I am SO much more happier! I will never touch the stuff again!
I drink diet Mtn Dew (on occasion, Coke Zero) because I don't want to "drink" my calories. Being an ex-Mtn Dew addict, at first I couldn't stand the taste of Diet Dew, but by mixing it half & half, and slowly adding more diet than regular, I grew to enjoy the taste. Now a regular Mtn Dew (or Coke or any soda) just tastes entirely too sweet to me.
That said, I only have one (or sometimes 2) per day. I have coffee in the morning (usually 2 cups) with two Equals. Otherwise I drink water almost all the time & always drink it throughout the day (& keep it by my bed at night because I often wake up thirsty).
I have not noticed any difference at all with my weight loss because of the diet soda. I know people who have "lost over 20 lbs!" simply by cutting soda from their diet. Obviously I ain't one of'm. But I do wonder if I cut soda out completely - no diet, no nothin' - would I FEEL any different? That may be something I try once I get to maintain-level. But while I'm trying to LOSE the weight, I'll stick with my Diet Dew a couple times a day.
I completely dropped all sodas. If I have to have something fizzy, I grab a Perrier which isn't often. I just can't get used to diet soda so I leave it all alone. I don't want to drink or eat anything that will just give me more work to do lol.
Diet sodas help me as do artificial sweeteners in general to a degree. I control and log what I eat so when I have diet sodas, if it does increase my appetite or anything, it would make no difference as I eat by the numbers.
I see no benefit in a weight loss or maintenance program in drinking 100s of calories in real soda but sometimes I want soda. It is a no brainer to me that it is better to have the no cal option, for me. Studies notwithstanding lol.
Call me silly, but I refuse to use light products or diet stuff. If I want something, I waant the real thing. Ill just have less of it. I am happy I beat my soda(coke) addiction a few months ago and got myself off the redbull a few weeks ago. My skin is much improved. And now when I want to.. I enjoy it as a nice treat.
And energyboosts can be gotten through good fruits or excersise anyhow. When very busy with something vor Uni i'll use guarana tablets for a few days. Ive researched it for a while before I got them, and it supposedly has no health risks, is 100percent natural. But, always as with everything - in moderation!
We do hardly any processed foods, artificial sweeteners or artificial colors in our diet at home. That said I believe in everything in moderation, so if I really want one I try to go for the new "all-natural" sodas
I fell in love with diet coke/cherry coke and found it SO hard to "cut back", and then completely get rid of it (in the sense that I knew I could "reward" myself if I was doing well on my diet by having a glass of it, but decided against it completely)
as crazy as it sounds... the LONGER I've gone without having any, the easier it's gotten...
the same goes with fast food/french fries...
my tummy gets upset at the smell of fried food..
i'm not sure if that is entirely a good thing.. but i guess it's helped me thus far! LOL
I have gone years without drinking soda. But they started carrying diet Dr. Pepper at work. When I am serious about losing weight, I do drink a can at work (though I only go in a few days a week). For me, it's a treat to feel less deprived when I am strictly controlling calories. In my own study (with a data point of one), drinking diet soda is associated with a shrinking waistline!
I've been drinking diet soda since I was child. My mother never liked the regular sodas (too sweet for her) and since I never really had regular soda I find it too sweet for me when I (usually accidentally) drink some.
I must be weird or something, because diet soda (Diet Coke, my favorite drink ever) fills me up instead of making me crave sugar. I also loved the caffeine bost during grad school!
I know that stuff is horrible for you, so I don't drink it as often as I used to, but I still have it every once in a while, especially when I start feeling hungry and I know I shouldn't be eating yet!
I put some lemon in it, and a *little* bit of sugar. It's so yummy! That and water is pretty much all I want now.
But I do wonder if I cut soda out completely - no diet, no nothin' - would I FEEL any different? That may be something I try once I get to maintain-level. But while I'm trying to LOSE the weight, I'll stick with my Diet Dew a couple times a day. 
