the other day on Good Morning America there was a piece about how diet soda causes weight gain. i had to dash off to work and i missed the bit. i just don't see how that's possible. diet soda has zero calories. i think they said something about it tricking your body into thinking it got real sugar!! what a disaster!! i'm a diet soda nightmare myself...could that explain some of my weight?? i know it can't explain it all because i'm aware my diet and exercise habits have been horrible over the last couple of years.

has anyone lost weight by stopping the diet soda? i thought it would be one vice that i could keep but maybe not?

I know that when I am trying to lose weight, the caffeine that is in the diet pepsi that I love will make it harder for various reasons. I limit myself to one glass every couple of days or so. I don't know anything about tricking your body....not sure that makes much sense to me. I am also trying to limit it because even without the sugar, it's not the healthiest thing to put into my body.

Check out this thread for a discussion of the study: Study: Artificial Sweeteners Increase Weight Gain Odds

The study that was being discussed on Good Morning America was on done rats that were fed yogurt sweetened with saccharin, so diet soda wasn't actually the subject of the study. Some people find that artificial sweeteners trigger cravings for sweets and lead to overeating but many people don't have that reaction.

It's quite individual, so pay attention to whether diet soda or anything that's artificially sweetened seems to set off overeating for you. If it does, then trying stopping it and see if that makes a difference.

As for me, I lost 122 pounds and have kept it off for almost six years while using artificial sweeteners and drinking diet soda, so it's not an issue (and I am absolutely not giving up my diet soda!!)

I did not see the clip but I personally have given up soda and I feel much better. I have not really lost any weight to speak of. At first i was down one pound but then nothing so I really do not know what it was from. But I do not feel bloated. I have had a few sodas but maybe one a week. I hope this helps.

thanks for the link meg! i was pretty distressed after hearing the intro to the story. i sure do love my diet soda

I remember reading a survey that polled people who had been trying to lose weight, and those that drank diet soda tended to lose less weight then those who drank no sodas at all. Of course, that doesn't mean that diet soda caused them to lose less weight. It may have been that diet soda triggered them to want to eat more (so if you were careful about calories you could avoid it), or maybe the people who gave up all soda just tended to be more serious about losing weight then the diet soda drinkers and that's why they were more successful.

Personally, I like the way that unsweetened green or herbal teas fill me up and don't wake up my sweet tooth the way that diet sodas or artificially-sweetened drinks do. But I do love a Sprite Zero whenever the urge for soda pops up (no pun...) I would suggest you try replacing diet soda ever once and a while with a glass of water or cup of tea and see how it works out for you.

Polkadot, the way I see it is that I've given up so much ... there's just no way that I'm giving up 0 calorie diet soda too!

I'm one of those who can't use artificial sweeteners. Not Equal, not Sweet n Low, and not Splenda. It sends my blood sugar, triglycerides, and liver enzymes to right on the edge of qualifying as diabetic. I cried the day I threw out my Crystal Light but since then I've lost 16 lbs in 8 weeks and am actually eating more food than I was before. I've made some other switches to more healthy foods as well (nothing with high fructose corn syrup or anything hydroginated - partially or otherwise) so it might be a combination but I do think it's totally dependent on each person's body chemistry. As hard (horrible) as it sounds, you'd have to try giving them up for a couple of weeks to see what happens. I've found I can actually survive long term without my Crystal Light so you can do it for a couple of weeks
Maybe you'll be lucky like Meg (I'm soooo jealous) and can keep them in your diet.

it's really interesting to think that something with artificial sweeteners could affect someone's blood chemistry in such a way. i read something about that when i read the atkins book as well. i may eventually try a week or two without diet soda but i'm just starting out now and it's the only thing keeping me sane.

have NOT given up my diet soda either, but have friends that really dog me about it. The sweetner in it is man made and the body was not made to process it. Some people have REALLY bad reactions. I know one lady that was Dx with lupus and it turned out she had a reaction to diet soda, she gave up the soda and no more issues... Personally, everyone has to decide what works for there body!

I have been wondering if diet soda can make you retain water.. which would seem like you were gaining or not losing as fast as you would without it. This week I lost four pounds and gained one back. The only thing I changed at the end of the week was I drank a one liter of Diet Mountain Dew one day and a Diet Sugar Free Rockstar the next day. I quit drinking diet soda when I noticed the one pound gain so I hope that helps for next weeks weigh in.

Tiffany

There has been no study done, ever, that indicated that diet soda CAUSES weight gain, or even to suggest it. Cause-and-effect is MUCH harder to prove than a simple correlation, particularly in human populations. As Meg said, this study wasn't about diet soda at all...it was about rats being fed saccharin-sweetened yogurt, which says nothing about humans drinking aspartame or Splenda sweetened sodas.

I also drink diet soda with some regularity (maybe 3-4 a week) and have throughout...it hasn't caused me any noticeable problems.

i think its because people think because it has no sugar or had artificial sweetners than they can drink/eat more, its just like the real stuff everything must be consumed in moderation! just my thoughts....

A little common sense goes a long way. If I have a craving for something sweet and choose a diet soda over a piece of cheesecake - that's using it as a tool to achieve my weight loss goals. If I decide that I can have the supersized value meal at McGreasy's because I'm washing it down with a diet soda - that's denial and self-delusion.

I love my diet soda. I don't even like the tast of regular and I never have. I figure that we're all going to dei someday. I know artificial sweeteners and such are bad for you, but these days BREATHING is bad for you. So I might as well enjoy the soda. I've lost 7 pounds in 3 weeks and losing any faster would be unhealthy and I have been having 1-2 glasses of diet soda every day for the duration.