Today I want to look at the things that happen when you finally decide to stop drinking diet soda. I’ll be honest, I’m a complete diet Pepsi addict. I can easily drink 6 or more glasses of the stuff per day. Lately however, I’ve been trying to cut back on the amount of Pepsi I consume in order to increase my water intake, with the aim of eventually giving up diet Pepsi completely. To help me with this, what I’ve done is set a rule for myself that I’m only allowed a glass of Pepsi for every 500ml water that I drink (briefly mentioned in my previous post where I talk about how you can stick to your diet over the weekend), and so far I’ve kept to this for a couple of weeks. The next step is to give up drinking Pepsi (and all soda) entirely. To motivate myself, and hopefully you as well, I’ve compiled a list of 5 amazing things that happen when you finally stop drinking diet soda.
You’ll Lose Weight
With a single soda bottle containing up to 44 grams of sugar, it’s a no brainer that drinking soda regularly can lead to the body storing it as fat. And while you may have been reaching for the soda’s diet counterpart to aid weight loss, it can actually have the opposite effect of causing you to gain weight. Even though diet sodas may contain zero calories, the artificial sweeteners in them are still sweet like sugar, and will cause insulin – the fat storing hormone – to be released, causing your body to hold on to all the extra fat it can.
Food Will Start To Taste Better
Once you give up diet soda, you may find that food suddenly starts to taste better – and it’s not your imagination. Diet soda can actually affect the way all foods taste, as it increases our threshold for sweetness. As artificial sweeteners in soda are much sweeter than table sugar, it can overwhelm your taste buds and desensitize it to sweetness. It’s no surprise then that once you give up drinking diet soda, your taste buds will recover and be more sensitive, making your food taste better and more flavorful.
You’ll Have Stronger Bones and Healthier Teeth
We all know sugar is bad for your teeth and eat away at your enamel, but it turns out that diet soda is just as bad. Dental researchers found that both regular as well as diet soda are damaging to our teeth and can increase our risk of cavities. Researchers also found that regular intake of soda decreases bone density and leads to a higher risk of bone fractures, so putting down that soda can not help you to get healthier, whiter teeth, but can also increase your bone strength and reduce your risk of fractures.
You’ll Lessen Your Cravings
The ingredients in diet soda actually increases cravings for sugary treats as it alters sweet receptors in the brain and extend the duration of cravings. When we drink diet soda and consume artificial sweeteners, our bodies prepare themselves for the incoming sugar, but when the sugar doesn’t come, it actually triggers hunger and cravings for all things sugary.
You’ll Decrease Your Risk of Getting Type 2 Diabetes
We know that regular consumption of junk food and sugar can increase our risk for Type 2 Diabetes. People who are prediabetic are often told to stay away from soda as it negatively impacts their blood sugar levels. However, according to studies, artificial sweeteners like the ones found in diet soda can be just as bad and can also increase one’s risk to develop diabetes. So it’s not just the sugary beverages that we need to be wary of, but their diet counterparts as well.
I hope some of these points have made you more aware of the health benefits you can look forward to should you decide to give up soda. I’ve written another post to aid you in this process that detail some of the things you can drink instead of soda, especially for those of you who aren’t too fond of only drinking water.
If you have anything to add to the list or any comments or questions, please feel free to leave a message below, I’d love to hear from you!