Can Diet Soda Make You Gain Weight?

Experts Find Diet Sodas Can Have A Negative Effect On Weight Loss

(CBS)  For many people there's only one real reason to drink diet soda.

"Because it's got no calories and, yeah, you try to watch your weight," says Raymond Tomczak.

But, as The Early Show medical correspondent Dr. Emily Senay reports, some experts are now saying diet soda may be doing the exact opposite: making them gain weight.

Epidemiologist Sharon Fowler, from the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, presented research data on soda consumption to the American Diabetes Association.

"What we saw was that the more diet sodas a person drinks, the more weight they were likely to gain," she says.

That finding was a big surprise, but it reflected what nutritionist Melainie Rogers saw in her work with obese patients in New York.

"When we would switch them on to diet soda off regular soda, we weren't seeing weight loss necessarily, and that was confusing to us," Rogers says.

But why would diet soda make some people gain weight? There are only theories at this point but it may be as simple as people consciously eating more because they think they can.

Khristianne Corro says, "If I'm having one of those pig out days, then yeah, I figure maybe it'll balance it out a little bit."

And Tomczak says, "I'm drinking the diet soda and you know let me have that hamburger and fries, instead of just the hamburger alone."

Researchers say physiology may also play a role.

"When I put anything to my stomach that's not water then my stomach responds by increasing the gastric acid secretion," Fowler says. "Does that increase my sense of hunger and does that drive me to eat more?"

If diet soda really doesn't take the weight off, it wouldn't be the first time a diet product failed to perform as expected.

"You know, much the same as when we went through the fat free craze, people overate – not because there was anything wrong with the products, but they overate," says Rogers, the nutritionist. "So we're wondering are we seeing a similar phenomenon with the diet soda."

There are still plenty of questions that researchers need to answer. For instance, are these results associated with all artificial sweeteners? Or just certain ones?

And of course, it's all just a theory until larger controlled studies can be done, but the early findings are fascinating.

In the meantime, there are alternatives for people who are trying to lose weight.

There's juice and water or coffee and tea. Dr. Senay says the one thing to take away from this is moderation. Whatever you put in your mouth, don't overdo it. A diet product won't really help you lose weight if you're still getting too many calories from other foods.

[SteveLeftwitch]

"Whatever you put in your mouth, don't overdo it"
This is the best piece of advice ,I think, in the article...

[elgraz]

You can make any study come out to the results you are looking for. It is called statistical bullshavings.

[nike5855]

The CBS article is full of lies and half-truths, as usual. They go to great lengths not to expose aspartame for the poison it is, but to point the finger at the consumer for over-eating-- shameless blameshifting at its hellish best. Note the fellow who says that when he has a diet soda he can eat the fries as well. Aspartame interferes with the making of serotonin, causing a craving for carbs. The reduction of serotonin leads to depression, which can also increase consumption of comfort foods.

"Why would diet soda make some people gain weight? There are only theories at this point..."
EXCUSE ME?? There is SOLID SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE of aspartame's toxicity. Anything that is TOXIC to the body causes weight gain in the form of toxic bloat. The body increases water and fat to dilute the toxins. Nutritionists know that when people start to lose weight the toxins are released and that is why people feel sick.

Saying that aspartame is not the first diet product that failed to perform as expected is nothing but some spin doctor's paycheck. "They knew the gun was loaded" as Dr. Martini is fond of saying, and it performed EXACTLY as expected. Aspartame has saved Social[ist] [in]Security from paying out untold millions of dollars to murdered elderly taxpayers, has supplied the Diabetes, Cancer, and Mortuary industries sacrificial lambs for three decades, and cocaine has no stronger competition than the millions of methanol addicts created by Diet Coke.

D Thomas

[tggr514]

CBS had another article in 2005 citing research findings from an MPH from U of Texas:

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2005/06/13/health/webmd/main701408.shtml

A little more informative than this article...

[nyckate]

To duanemusk - you completely missed the point -- many feel that if they 'give up' something by having diet soda than they make up by having those fries with their Big Mac - you on the otherhand made a conscious decision to LOWER the intake of calories and start a diet and exercise program - the article is really talking about those who think that by subsituting diet soda and think they can 'cheat' a little by having a cookie or something.

[duanemusk]

This article raises questions about Dr. Senay's caring for readers health or accuracy in reporting or is it getting people looking at her CBS work.
There is no qoute in the article that even suggests that diet soda "makes" people do anything to prevent weight loss. It is Dr. Senay's word. The article speculates that people may rationalize that since they are drinking calorie free that they can eat more high caloric foods. If Dr. Emily were more interested in helping readers she could title the article "Is diet soda tempting us to eat more?" or "Is diet soda helping to weakening our discipline?" "Diet Soda the Magic Bullet, NOT."
Oh, but I forget this is CBS and it isn't about accuracy it is about agenda and spin.
As an antidotal case, I drink on average a 2 liter bottle a day of diet soda (various brands)a day. Since including diet soda in my diet along with excersice and other food disciplines I have lowered my weight by over 30 pounds. I must be deluding myself, by Dr. Senay and Sharon Fowler when I went from less than a liter of regular soda to diet I gained weight, I must be obese and noboby but these two know it. I can't be the only exception.
The ADA nor Sharon Fowler may not care, but my Doctors are please with my imporved control of diabetes and I are please with how diet soda helps me enjoy what I eat.

[drbettym]

Yes, aspartame (NutraSweet/Equal, E951/Canderel) makes you gain weight. See Dr. Sandra Cabot's paper, Aspartame Makes You Fatter in the Report for Schools: http://www.wnho.net/report_on_aspartame_and_children.htm In the congressional record, protest of National Soft Drink Association in l985, www.wnho.net it explains aspartame makes you crave carbohydrates so you gain weight. There is a medical text, Aspartame Disease: An Ignored Epidemic by H. J. Roberts, M.D., 1038 pages, with the mechanism and explanation on why aspartame makes you fat, www.sunsentpress.com Sharon Fowler's study was based on 8 years of data which linked diet drinks with obesity!

Dr. Betty Martini, D.Hum, Founder
Mission Possible Intl, [e-mail]
770 242-2599
Aspartame Information list, www.wnho.net
www.dorway.com and www.wnho.net Aspartame Toxicity Center, www.holisticmed.com/aspartame

[drbettym]

If you want to get fat NutraSweet is where its at! Note Dr. Sandra Cabot's paper, Aspartame Makes You Fatter in the Report For Schools:
http://www.wnho.net/report_on_aspartame_and_children.htm And in the congressional record, protest of National Soft Drink Assn, 1985 - www.wnho.net it explains aspartame makes you crave carbohydrates so you gain weight. There is a medical text, Aspartame Disease: An Ignored Epidemic, www.sunsentpress.com by H. J. Roberts, M.D. which discusses the whole issue and mechanism. Sharon Fowler's study that linked diet drinks to obesity was based on 8 years of data!

Dr. Betty Martini, D.Hum, Founder
Mission Possible Intl
[e-mail]
www.wnho.net and www.dorway.com
770 242-2599

[roblin2005]

Marketing, marketing, marketing. Do diet soft-drink manufacturers care about weight-loss? Do manufacturers of certain weight-loss products actually care if you actually lose weight? Diet soda is a marketing ploy. Quite different I think than the margarine/butter debate. People are ultimately responsible for what they put into their mouths. Maybe they should CHOOSE super-sized salads instead of ACCEPTING just whatever. Perhaps accepting a little extra on the plate from a family member once or twice during the holidays is OK. But everyday from people that make more money from the more fat products or low-fat or diet products that you consume?

[cbsnewsblog]

herrbrot - well said. To see such a poorly written article riddled with dramatized fiction and misleading inuendos in CBSNews is surprising.
And just as frivolous as the claim that diet soda makes you gain weight is the claim that a diet product will "take the weight off". No diet product actively burns fat or causes weight loss, and the misconception that it does could very well be the cause for actual weight gain. Afterall, the term diet, as used in food products, simply indicates that the product contains less of a potentially fattening ingredient found in the non-diet version. The only way a diet product could possibly ASSIST with weight loss is if the consumer actually practiced moderation, not only with soda drinking, but all eating habits.

[herrbrot]

I may be just a dispassionate mathematician, but the phrase "correlation does not imply causation" comes immediately to mind here. Could it be that people who are likely to drink excessive amounts of soda (diet or otherwise) are the same people likely to eat excessive amounts of food? It's interesting to hear that consumption of diet soda does NOT lead to weight loss; but the implication that consumption of diet soda must lead to weight gain is a gross oversimplification and, to date, an unverified hypothesis. But I guess it makes for a good story, which is why we're reading this on cbsnews.com and not in a scientific journal.

[heresmy2cent]

So the "zero calories" that is printed on the cans of diet soda is a lie?

How about an explanation on that issue, CBS?

[lonestartnow]

As co-founder of a grassroots weight loss / wellness initiative, I'll add what many of us already know: diet drinks don't add calories, but psychologically they lead those on diets to think, "I didn't drink that soda with all the sugar and high fructose corn syrup, so I'll eat pizza for dinner." One of the other things is that, people will lose a taste for sweets over time if they make a choice not to eat--or drink them. Drinking diet sodas prevents this process from occuring.

[mswolfestock]

I'm lucky to have spring water to drink at work; I only drink an occasional Diet Coke, but I experience what Sharon Fowler described. I'd drink a Diet Coke to quench my thirst after lunch and end up with a raving case of the munchies at 3 or 4 in the afternoon. I am also guilty of ordering a Diet Coke with a big sandwich and fries. But I do this because I've been drinking diet sodas for so long that I don't care for the taste of "real" sodas with sugar or corn sweetener. It's like so much in life - you're damned if you do, and damned if you don't. Sugar vs. a chemical - pick your poison. I have to agree that it has to be all about moderation in everything, every day.

[mildkitty_11]

I think diet soda is for people who don't want added sugar in thier diets, or people who can't have sugar. I think it is silly to assume that if I go to a fast food resturant and order a diet soda now I can have the fries, Obviously if I am eating at a fast food resturant I probably don't really care about my weight. So my theory diet soda dosen't cause you too lose or gain weight, but what you have with it may. Because If I have a salad and regular pop everyday or a salad and a deit pop I will gain more weight if I have the regular pop than the diet.

[drinuk]

Oh! Really, diet drinks make you Fat, well I never. Go read www.sweetpoison.com So this lady has carried out this research and Not Mentioned ASPARTAME ??? When will you folks wake up, you are being poisoned with the full sanction of the FDA, Rumsfeld and Bush. The Senator for NM pleaded with Bush to ban it prior to Christmas, what is going on here.

[lydellis]

I think another reason soda causes people to gain weight is that it trains the pallette to love VERY sweet things. Their taste buds are burn out! They cannot taste the sweetness of fruit, etc., and instead crave high sugar things like candy.

[jpalm1945]

diet drinks were never meant to help you loose weight, they purportedly prevented weight gain associated with drinking sugary drinks. moduration and exercise still allow you to consume what you want; within reason.