Diet drinks

[ghosthunter]

Just wondered if anybody knows if i am able to freely drink diet drinks such as coke etc on a fasting day as i was under the impression that they were calorie free

Thanks in advance

No problem. It is personal choice whether you avoid artificial sweeteners.
Nothing to do with 5:2

Coffe, tea etc are also fine, so long as you note any milk & sugar calories on FDs

I shall agree to differ with bigchoc
I think diet drinks (and diet products in general) are the spawn of the devil

I'd never recommend anyone to start drinking Satan's whiizz, but I prefer my battles one at a time. and the cola battle is scheduled after my 90th birthday orgy

I think they are ok to drink due to zero calories, but they may trigger hungerincrease and you may want to avoid it.
I would love diet coke myself but have resisted so far - too afraid that it will make the FD harder afterwards.

I'm rather partial to that cheap supermarket flavoured fizzy water, and gulp that down during fast days. Yep it's full of crap, but then I live and work in London, so I'm sure the air is worse for me......

No calories in diet coke. I think we all know it's not treat for your health but it will fill your stomach up on fasting days.

No calories, but potential negative impacts on the insulin system - leading to the body 'hanging on' to any calories it does get ....

water or tea is much much better

They are virtual poisons and can help make you ill. Better to stick to water.

There have been a large number of scientific studies performed for the health bodies of various countries, also for the EU.

To date
no reputable scientific study has proved current sweeteners to be dangerous in normal quantities

Many people (including me) remain suspicious about sweeteners.
However, any danger is probably small, around the level of statistical error, if none of these studies can prove it, e.g. JournalAJCN

BUT
. Studies show they may cause blood sugar to spike for some people.
So a valid concern is that some people may eat more sweet things and hence more calories.

Reputable scientists in the field of nutrition, such as Dr Walter Willet, avoid sweeteners for this reason, not for nebulous fears of poison.

Diet drinks should also be counted as they aren't calorie free (if they're below 4 calories they can claim calorie free) and not all diet drinks are the same. For instance a 500ml bottle of Pepsi max is around 2 calories but the same size bottle of m&s diet florida orange is around 25 calories. Always double check bitter voice of experience

Hence why I call them the spawn of the devil rather than a poison :

irrefutable arguments are great things (that I despise in the religious but use freely when it suits )

The artificial sweetener Aspartame has been reported to slow the metabolism, which obviously isn't conducive to weight loss. Also, if you kid your body with artificial sweeteners, it allegedly craves the missing sugar fix even more and makes you more inclined to reach for sweet foods.

You'd have to google it for yourself and make your own mind up but I know folks in the medical/nutrition sector and, without exception, they absolutely do not ever touch any foods or drinks with aspartame in... just saying.

I know several doctors and nurses who mainline drink diet Coke, including a cousin who specialised in diabetes.
World-respected institutes, like the Mayo Clinic or the various Cancer Research institutes, also seem to think that artificial sweeteners are not an important issue.

Some researchers have concerns about insulin spikes, but there are insufficient peer-reviewed studies for this to be mainstream science atm.
There are only so many things you can nag about before people switch off completely, so let's concentrate on those proven to cause the worst harm.

Anyone who finds that sweeteners cause cravings should try to kick the habit.
For those who find a diet fizz replaces a pud, or helps on an FD, it's not a great choice, but sugar is probably worse.

Sweeteners, in real life, won't usually be replaced by something healthy.

That's the problem - that even though most of us know what is healthy eating only a few of us eat like this (and by the way it is not impossible to eat and drink in a healthy way - I manage it. You just need to change the habit and get used to the healthier food).

The problem with sugar and sugar substitutes is that it is like giving a bit of alcohol or cocaine to an addict - for many people having a little bit is priming the pump and keeps the addiction going. If instead you change for life what you eat and don't have those foods then you cease to want them. That is why for many people having a little bit of sweets just doesn't work. If instead they are never tempted to have a box of chocolates and could eat one from the box a week - fine but most people are not like that which is why 60% of British people are now overweight - worst statistic on that we have ever had.

I think anything you have in big quantities will cause some side effect. As longs you're drinking "normal amounts " then it's not going to affect. When they do side effects they're aiming it at people literally living on the stuff.

My favourite quote on drinking water is from WC Fields:

"Water ? Fish f**k in it !"

(btw: being an intense exerciser, I drink at least 2l plain water daily, plus tea etc)