This is a question & Answer segment from Pam Smith’s online “Living Well Newsletter”. Pam Smith is a leading nutritionist, speaker and author. Check out her website for tons of nutritional advice and to sign up for her online monthly newsletter. And check  out her books--they offer the best no-nonsense diet & nutrition advice & information on the market!

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DIET SODAS AND WEIGHT GAIN

Q. My trainer tells me that I need to give up my Diet Dr. Peppers - that even though they are calorie free, my 5-a-day may be the culprit in my weight gain, especially through the mid-section. It makes no sense to me! If it's zero calories, how could it make me fat?

Gregg

A. Hey Gregg - and yes, it does indeed seem counter-intuitive that a "diet" soda could make one gain weight... but there is indeed evidence that shows a link. Actually some intriguing research shows that overweight risk soars 41% with each daily can of diet soft drink! Although it's important to note that a study of this kind does not prove that diet soda causes obesity -- it may show that something linked to diet soda drinking is also linked to obesity.

There are several factors involved in how diet drinks could contribute to weight gain:

1) If you offer your body something that tastes like a lot of calories, but it isn't there, your body is alerted to the possibility that there IS something there and it will search for the calories promised but not delivered. This may be due to the insulin response triggered by the sweet "soda-like" taste. In other words, the sweet taste of diet soda tricks the body into thinking sugar is coming, so triggers an insulin release. Because there is no energy for the insulin to usher into the cell, the blood sugars drop -- causing moods to drop, energy to drop, and appetite to be stimulated.

2) When the stimulated appetite drives one to eat something with calories, the free float of insulin (a fat storage hormone) is thought to cause more fat to be stored rather than burned for energy.

3) In addition, the dropping blood sugars cause fluid to pool in the abdominal area. Add caffeine and sodium phosphate and one can feel like a bloated mess, even if the scales don't reflect a gain.

4) There is also concern from many scientific camps about the impact of artificial sweeteners on chemistry of the brain - causing a decrease in "feel good" serotonin production that can trigger overeating and mood changes.

Please don't misconstrue this study to say that drinking 5 Regular Sodas is your best choice; trust me -- that won't help your weight loss efforts either! Many studies have shown the contribution of regular sugary sodas on obesity risk. The surprise to many is the impact of diet sodas.

The bottom line is this: water, water, water is the beverage of choice -- especially for one who is striving to get in shape! I'm sure that your trainer is also telling you that, but it begs repeating!

Hope that helps! Pam