When it comes to weight loss and diet drinks, there is a lot of controversy surrounding the latter – while some people say that diet drinks actually do more harm than good and they promote obesity rather than weight loss, others say that the artificial sweetening agents found in the diet drinks can wreak havoc on your health, in the long run. Nonetheless, recent studies have revealed that those who drink diet soda and other water-based diet drinks are more likely to lose weight. The results of one such study were published in the well-known journal Obesity, and it was conducted by researchers from the University of Colorado, as well as the Center for Obesity Education and Research of Temple University.
The study involves no less than 300 adults divided into two groups, and while one of the two groups would continue drinking diet drinks, the other one would only stick to water. Those who took part in the study were between 21 and 65 years of age, and the study was basically a randomized trial that involved comparing two different groups that were subjected to two different treatments. Their BMI (body mass index) was calculated before and after the study, and their initial body mass ranges between 27 and 40, which was considered between “overweight” and “obese”. The study was based on self-reporting, as reported to the water intake versus the diet beverage intake, and all the participants were free to eat foods that contained hypocaloric sweeteners.
The test lasted for three months and the results were very encouraging for those that support diet drinks: the group that continue to drink the diet soda managed to lose around 13 pounds over the twelve weeks’ period, while the other group managed to lose, on average, four pounds less than the diet soda group. Not only did the group that consume diet beverages lose almost 30% more weight as opposed to the other group, but they also reported that they noticed a small decrease in hunger. The reason why the diet soda group managed to lose more weight as opposed to the other group is rather simple: they continued their regular exercising program while cutting down all the extra calories.
On the other hand, the group that was forbidden from drinking diet soda has a higher calorie intake as opposed to the other group, either from drinking or eating foods that were high in calories. However, the study did not track the overall calorie consumption of the participants, as it focused solely on the effects of diet soda. The group that did not consume diet soda (which was named the “Water Group”) had a difficult time adhering to their weight loss regimen, as opposed to those who consumed diet soda, given the fact that they did not have the same control over their calorie intake. Also, another theory related to that particular study claimed that drinking beverages with sweet taste also helped those from the diet soda group, because they were less likely to experience sweet cravings as opposed to the other group. The taste of the artificially sweetened beverages was particularly helpful for those with a sweet tooth.
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