Is My Diet Coke Addiction Killing Me?

I love diet cola, Particularly Diet Coke. I have been drinking about a 12 pack of canned diet coke for 20 years. Many people in my life have told me I needed to slow it down or even quit because it’s so bad for me. Now I will admit that drinking a 12pk of diet coke every day and not drinking any water is really bad but now that I am drinking water along with my diet coke is it still the death sentence some people would like you to believe? So I set off to find out the answers to the big question is my diet coke habit really bad for me?

Most of the info I found on the harms of diet soda were referring to the artificial sweetener.

Aspartame: Maybe there is a reason why it was never approved by the FDA until Reagan was president in 1981 and fired the FDA commissioner?   HMMMM makes you wonder though.

Diet sodas for the most part are sweetened with NutraSweet or Aspartame. The two main issues say some people, are that is causes methanol poisoning. In the small intestine the aspartame is transformed to formaldehyde, and then converted to formic acid. Formic acid is the poisons found in ant stings. It is also used as an activator to strip epoxy and urethane coatings so imagine what it does to the tissues in your body.  

The second major issue of aspartame is Phenylalanine. Which are amino acids. These amino acids when unaccompanied by other amino acids are neurotoxins. Phenylalanine breaks down into DKP a brain tumor agent. In some opinions this is only a problem to 2% of the population who are sensitive to these amino acids.

Aspartame converts to dangerous byproducts that have no natural counter measures. A dieter’s empty stomach accelerates the conversions and increases the damage. Components of aspartame go straight to the brain producing headaches, mental confusion, seizures, and faulty balance.  But I want to make you aware I have found no scientific proof to support any of these statements. I did read a statement that the amounts of the methanol in diet sodas is minute and you would have to drink inconsumable amounts before it would have any effect on you.

Aspartic acid makes up 40 percent of aspartame. It is a neuroexicter, meaning it causes problems with the central nervous system. It's not good for anyone with ADHD, ADD, and should be avoided during pregnancy because of it stimulating hyperactivity. Some of the issues associated with aspartic acid include: headaches and migraines, nausea,

Fatigue, sleep disorders, abdominal pain, vision problems, anxiety attacks, depression, chest tightness, and asthma.
Read more: http://www.kosmix.com/topic/aspartame_poisoning#ixzz1Hf4uOQzB

On the other side of the argument

Aspartame is one of the most tested food substances ever allowed in our food supply. It is approve for use in more than 100 countries.

So there is no reason to believe aspartame causes Alzheimer’s, Multiple Sclerosis, brain damage, or any other serious disease. The most recent research involving more than half a million there is no evidence that any artificial sweetener on the market today is related to cancer in humans.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has said that an individual can safely consume up to 97 packets of this sweetener every day.
Read more: http://www.kosmix.com/topic/aspartame_poisoning#ixzz1Hf43GVvA

So do diet sodas really rot your teeth like regular ones do with all that sugar? Some say that diet sodas or any sodas can have a great impact on your teeth. The sugar in regular sodas for one and the phosphoric acid in sodas remove calcium from teeth and bones and breaks down tooth enamel causing tooth decay. But is there proof? Well I went on a search to find it. What I found again is a bunch of conflicting opinions. Then I came across this that may help clarify things a little.

http://www.oda.org/upload/drinksandfoodsweb.pdf

So then there is the Carmel coloring. Does it really cause cancer? Well again through my research I have found no scientific proof of this.

“In response to an announcement by the Center for Science in the Public Interest to petition the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to ban 4-methylimidazole, commonly known as 4-MEI and found in caramel coloring, the American Beverage Association released the following statement:

4-MEI is not a threat to human health. There is no evidence that 4-MEI cause’s cancer in humans. No health regulatory agency around the globe, including the Food and Drug Administration, has said that 4-MEI is a human carcinogen. This petition is nothing more than another attempt to scare consumers by an advocacy group long-dedicated to attacking the food and beverage industry.

4-MEI is virtually ubiquitous, found in trace amounts in a wide variety of foods and beverages. It forms during the heating, roasting or cooking process.”

                                                               The American Beverage Association

To read more of this  article go to: http://www.ameribev.org/news--media/news-releases--statements/more/238/?gclid=CIrA0-r66qcCFY9l7AodJmdkeA

Now for the carbonated water, Carbonated water is high in carbon dioxide, which is known to contribute to bad health. Carbonated water is known to create pressure on your kidneys making you have to urinate more often. Therefore, carbonated water can cause dehydration if you drink too much. It is also known to promote kidney stones. In fact, it is said most kidney problems are related to drinking carbonated and sweetened drinks to excess because the kidneys are designed to process only regular water and need more time to process the carbonated and sweetened drinks therefore putting a strain on the kidneys.  C02 also can increase your risk for cancer some say, and can make your bones weak and your teeth rot because it absorbs the calcium from your body. In addition they say that carbonated water can make you weak and pale “eventually.”And finally carbonated water can strip the lining of your stomach.

On the other side of the argument, according to research done on Spanish women, after drinking excessive amounts of carbonated drinks, for two months had perfectly normal bones Also in another study in Omaha the subjects urine was tested and showed there was no change in the amount of calcium they lost. Other studies, like the one done on American competitive cyclists, showed that when they exercised to excess they produce more carbon dioxide in their bodies. Then they consumed carbonated drinks and still no harm was done to their bodies.

Lately we are hearing on the news that drinking soda, regular or diet can increase the chances of heart disease by 50 to 61%. Again there are 2 sides to this. Some say that the study was too small and all the factors were not tracked and measured. Therefore to release to the public that sodas cause heart attacks is ludicrous. Which is also the case for the studies that show sodas are bad for your liver/kidneys?

Each side of the argument has research and studies to back their theories. Each side has valid points. So which side do you choose? Do you give up something you really enjoy because it might be harmful to your health? Probably should but I have done my own study on myself. I’m as healthy as a horse and I have been drinking mass quantities of diet coke for 20 years. I have all my teeth, in fact I have never even had a cavity and I’m 40 years old. So should I stop drinking my beloved diet coke that I enjoy so? Probably again; I should because I can tell you that sodas of any kind are empty calories and offer no nutritional value to your body what so ever.

Lastly I want to address the craziness, in my opinion, that diet sodas make you fat. Again I ask where is my proof. All I could find was this. . Some scientists “believe” when consuming low calorie food or beverages that tastes like it has a lot of calories, the body ends up craving what it was missing i.e. the calories. This causes you to eat more and eat later in the day. Now I’m no scientist but I find this statement to be a load of crap. So what are we supposed to do just eat the high calorie sugary fattening stuff to start with? Isn’t that what made us fat to begin with? Talk about trying to suck all the hope out of us fat people. I think these so called scientists have way too much time on their hands! But it’s just my opinion.

So I am left with the question

Is my diet coke habit bad for me?

Is it making me fat?

I still don’t know and am more confused about it then when I started. So I have come to the conclusion I will cut down my diet coke consumption but probably never quit.