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It’s common knowledge that people with type-2 diabetes should avoid sugar, but did you know diet soda can also wreak havoc on blood sugar levels?
French researchers at Inserm have revealed that consuming diet drinks is linked with an increased risk of developing type-2 diabetes. During the study, the soft drink consumption of 66,118 women was monitored over the course of 14 years. Surprisingly, their findings revealed that the people who drank diet soda were at greater risk of diabetes than those who drank the sugar-filled equivalents.
The link between soft drinks and diabetes is undeniable. The study showed that women who drank up to 359ml of any kind of soda per week increased their risk of developing diabetes by more than thirty per cent, and when consumption rose to 603ml per week, the risk more than doubled. Subjects who drank diet drinks were even more likely to develop diabetes.
Unfortunately, many people are still holding on to the belief that most sugar-free beverages are a healthy alternative to regular soft drinks. This study is yet more proof that this simply isn’t true.
It’s important to remember that how and why sugar-free drinks contribute towards diabetes isn’t fully understood. We just know that there’s a correlation, and there are various theories that could possibly explain it. Some studies have implicated artificial sweeteners such as aspartame and acesulfame k as the root cause, whereas other experts have suggested the link may be due to the fact that obese people (who are at higher risk of developing diabetes) might be more likely to drink diet soda.
Ultimately, the French study is another example of the harm that processed food and drinks can cause, and highlights that the “light” or “diet” alternative is not always the healthy alternative. In the case of most diet drinks, the sugar has simply been exchanged for man-made chemical sweeteners, which are often more harmful than the sugar itself.
1CAL is a healthy soft drink alternative that contains no sugar and instead uses Stevia. It contains only 1 calorie per 100ml and is approved for people with diabetes.
