Diet Coke Is Healthier Than...Water???
A surprising but quite robust finding
Artificial sweeteners are one of my favourite topics to write about. Humanity, in general, has a decidedly illogical view of anything artificial. While the 1800s were filled with people extolling the wondrous power of scientifically-created tools, natural is the buzzword of the moment. We love to hate on stuff that man has created, and artificial sweeteners proudly proclaim the problem right there in the name*.
But according to a new study, our fear is entirely unfounded. There appears to be evidence that artificially-sweetened beverages like Diet Coke and Pepsi Max actually improve health outcomes. Specifically, that they may improve blood sugars for people with diabetes.
Now, you may argue that this is obvious. If you switch out Dr. Pepper for Diet Dr. Pepper, you’re getting a whole less sugar, and we all know that too much sugar can cause weight gain and various painful maladies. Except, this study didn’t compare artificial sweeteners to sugar-sweetened beverages. The researchers here compared artificially-sweetened drinks to…water.
There’s been almost no media attention about this finding, so I thought it would be a good idea to look at the data. Is Diet Coke really better for blood sugar levels than water?
