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Soft drinks with sweetener have few or no calories, but this does not mean that their consumption is free of side effects.
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For example, they lead the body to react by activating insulin production, promoting fat storage.
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They also alter metabolism because, by tricking the brain into thinking you have consumed sugar, they induce similar metabolic responses, promoting weight gain.
You haveundoubtedly seen at least one of a thousand million videos showing how much sugar a bottle of classic Coke contains.
Let’s take the most popular example not to point fingers: there are plenty of others that, to a greater or lesser extent, use sugar to be more “palatable,” as they say technically.
The problem is that, along with the pleasure of drinking them (for that is undeniable), many of these sodas supply your physique with far more sugar than it needs, triggering metabolic processes that lead-without making a big deal out of it-to the accumulation of fat.
The solution that many people understandably adopt is to consume sodas that contain artificial sweeteners, with the idea that they are a healthier choice.
The problem is that this reduction does not automatically translate into a health or figure benefit.
The paradox, explained by several research studies, is that the body metabolizes them in a similar way to when consuming regular sugar, with negative consequences.
In short: you want to avoid consuming excess sugar, but your body reacts as if you had consumed it.
Let’s try to understand this mechanism better.
How the brain is “tricked” by sweeteners
Although artificial sweeteners-such as aspartame-do not actually contain sugar and provide very few or no calories, the body and brain can be fooled.
When you drink a sweet drink, even one that is sugar-free, the brain reacts as if the sugar were there, detecting the sweet taste and triggering a number of physiological processes.
One of these is the release of insulin, the hormone that helps regulate blood sugar levels.
The result is that the body accumulates fat anyway, preparing to handle excess energy that, however, never actually arrives.
In short, the discrepancy between the perceived sweet taste and the actual amount of energy available ends up confusing the metabolism.
Even some studies suggest that regular consumption of soft drinks with sweeteners could, paradoxically, lead to weight gain, despite reduced calorie intake, precisely because the body reacts as if you had consumed them.
Accumulating fat is never a good thing
The impact on body weight unfortunately has other long-term effects on health, being associated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and alterations in the perception of sweet taste, which could lead to a preference for increasingly sweet and therefore less healthy foods.
It is no coincidence that these additives and sugar in general are used extensively in ultra-processed foods, with the purpose of making them taste better, also generating an addiction: in fact, if you get used to certain highly emphasized tastes, it is difficult for you then to appreciate the subtleties of natural ones.
It is as if you got used to always listening to music at very high volumes: you would end up not hearing that at normal volumes anymore.
In other words, the frequent use of sweeteners can alter your relationship with food, pushing you to constantly seek out sweet foods, and this could result in another paradox, perhaps the most dangerous one: as you get used to seeking out the sweet taste (and you don’t need to perceive it, sometimes it is so insidiously hidden because it is employed as a flavor enhancer) you would end up seeking more and more of it in foods that contain it, even though they wouldn’t need it, ending up consuming more calories than you need.
Let’s remember where we started from: in order to consume fewer calories you decided to drink only sodas with sweeteners that got you used to the “sweetened” taste, and you ended up eating foods that are processed with sweeteners that create an addiction that leads you to eat more and more.
You wanted to take in fewer calories and found yourself taking in more.
Oops.
Healthier alternatives
Don’t despair: the vicious cycle can be broken without sacrificing too much of the taste and pleasure of a good thirst-quenching drink.
If the goal is to reduce calorie intake without compromising health, it is, in short, worth considering alternatives to carbonated soft drinks with sweeteners.
Water, whether still or sparkling, can be flavored with fresh fruit, herbs or a squeeze of lemon juice.
Unsweetened tea, hot or cold, can also be a viable option.
These alternatives not only avoid the negative effects of sweeteners, but can also provide additional benefits, such as hydration and antioxidant intake.
However, we do not want to spread fear, we would miss it.
We are the first to say that Coke Zero tastes great.
As always, awareness and moderation count.
In other words, drinking one now and then will not trigger devastating processes in your body and will make you appreciate it even more.
In short, the advice is to transform them, at least in your perception, from drinks you consume all the time to pleasures you indulge in occasionally.
Like a slice of tiramisu, which may have a ton of sugar but how good is it?