Diet? Or Regular? Let’s Talk About Soda

A Bite-Size Read for Your Health and Waistline

Photo by Josh Applegate on Unsplash

Did you see the social media trend of people making “healthier” soda with balsamic vinegar? Let me save you some time. Zero stars. Do not recommend. Nevertheless, this highlighted people’s growing awareness of the chemicals in soda and a desire for healthier alternatives.

Your first question may be, “What’s wrong with regular soda!?” Traditional soda has massive amounts of sugar and sweeteners in it, which spikes your blood sugar, can lead to weight gain and a host of disease states including increased risk of Type 2 Diabetes. A 20 oz bottle of soda typically contains 55–65 grams of sugar. For perspective, this is tantamount to sucking on 16 sugar cubes, which we likely wouldn’t do! This amount of sugar requires the body to overproduce insulin and can cause a cycle of health issues! These sodas can also lead us to eat more calorie dense, sugary foods creating a snowball of cravings.

I can also hear you thinking, “I drink diet soda, I’m safe from all this.” You may not like the real answer here! Diet sodas contain artificial sweeteners, which are also connected to diabetes and weight gain. Some studies have shown that artificial sweeteners can affect our gut health and blood sugar, and the taste from these fake sugars can cause us to crave even more…