Diet Pop May be Adding, Not Subtracting, From Your Middle

May trigger cravings for more, and sweeter, treats

More evidence that diet pop may lead to weight gain not weight loss. A study in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society found people who drank diet pop gained almost triple the amount of abdominal fat over nine years compared to those who drank regular pop. The problem, say study authors, may be the absence of a sweet taste which can lead to cravings for sweeter and sweeter treats. “Regular sugar has caloric consequences,” says senior author Dr. Helen Hazuda, professor of medicine at the University of Texas Health Science Center. She says it triggers a sense of fullness or satisfaction. “Your body is used to knowing that a sweet taste means you are ingesting energy in the form of calories that, if you don’t burn them off, is going to convert to fat.” Artificial sweeteners can confuse our bodies and weaken the link in our brains between sweetness and calories.

photo credit Tony Alter via Flickr