People tend to consume diet soft drinks to reduce the risk of diets high in sugar-sweetened drinks. Regular soft drinks contain a lot of sugar. A regular 335 millilitre can of original Coca-Cola contains at least seven teaspoons of added sugar.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the daily intake of free sugars should be less than 10 percent of their total energy intake. A further reduction to below 5 percent or roughly 25 grams (six teaspoons) per day would provide additional health benefits.
Although diet cokes taste similar to regular soft drinks they contain artificial or natural sweeteners. The artificial sweeteners include aspartame, saccharin and sucralose. The natural sweeteners include stevia and monk fruit extract, which come from plant sources.
The diet cokes are marketed as a healthier alternative to regular soft drinks, particularly for people who want to reduce their sugar intake or manage their weight. However, people are not aware of the long-term impact of diet cokes on their health. Although drinking occasionally is not harmful, excessive intake may increase health risks in the longer term.
The artificial sweeteners in soft drinks are considered safe for consumption by food authorities, including in the US and Australia. However, some researchers have raised concerns about the long-term risks of consumption.
According to researchers, people who drink diet soft drinks regularly and often are more likely to develop certain metabolic conditions (such as diabetes and heart disease) than those who don’t drink diet soft drinks, ScienceAlert reported.
In 2023, the WHO announced reports had found aspartame – the main sweetener used in diet soft drinks – was “possibly carcinogenic to humans” (carcinogenic means cancer-causing).
It also highlighted that it is safe to consume occasionally as there is not enough current scientific evidence to fully conclude aspartame may increase the risk of cancer.
Despite the word “diet” in the name, diet soft drinks are not strongly linked with weight management. In 2022, the WHO conducted a systematic review (where researchers look at all available evidence on a topic) on whether the use of artificial sweeteners is beneficial for weight management. In other words, artificial sweeteners may not directly help manage weight over the long term. Consequently, the WHO advised that artificial sweeteners should not be used to manage weight.
Several animal studies highlight that animals have suggested consuming high levels of artificial sweeteners can signal to the brain it is being starved of fuel, which can lead to more eating. There isn’t much evidence about this association in humans.
Some early evidence suggest that artificial sweeteners may irritate the lining of the digestive system, causing inflammation and increasing the likelihood of diarrhoea, constipation, bloating and other symptoms often associated with irritable bowel syndrome. Additionally, high amounts of diet soft drinks are also associated with dental erosion. Reportedly, many soft drinks contain phosphoric and citric acid, which can damage your tooth enamel and contribute to dental erosion.
