Diet Soda Helps Lower Calorie Intake According to Study

ATLANTA (February 8, 2013) — A study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that people who switched to diet beverages consumed less calories and had better diets than those who did not.

The study,  “Does diet-beverage intake affect dietary consumption patterns? Results from the Choose Healthy Options Consciously Everyday (CHOICE) randomized clinical trial” examined the effects of diet beverages (DB) on dietary intake patterns, food choices, and consumption of sweet products. Participants were randomly placed in groups, either replacing two sugar-sweetened beverages with two diet beverages or water. Participants included 318 men and women between 18-65 years of age who were overweight or obese from the CHOICE randomized clinical trial.

Here is what the researchers found:

• People who switched to diet drinks and water consumed less calories.
• People who switched to diet beverages had better diets.  Overall, both intervention groups, diet beverages and water, had showed positive changes in dietary patterns, such as less calories, carbohydrates, protein, fat, saturated fat, and added sugar.
• People who drank diet beverages ate less dessert than those in the other groups.
• People who drank diet beverages did not make up for the calories they cut in other places.
• Drinking diet beverages did not make participants crave sweets.  The authors concluded that “in general, although this study was not designed to definitively address the issue of LCS food and beverage intakes on the habituation to sweetness and desire to consume greater sweet food, it provides preliminary evidence to counter this argument.”

According to Theresa Hedrick, a dietitian with the Calorie Control Council, this study is good news for people looking for simple, easy and effective ways to reduce calories and lose weight. “Diet beverages can allow people to still have the drinks they love while cutting calories at the same time.  And, as this study shows, that reduction in calories can lead to weight loss without any downsides.”