The Health Effects of Diet Coke

Americans nationwide are becoming more health conscious every day. With their diet decisions aimed to give them a healthy physique, some are wise, yet some are poor. A poor diet decision is diet soda. Although diet soda rids away unwanted sugar calories, it causes negative health effects due to the artificial sweetener aspartame. Aspartame contains three dangerous chemicals known to induce negative health effects which are, methanol, aspartate, and phenylalanine.

Methanol, more commonly known as wood alcohol, makes up ten percent of aspartame. Methanol is broken down in the small intestine and when breaking down, it turns into formic acid and formaldehyde in the body. In the Eleventh Report on Carcinogens, published by the National Toxicology Program, formaldehyde is considered to reasonably be a human carcinogen because long term exposure can be the cause of cancerous outcomes. Ingesting high concentrations of methanol may consequence in negative health effects. Some of these health effects include headaches, blurred vision, dizziness, chills, memory lapses, nausea, and is known to cause retinal damage.

Aspartate is a chemical native to the brain. Aspartate is an active chemical that helps the transmission of information neuron to neuron. Too much aspartate in the brain can kill off neurons by adding excess calcium into the cells. When there is too much aspartate in the brain, it is considered to be an excitotoxin because they stimulate the neurons to death.

Also found in sugar free beverages is phenylalanine. Phenylalanine is an essential amino acid that is very important to your metabolism. This chemical can also be found in many foods that contain protein such as beef, poultry, fish, and dairy products. Phenylalanine has no health risks when consumed in moderation, but when the consumer ingests it from diet soda, they tend to take in a lot. Consuming 50,000 mg of phenylalanine a day can be very toxic and slowly cause nerve damage. This chemical is also known to cause nausea, migraines, and emotional or behavioral disorders.

Unfortunately almost all diet drinks contain aspartame or other less common artificial sweeteners. Some of these drinks are, but not limited to, Diet Coke, Coca-cola zero, diet Pepsi, Pepsi max, diet 7 up, Fresca, Diet Dr. Pepper, Diet Mountain Dew, Diet Sunkist, Vault Zero, Sierra Mist Free, and Diet Lipton Green Tea.
Although these very popular diet drinks are loved and consumed by many Americans, there are diet drinks that are a more healthy alternative. These diet drinks contain a healthier artificial sweetener called sucralose. Sucralose enters and exit’s the body in the same way, meaning it does not break down during digestion and turn into dangerous chemical compounds like aspartame. Some of these drinks are, 7 up plus, Arizona diet green tea, Cricket diet cola, Crystal Lite, Diet Coke with Splenda, Diet orange rush, Diet RC Cola, Pepsi One, Slice One, Diet rite, and Sugar Free Jones soda.

Although these drinks may be considered a healthier diet beverage, nothing satisfies the body more than a bottle of water. Considering the adult human body is composed of about 65% of water, no study needs to prove that it is the healthiest beverage you can possibly consume. If you are an avid soda drinker, I can guarantee that if you switch to water for two weeks, you will never have an urge to drink soda again. Since the sugar, sodium, and caffeine leave you with less water than you started, you will slowly dehydrate yourself leaving you with a whole new list of health issues.

As Americans we all know that we tend to only consume what it bad for us. With a McDonald’s in nearly every town, offering us diet soda and foods high in trans fat, we may be getting fast food, but we are also receiving a slow death. Now many times in the past, studies have failed to convince Americans to lead a healthier life style, otherwise the one third of Americans who smoke, would have quit a long time ago. Although extensive research has proved that diet beverages carry many health risks, America is still dieing for a diet Coke.