diet coke/ aspartame

[doingwork30]

I'm wondering what everybody thinks about diet products with aspartame in regards to bodybuilding.

 

[ax1]

cola is poison,

one of the reasons i recently lost 46 pound was that i quit drinking diet poison soda.

 

[SamuraiSid]

cola is poison,

one of the reasons i recently lost 46 pound was that i quit drinking diet poison soda.

That must be one of those wacky North Korea flavours we dont get here in Canada...

In a nutshell: Aspartame is bad for the body. Anything that is bad for the body will have a negative effect (albeit a small one) on your physical fitness goals. But lets be realistic for a moment. We are Americans, and most of the stuff you eat is bad for you, and I really doubt aspartame and pop are the worst.

 

[ax1]

That must be one of those wacky North Korea flavours we dont get here in Canada...

In a nutshell: Aspartame is bad for the body. Anything that is bad for the body will have a negative effect (albeit a small one) on your physical fitness goals. But lets be realistic for a moment. We are Americans, and most of the stuff you eat is bad for you, and I really doubt aspartame and pop are the worst.

aspartame is part of the poison of cola,

Why is Coca-Cola so bad for you? What does it do to your body exactly?


"Author: ctpb

Coca-Cola per say is not worse than any other type of cola, like Pepsi, or generic brands. It's also not that much worse than root beer, or other candy like soft drinks. I say it's like candy because colas are full of sugar. Diet colas are also not very good for you due to their Aspartame content although they are probably better than regular colas.
I'll begin with diet soft drinks. Aspartame is the common ingredient in all fake sugar, Equal, NutraSweet, Spoonful, etc.... For the most part Aspartame isn't going to hurt you if you have the occasional diet soft drink. However people have had some pretty scary symptoms after drinking Aspartame such as: seizures, breathing difficulties, memory loss, nausea, headaches, and a host of other symptoms. Aspartame can trigger some chronic illnesses as well like: brain tumors, Parkinson's, Diabetes, Multiple Sclerosis, and Epilepsy. I won't get into too much detail on why Aspartame is damaging, but basically Aspartame can build up calcium in certain neurons on your brain, making if difficult for your brain to send messages to various parts of your body via these neurons. The neurons die due to over stimulation.


All that and it was just diet colas, now lets move on to regular colas. Sugar is a significant ingredient that will harm you. Massive amounts of sugar in anything will cause bodily harm. Aside from bringing on Diabetes, excess amounts of sugar will increase your body weight, which makes your body work harder just to function daily. This added stress is hard on most of your organs.


Colas also contain ethylene glycol, which is used in anti-freeze. Ethylene glycol is a slow poison, it won't kill you if you have it in small quantities but it will kill you in large quantities. That doesn't mean the small quantities are totally harmless however, your body has to work hard to protect itself from various poisons, and these battles often leave scars. The more scars on any given organ, the weaker it is and the less likely it is to function in old age.


The last major reason cola's are bad for you is the extremely high acidity. The pH for colas is around 3.4, strong enough to dissolve teeth and bones. The acid is also due to high mineral contents, and guys, high mineral intake can lead to, *gulp*, kidney stones. Not to mention that the high acid level is the main cause of tooth decay. That's right it's not the sugar in coke that will cause cavities it's the high acidity.

There is also a secret ingredient, although I doubt it's significantly harmful, it's called Merchandise 7X

Here's a couple links to opposing view points on if you should drink Coke:
For drinking Coke
Against drinking Coke

There's not a lot of acid in beer!
Mr Beer Ingredients"

 

[CrazyChemist]

Well the LD50 for aspartame is 10g/kg. So for a 200 lb. person you'd need to drink about 7200 diet sodas before its lethal. That being said, I do believe it may have negative effects in smaller doses. I do not however think it is bad in moderation. I myself have 1-2 diet sodas daily. I also drink about 3 gallons of pure water so my thinking is I flush the aspartame out pretty well.

 

[BBB]

Do a little more research. The FDA just concluded a 12 years study that showed that Aspartame was safe for human consumption with very few side effects and those were limited to a small percentage of users. Even before this study Aspartame was studied in Canada for an even longer period of time and given a clean bill of health. Aspartame is made of two amino acids that are found in everyday food products. Our bodies handle them very efficiently. You can find detrimental information on nearly everything if you look hard enough. Google milk and see what you find. They blame milk for everything from heart attacks to cancer.

 

[ax1]

im not knocking the aspartame as much as im knocking the actual soda, also knocking out all trans fats.

like i said 1 of my 46 pound weight loss success stories was knocking out diet soda.

 

[brownstown89]

im not knocking the aspartame as much as im knocking the actual soda, also knocking out all trans fats.

like i said 1 of my 46 pound weight loss success stories was knocking out diet soda.

shelby stranes is probably the most well known dietician for bodybuilding and he let matt kroc drink diet soda preparing for his contest... so i dont believe ur statement to be accurate

 

[ax1]

shelby stranes is probably the most well known dietician for bodybuilding and he let matt kroc drink diet soda preparing for his contest... so i dont believe ur statement to be accurate

i cant force you to believe how i lost 46 pounds, its true to me so its up to the reader here to believe me.

but i only speak for regular people, not pro bodybuilders.

i know i feel more energy and healthier to.

just because your able to compete in bodybuilding doesnt = a healthy person.

 

[CrazyChemist]

Do a little more research. The FDA just concluded a 12 years study that showed that Aspartame was safe for human consumption with very few side effects and those were limited to a small percentage of users. Even before this study Aspartame was studied in Canada for an even longer period of time and given a clean bill of health. Aspartame is made of two amino acids that are found in everyday food products. Our bodies handle them very efficiently. You can find detrimental information on nearly everything if you look hard enough. Google milk and see what you find. They blame milk for everything from heart attacks to cancer.

IDK who you're directing that comment to but I will tell you for every 12 year study saying something is safe there is another 12 year study saying its not.

Look - protein can cause severe kidney damage in high enough concentrations. So you hear these stories of people who drink 50-100 diet sodas a day and how they felt better when they cut back or stopped drinking diet soda. Well, obviously when you do something in excess you feel better when you cut back. I think diet soda is fine I just would make sure you get enough pure water in a day as well.

As far as the 46 lb. weight loss ax1 is claiming - I'm skeptical that the only thing you changed was diet soda and suddenly you lost 46 lbs. If you totally revamped your diet and stopped going to McDonalds and by extension stopped getting super size diet cokes - well thats not really a basis for claiming diet coke is poison.

 

[ax1]

As far as the 46 lb. weight loss ax1 is claiming - I'm skeptical that the only thing you changed was diet soda and suddenly you lost 46 lbs. If you totally revamped your diet and stopped going to McDonalds and by extension stopped getting super size diet cokes - well thats not really a basis for claiming diet coke is poison.

yes, im not claiming diet soda alone, it was a part of my new formula for weight loss to eliminate it. you know once a weekend prolly wont kill me but my personal key to control is to totally cut it out.

i drank a can or 2 a day. but like i said im am in no way fully accrediting the soda cut, its just a overall overhaul of trying to eat clean across the board and soda was an important elimination.

water is better than soda any day!

 

[CrazyChemist]

water is better than soda any day!

agreed. reps.

 

[CrazyBassGuy]

On a slightly different note, Diet coke tastes like chemically s**t.

If you are gonna drink Coke drink the sugary one - mix it with Jack Daniels, enjoy it properly and only do it occasionally as a treat

A little of a good thing will keep you happy and sane..............in my opinion

 

[BBB]

Although aspartame is GRAS for most people, soda in general is not the best choice of soft drinks. The carbonation contained in soda pop displaces oxygen in the blood and limits endurance.

 

[wearedbleedblue]

A lot of competitive bodybuilders/figure athletes drink some diet soda, use aspartame products, splenda, etc. If you have everything else in check and you're still not where you want to be, then cut the aspartame.

Unless you're eating a clean diet 90% of the time (more if you're going to compete), work on your eating. Most people get so caught up with the details they fail to see the forest and only see the trees. Look at the big picture first.

 

[UKStrength]

A lot of competitive bodybuilders/figure athletes drink some diet soda, use aspartame products, splenda, etc. If you have everything else in check and you're still not where you want to be, then cut the aspartame.

Unless you're eating a clean diet 90% of the time (more if you're going to compete), work on your eating. Most people get so caught up with the details they fail to see the forest and only see the trees. Look at the big picture first.

Agreed, great post

 

[PublicEnemy]

Although aspartame is GRAS for most people, soda in general is not the best choice of soft drinks. The carbonation contained in soda pop displaces oxygen in the blood and limits endurance.

Proof?

EDIT: This is aimed at the second part.

 

[Tone]

aspartame is nurotoxic, it has absolutely NO benefits, so why would you take it????? I don't even understand why this is being debated... its not good for you.. PERIOD

 

[doingwork30]

Proof?

EDIT: This is aimed at the second part.

I would also be interested in this, post a link.

 

[CrazyChemist]

On a slightly different note, Diet coke tastes like chemically s**t.

If you are gonna drink Coke drink the sugary one - mix it with Jack Daniels, enjoy it properly and only do it occasionally as a treat

A little of a good thing will keep you happy and sane..............in my opinion

Haha - I personally grew up in a household that only drank diet so I prefer it to regular, you believe that? I do, however, agree with the Jack Daniels part. :You_Rock_Emoticon:

Although aspartame is GRAS for most people, soda in general is not the best choice of soft drinks. The carbonation contained in soda pop displaces oxygen in the blood and limits endurance.

Umm - gases have a very low bioavailability proxy oral (by ingestion). Furthermore, you can take several deep breaths of CO2 and your body handles it just fine. CO2 is simply carried back to lung tissue and expelled.

As a matter of fact, O2 poor air (like air at high elevation) forces the body to increase the number platelets which contain O2 carrying hemoglobin, increasing endurance. That is why high elevation training (like Denver broncos) is so good for endurance.

aspartame is nurotoxic, it has absolutely NO benefits, so why would you take it????? I don't even understand why this is being debated... its not good for you.. PERIOD

Agreed that I would not want to, for example, take an aspartame supplement pill but in small doses I think its effects are negligible, honestly. Diet soda provides, for some people, a satiation of carbohydrate cravings with no macronutrient or caloric penalty.

 

[dave12]

i cant force you to believe how i lost 46 pounds, its true to me so its up to the reader here to believe me.

but i only speak for regular people, not pro bodybuilders.

i know i feel more energy and healthier to.

just because your able to compete in bodybuilding doesnt = a healthy person.

Yes you can you are North Korean. It's standard to force people to believe all sorts of stuff in North Korea.

 

[CrazyChemist]

Yes you can you are North Korean. It's standard to force people to believe all sorts of stuff in North Korea.

Woah bro. A little ethnocentric.

 

[doingwork30]

Ha yeah crazy chemist me too, regular tastes way to sweet for me. Also the other stuff is spot on, great post

 

[PublicEnemy]

Umm - gases have a very low bioavailability proxy oral (by ingestion). Furthermore, you can take several deep breaths of CO2 and your body handles it just fine. CO2 is simply carried back to lung tissue and expelled.

We just covered pulmonary respiration in Physiology. This was my initial thought. Arterial CO2 concentrations are one of the more tightly regulation feedback systems in the body. The body does not like having the arterial partial pressure of CO2 vary far past 40 mmHg, if so hyper or hypoventilation occurs. In one of our lab experiments they hooked a TA up to a machine (the name escapes me) which measured heartrate, respiratory values like Tidal Volume, and then exposed her to different atmospheric concentrations. One time they had her breathe a 95% O2 5%CO2 mix. Even though she was breathing 95% oxygen, which is well beyond what normal atmospheric oxygen concentrations are, she was hyperventilating because the high CO2 levels prevented any diffusion of CO2 from the bloodstream into the lungs.

Yes you can you are North Korean. It's standard to force people to believe all sorts of stuff in North Korea.

This statement just reeks of intelligence. [/sarcasm]

EDIT: Oops. Forgot one thing (in bold)

 

[dave12]

Woah bro. A little ethnocentric.

Come on it was facetious comment.

 

[Red Dog]

Yes you can you are North Korean. It's standard to force people to believe all sorts of stuff in North Korea.

haha, that got me pretty good.

seriously though, drink it if you want and don't if you don't want -- it won't kill you.

it's just diet coke for **** sake!

 

[doingwork30]

haha, that got me pretty good.

seriously though, drink it if you want and don't if you don't want -- it won't kill you.

it's just diet coke for **** sake!

Exactly. This wasnt meant to be a thread attacking north Koreans. Haha.

 

[flightposite]

aspartame is nurotoxic, it has absolutely NO benefits, so why would you take it????? I don't even understand why this is being debated... its not good for you.. PERIOD

but in small doses I think its effects are negligible, honestly. Diet soda provides, for some people, a satiation of carbohydrate cravings with no macronutrient or caloric penalty.

but some people do supplement with phenylalanine.

 

[fitnessbyalex]

In moderation, diet soda/products are ok... But I try and eliminate all artificial sweeteners and acid-forming chemicals from my diet. Diet Cola's have too many negatives to even get into. They are extremely acidic (both from the added acids and from the acidic sweeteners). I think people also often over-look the fact that a serving of artificially sweetened protein powder has ALOT more sucralose than say a bottle of Mountain Dew... Try and buy unflavored/unsweetened whey isolate and add cinnamon/stevia. Not only is this healthier, but cinnamon/stevia are very alkaline!

-Alex

 

[ax1]

In moderation, diet soda/products are ok... But I try and eliminate all artificial sweeteners and acid-forming chemicals from my diet. Diet Cola's have too many negatives to even get into. They are extremely acidic (both from the added acids and from the acidic sweeteners). I think people also often over-look the fact that a serving of artificially sweetened protein powder has ALOT more sucralose than say a bottle of Mountain Dew... Try and buy unflavored/unsweetened whey isolate and add cinnamon/stevia. Not only is this healthier, but cinnamon/stevia are very alkaline!

-Alex

exactly, eliminating all is only better! nice job alex!

 

[manosduras]

i was told that Aspartame can ruin your liver functions. instead of your liver breaking down fats and expelling them out of your body it loses that function and just releases the fat back into your system

 

[doingwork30]

i was told that Aspartame can ruin your liver functions. instead of your liver breaking down fats and expelling them out of your body it loses that function and just releases the fat back into your system

Proof for this? Doesn't seem realistic

 

[manosduras]

Proof for this? Doesn't seem realistic

the doctor on the biggest loser said it on an episode.
id link stuff up but i cant because i dont have enough posts.

you can google it and see a ton of articles.

 

[brownstown89]

haha, that got me pretty good.

seriously though, drink it if you want and don't if you don't want -- it won't kill you.

it's just diet coke for **** sake!

thank you!! this is another reason i love powerlifting... you can a pretty clean look yoked up and lift heavy ****.... bodybuilders are always like "omg i ate my meal but i threw away crust on the whole wheat 100% organic bread am i short a gram of protien? and **** like that!!

 

[rubberring]

i was told that Aspartame can ruin your liver functions. instead of your liver breaking down fats and expelling them out of your body it loses that function and just releases the fat back into your system

I frequently have bloodwork done. As usual, my recent labs show that my ALT, AST, and bilirubin levels are all in the normal ranges. There are no indicators of any liver dysfunction whatsoever. Same for lipids, blood glucose, etc.

I am telling you this because I have used roughly the equivalent of 20 packets of Equal daily for at least 16 years. Not kidding.

Now, maybe I'll die of cancer one day and it will be attributed to my aspartame intake. Well, if I substituted sucrose or HFCS... I'd probably have type II diabetes at this point, since it runs rampant in my family... and I seriously doubt my blood work would look as good.

Take that for what it's worth.

 

[doingwork30]

I frequently have bloodwork done. As usual, my recent labs show that my ALT, AST, and bilirubin levels are all in the normal ranges. There are no indicators of any liver dysfunction whatsoever. Same for lipids, blood glucose, etc.

I am telling you this because I have used roughly the equivalent of 20 packets of Equal daily for at least 16 years. Not kidding.

Now, maybe I'll die of cancer one day and it will be attributed to my aspartame intake. Well, if I substituted sucrose or HFCS... I'd probably have type II diabetes at this point, since it runs rampant in my family... and I seriously doubt my blood work would look as good.

Take that for what it's worth.

My dad is also like that, and he drinks probably a litre of diet soda daily minimum and he's not dead.

 

[CrazyChemist]

i drank a full 2 liters of diet coke today, lol.

 

[doingwork30]

i drank a full 2 liters of diet coke today, lol.

Lol. It's so hot today, I just destroyed two liters of diet a&w. Just didn't have a chance, outta water for the cooler.

 

[nynone]

the doctor on the biggest loser said it on an episode.
id link stuff up but i cant because i dont have enough posts.

you can google it and see a ton of articles.

never heard the trainers say this when i've watched, and i have seen every single episode of this show (maybe i missed this part or dont remember it?)... big fan, but i don't agree with their training/diet plans. i mean, their eating 1800 calories a day, and expelling enough in order to lose upwards of ten pounds per week at times? seriously, this sound like crash dieting mixed with endurance training for a marathon or something. it just doesn't seem healthy.... but on the related note:

my opinion of aspartame is this: consume what you want, regardless of the health benefits, or side effects, they are going to happen eventually. you are what you eat is very true. with that said, i remember back in the 90's when aspartame was reported as this huge scare, and people were avoiding diet soda like the plague (maybe it was just my family, but it was some email thing that was going around for a while). the reason i try and avoid diet soda are due to it's high glycemic index number. it's the same for me as maltodextrin, that high number scare me, and i'd much rather have glucose or sucrose before i have aspartame or maltodextrin. again, this is one of those things were you choose what you want to eat/drink. i know people who have cleaned up their diet, and didn't even exercise any more than normal, and they had very good weight loss results. take it for what its worth, aspartame has been proven with mixed results, it's your decision whether or not you consume it.

 

[rubberring]

the reason i try and avoid diet soda are due to it's high glycemic index number. it's the same for me as maltodextrin, that high number scare me, and i'd much rather have glucose or sucrose before i have aspartame or maltodextrin.

Wait... what? Diet sodas don't register on the glycemic index. Just because aspartame has maltodextrin listed as an ingredient doesn't make it high-glycemic. Dude, it has no carbohydrates. :think:

The only real diet danger associated with diet soda is that artificial sweeteners cause sugar cravings, which can lead to unwise carbohydrate choices for undisciplined dieters.

 

[PublicEnemy]

the reason i try and avoid diet soda are due to it's high glycemic index number. it's the same for me as maltodextrin, that high number scare me, and i'd much rather have glucose or sucrose before i have aspartame or maltodextrin.

Glycemic Index Values
Maltodextrin: 89
Sucrose: 65
Glucose: 100

Aspartame: 0

Might wanna recheck your facts bud.

 

[doingwork30]

Glycemic index is a carb measurement, diet soda and aspartame in general have no carbs. Cmon man

 

[Doc Holliday]

I drink 8 diet mountain dews a day(most caffeine free). I'm alive. I overdo it I admit, but they keep me from eating junk. I also drink about a gallon of water.

 

[msucurt]

exactly....i do the same, but only like 3 diet dr. peppers per day. And if that is you in your avatar, then im pretty sure a few diet sodas arent going to hurt your gains in the least....IMO.

I drink 8 diet mountain dews a day(most caffeine free). I'm alive. I overdo it I admit, but they keep me from eating junk. I also drink about a gallon of water.

 

[Doc Holliday]

exactly....i do the same, but only like 3 diet dr. peppers per day. And if that is you in your avatar, then im pretty sure a few diet sodas arent going to hurt your gains in the least....IMO.

Yeah, that's me. Thanks man, aspartame has never did anything detrimental to my gains or ability to get lean.

 

[madds87]

yeah dude i dont mess with artificial sweetners. Your body mistakes it as regular sugar for insulin.... just kinda makes me wonder what that will do in the long run. Plus from old art sweetners causing cancer..... Just stay away from the stuff! My uncle has lost a kidney from diet sodas just drinking to many of them.

 

[rubberring]

yeah dude i dont mess with artificial sweetners. Your body mistakes it as regular sugar for insulin.... just kinda makes me wonder what that will do in the long run. Plus from old art sweetners causing cancer..... Just stay away from the stuff! My uncle has lost a kidney from diet sodas just drinking to many of them.

Aspartame does not trigger any insulin response.
http://www.ajcn.org/cgi/content/abstract/82/5/1011

Aspartame does not cause cancer either.
http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/risk/aspartame

In fact, there's no real data to suggest any artificial sweetener increases the risk of cancer.
http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Risk/artificial-sweeteners


As for your uncle... I'm certainly not going to debate you on that. But, I'm very skeptical about other possible contributing factors to his kidney issues.

 

[CrazyChemist]

yeah dude i dont mess with artificial sweetners. Your body mistakes it as regular sugar for insulin.... just kinda makes me wonder what that will do in the long run. Plus from old art sweetners causing cancer..... Just stay away from the stuff! My uncle has lost a kidney from diet sodas just drinking to many of them.

lol - im sorry bro. i dont mean to pick a fight but this post was completely asinine. Your uncle must have had some pretty good doctors for them to determine that his kidney failure was solely due to drinking diet soda. As for the rest of your claims... see rubberings post above.

 

[triton185]

yeah dude i dont mess with artificial sweetners. Your body mistakes it as regular sugar for insulin.... just kinda makes me wonder what that will do in the long run. Plus from old art sweetners causing cancer..... Just stay away from the stuff! My uncle has lost a kidney from diet sodas just drinking to many of them.

If that were true, then your uncle would be F*CKING RICH NOW!!! LOL!

 

[PublicEnemy]

If that were true, then your uncle would be F*CKING RICH NOW!!! LOL!

Probably the best insight I've seen in this whole thread.

REPS