- A Harvard-Trained Gastroenterologist Revealed Four Terrifying Facts About Diet Sodas
- The viral video was made by California-based Dr. Saurabh Sethi.
- READ MORE: Sofia Richie, 26, details ‘scary’ part of her recent pregnancy
A Harvard- and Stanford-trained gastroenterologist has revealed four scary facts about diet sodas and why you might not want to drink them anymore.
Dr Saurabh SethiBased in California, he has over two decades of clinical experience and practices in clinics in the San Francisco area.
in a recently posted video On his TikTok, the doctor raised the question of whether diet soda was really healthier than regular soda and shared four facts about the diet product that you may not know.
The first truth he spoke of was quite terrifying.
“First, women who drink two or more diet sodas a day are at significantly increased risk of heart attack and stroke,” Dr. Sethi began.
Dr. Saurabh Sethi, a California gastroenterologist, took to TikTok to share the negative aspects of diet soda.
His statement was based on a study published in 2019 by the American Heart Association and American Stroke Associationthat linked the consumption of artificially sweetened beverages with an increase in these diseases in women over 50 years of age, for cnn.
And interestingly, the risk of having a heart attack or stroke was higher in women who had no history of heart disease or diabetes, the outlet reported.
Next, Dr. Sethi stated that drinking diet soda could also be linked to kidney disease.
“The high phosphorus content in diet sodas may contribute to chronic kidney disease,” he said in the video.
His statement is supported by the National Kidney Foundationwho cited a study that found that drinking two or more diet sodas per day can cause kidney damage.
The study evaluated a group of women who had healthy, functional kidneys at the start of the trial.
However, they found that people who drank diet soda experienced a three-fold greater decrease in their glomerular filtration rate (something that can help measure how well the kidneys are working) than those who didn’t drink diet soda.
During the study, there was an obvious link between kidney function and diet soda consumption, which is why the National Kidney Foundation recommends drinking water.
“The high phosphorus content in diet sodas may contribute to chronic kidney disease,” he said in the video (file image).
The third fact Dr. Sethi shared was that drinking diet soda can “negatively affect insulin sensitivity” and “alter the gut microbiome,” meaning it can affect gut health.
Having good gut health is extremely important for your overall health as it can help with digestion, immunity, and more.
It is necessary to have a healthy amount of good bacteria in the intestine to be able to fight certain diseases.
Finally, the doctor said that diet sodas can ‘increase cravings for high-calorie foods, altering appetite control.’
According to a 2021 study published in the JAMA Open Networkdiscovered that sucralose, which is a common ingredient in diet sodas such as Pepsi One and Diet Mountain Dew, can increase appetite.
The researchers explained that consuming things with sucralose may have “increased neural reward responses” in the brain.
“Ultimately, diet sodas offer no nutritional benefits,” Dr. Sethi concluded.
