What Does Diet Soda Do To Pancreas?

On Aug 6, 2022

What to Eat

Alcohol
Baked goods (doughnuts, muffins, bagels, biscuits, croissants)
Battered/fried fish and shellfish
Butter, lard, vegetable oil, margarine, ghee
Cake, pies, pastries
Cheese, cream cheese, cheese sauce
Cookies, brownies, candy
Eggs with yolk
Fatty cuts of red meat, organ meat

What can I drink instead of soda to lose weight?

Sparkling water with infused flavors.
Sparkling green tea.
Kombucha.
Mint and cucumber water.
Herbal or fruit teas.
Coconut water.

Drinking diet soda has been linked to an increased risk of chronic kidney disease. A recent study analyzed the diets of 15,368 people and found that the risk of developing end-stage kidney disease increased with the number of glasses of diet soda consumed per week.

Is Diet Soda Really Bad For You? Despite the scientific evidence to the contrary, the artificial sweeteners and other chemicals found in diet soda are perfectly safe for most people. It is possible to purchase vitamin and mineral-fortified diet sodas . Diet soda , however, is not a health drink, nor is it a magic weight-loss pill.

How to reduce pancreatic cancer risk?

Because you’re at a higher risk of pancreatic cancer if you’re overweight or obese, cutting soda out of your diet can help you decrease your caloric intake so you lose weight. Regular soda consumption alone also raises your risk of pancreatic cancer, which is another good reason to eliminate the drink from your diet. Replace sugary soda with plain water flavored with 100 percent fruit juice, which is naturally sweet and doesn’t contain any added sugar. Unsweetened iced tea or coffee are also alternatives you might enjoy. Save soda for a very occasional treat, if you drink it at all, to help protect your pancreas.

The pancreas is behind other organs, too, and that makes it tough for doctors to detect problems because they can’t see the pancreas very well. The cancer also spreads quickly. Because of these factors, pancreatic cancer is fatal in the majority of cases.

Your pancreas is between your stomach and your spine, and it’s about 6 inches long, according to the National Cancer Institute. The pancreas plays a role in the food digestion by producing enzymes that break the food down. The organ also secretes hormones, most notably insulin, a hormone that helps regulate your blood sugar. Pancreatic cancer is usually diagnosed in people over the age of 50, though it’s possible for someone younger to be diagnosed, as well. Smoking, weight gain, diabetes and pancreatitis elevate the risk of developing cancer of the pancreas.

Pancreatic cancer is usually diagnosed in people over the age of 50, though it’s possible for someone younger to be diagnosed, as well. Smoking, weight gain, diabetes and pancreatitis elevate the risk of developing cancer of the pancreas.

Soda tastes good, which is why so many people drink it on a regular basis. The trade off for consuming the sweet stuff is an increased risk of pancreatic cancer. According to a 2010 article published in “Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention,” regularly including soda in your diet may raise your risk of developing pancreatic cancer. In fact, the study found that people who consumed more than two sodas per week were at a significantly higher risk of pancreatic cancer compared to people who drank less soda. (See Reference 3)

According to MedlinePlus, the symptoms of pancreatic cancer, which can include fatigue, weight loss, abdominal or back pain and yellowing of the skin, don’t appear right away, which means you could have the condition without knowing it.

The Pancreas & Drinking Soda. Soda isn’t good for you. It’s loaded with sugar and calories and doesn’t provide you with any essential nutrients. In addition to contributing to weight gain, soda can take a heavy toll on the health of your pancreas, as well.

What does sugar do to the body?

1. It makes our bodies produce insulin. Insulin, secreted by the pancreas, is how the human body stores sugar. When the taste of artificial sweeteners (in soda, yogurt, or anything else) hits your brain, it automatically sends a signal to your pancreas to begin producing insulin.

Getty Images. It seems to contradict the laws of physics. Regular sodas are full of calories, 140 per can and up. Diet sodas have zero calories. So it seems logical that replacing one with the other should help you lose weight, or at least stay the same weight.

But since drinking the diet soda has fooled your body into expecting sugar, it’s changed the way you metabolize those other calories–you may store more of them as fat and use fewer of them as energy–which could leave you hungry and wanting even more food.

This may explain why several studies have shown a link between regularly drinking diet soda and metabolic syndrome, a collection of symptoms that includes larger waist circumference, higher blood pressure, and higher blood sugar. 2. It conditions our taste buds for sweetness.

If all of the above isn’t enough to make you avoid the stuff, then consider that other studies also show drinking diet soda is associated with increased risk of stroke and Alzheimer’s disease . (Drinking regular soda seems to be bad for the brain as well.)

Why does the brain associate sweet with calories?

In the realm of human physiology, that’s a good thing. It drives your body to release insulin as sugar’s chaperone to the cells to create fuel. In the past, people assumed this process could not occur when we consumed artificial sweeteners because calories don’t follow the sweet flavor.

In the study, individuals who consumed a specific artificial sweetener (sucralose) had increases in both insulin and blood glucose levels. Frequent rises in insulin have been linked to insulin resistance and an increased risk of type 2 diabetes.

Policy. “Switching from regular to diet soda may offer a short term cut in calories, but your body won’t be fooled for long ,” says registered dietitian Kristin Kirkpatrick, MS, RD, LD.

You can even use fruit in soda water to recreate soda’s bubbly appeal . Quitting a habit is never easy, but experts recommend that kicking soda all the way out of your diet can have profound effects on both your weight and your health. Advertising Policy.

Some research has even associated artificially sweetened sodas with increased risk of stroke.

Those who drank diet soda even had a higher BMI than their counterparts. Advertising Policy. 2. Diet soda may cause insulin confusion.

Does artificial sweetener affect taste?

Artificial sweeteners and low-calorie sweeteners (such as stevia) can also change people’s perception of the natural taste of food. Because they’re significantly sweeter than regular sugar, people who consume a lot of these sweeteners may find that foods containing natural sugars taste less sweet — and ultimately less palatable.

Advertisement. According to an article in the September 2018 issue of Current Diabetes Reports , studies have shown that people with type 2 diabetes have an altered gut microbiome compared to those with normal insulin function.

Advertisement. According to a September 2013 study in Diabetes Care , artificial sweeteners have been linked to insulin resistance, a condition caused by chronic high blood sugars.

Diet soda doesn’t raise insulin, but it may affect metabolic health down the line. Avoiding sugary beverages is an important part of maintaining healthy blood sugar levels for people with diabetes and those who are at risk for it.

Other Effects of Artificial Sweeteners. Diet sodas haven’t only been linked to metabolic disorders. According to a number of studies, including a meta-analysis in the July 2017 Canadian Medical Association Journal , artificial sweeteners have been linked to an increased risk of weight gain, heart disease and stroke.