Diet Soda or Regular Soda. Which is better? (Pt. 1)
“You know that’s worse for you than regular soda, right?”
Hmm… Is that really the case? 🤔 Find out below ⬇️
“You know that’s worse for you than regular soda, right?”
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard the above quote thrown my way… There I am, just minding my own business, casually sipping some diet soda pop and BOOM! Someone says it.
Usually, I leave it alone. After all, who wants to get into a thorough nutrition/dieting debate while you’re having a treat, right? Apparently, a lot of people do... But a family barbecue or Sunday evening with friends is neither the occasion nor place! But a blog is! So, here we go…
To start, I will speak on a personal level. I do not have diabetes. For someone like me, “healthy” eating and “smart” eating don’t always go hand-in-hand. To explain, I’ll provide an example. Sure, adding something like an avocado as an accessory to your meal is a “healthy” thing to do. It’s loaded with monosaturated fatty acids (great for heart health), has more potassium than a banana, and the list goes on! For real, avocados are super beneficial to your health. No argument there! However, a medium-sized avocado (~150g) is 240 calories. And based off of a 2,000-calorie diet, that’s roughly 1/8th of total daily calories. And that avocado is just an accessory to your actual entrée… No thanks!
“If forced to pick between the two, I’m picking diet soda 100% of the time, all of the time. And here’s why…”
I guess, what I’m trying to say is that if there is a culinary itch/craving that I’m trying to scratch, and there’s a lower calorie alternative out there, that’s how I’m going to scratch it. I say this because in order to maintain my “realistic approach” towards dieting (I will further explain this in a future blog post), I cut calories where I can, for this is the most important factor to losing weight: creating a caloric deficit.
So, which is better? Diet soda or regular soda?
First off, neither is better. Realistically, water would be the better option. But, if forced to pick between the two, I’m picking diet soda 100% of the time, all of the time. And here’s why…
Sugar
In a 20 fl oz bottle of Coke, there’s 65g of sugar. Considering 4 calories per 1 gram of carbohydrate (sugar), that’s 260 calories, all of which are from sugar. (The calorie total for a 20 fl oz bottle of Coke is actually 240, but that’s because manufacturers have the ability to utilize one of six different methods in calculating calories from macronutrients. This will be explained further in a future post). But if I’m being realistic, I’m not getting the 20 fl oz bottle of Coke… I’m getting the 2 Liter (68 fl oz, rounded up). Why? Because they’re usually always on sale! Why buy less soda and more packaging for more money (i.e., 20 fl oz bottle of Coke for $1.99) when you can buy more soda and less packaging for less money (i.e., two 2 Liter bottles of Coke for $3)?! … ‘Merica!
Even though the deals are great, I’d be lying if I said I buy the 2 Liter size solely due to economies of scale. I buy it because I’ve been known to finish more than 20 fl oz of soda in a sitting. In fact, I’ve been known to finish a whole 2 Liter on occasion. So, let’s run those numbers…
In a 2 Liter bottle of Coke, there are six servings of 12 fl oz. In each 12 fl oz serving, there are 39g of sugar. That means, in the whole 2 Liter bottle, there’s 234g of sugar. Just as we did before, considering 4 calories per 1 gram of carbohydrate (sugar), that’s 936 calories, all of which are from sugar.
From the examples above, it’s easy to see that the calories add up quick when it comes to soda. Unfortunately, calories are just the tip of the iceberg…
Stay tuned for Diet Soda or Regular Soda. Which is better? (Pt. 2), where I talk about blood sugar, insulin, sugar alcohols, and more!
Have a health & wellness question? Send an e-mail to esserfit@gmail.com . Put “Q&A” in the subject line and tell us where you’re from!
