Over the years, what people eat and drink affects many areas of their lives. Some people often try to reduce their intake of certain foods and beverages for health reasons. Soda is one of the beverages that many people across the world including Kenya have been on the watch when it comes to its consumption. Diet Sodas have been on the rise as an alternative to Regular Soda, this is because Regular soda contains a lot of sugar that contributes to obesity, weight gain, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and many more. Whereas, diet soda contains artificial sweeteners instead of traditional sugar and has no calories accomplishing a similar taste. Some have opted for drinking diet versions of soda as its believed that the artificial sweeteners have fewer calories. However, some of the effects of diet soft drinks are unclear but a study now published in Food Research International compared how different beverages influenced salivary insulin levels.
The study’s findings were fascinating as both regular and diet soft drink intake resulted in higher salivary insulin levels. The study was carried out amongst fifteen healthy adults between 18 and 45 years, with no history of diabetes or abnormal blood sugar levels. The aim of the study was to look at how consuming certain beverages influenced four key elements:
- Aspartame excretion in saliva — aspartame is a common artificial sweetener
- Salivary insulin levels — insulin is a hormone that allows the body’s cells to use glucose for energy; problems with insulin levels and the body’s response to insulin can lead to diabetes
- Total protein (TP)
- Alpha-amylase (AMI) — this enzyme helps the body digest sugar.
In theory, diet soft drinks should not raise a person’s insulin levels as insulin is released after we eat carbohydrates that increases our blood sugar levels, so it’s normal to have greater insulin after drinking a regular soda, but the results of this study challenge that idea. Researchers during the study asked participants to consume several beverages – diet soft drinks, regular soft drinks, mineral water with artificial sweeteners, plain water with a small amount of added sucrose, and plain water – while blindfolded for data collection. Researchers then collected saliva samples from participants and analyzed them.
They found that Total Protein and Alpha-amylase levels did not differ in response to any ingested test-drink, leaving the main points of interest in the study’s results were the drinks’ impacts on aspartame and insulin levels. Aspartame in the collected saliva was detected for an extended time indicating that it stays in the body for a longer time frame and thus potentially impacting the body’s response to the sweetener. On the other hand, researchers found that salivary insulin levels increased after consuming regular soft drinks and diet soft drinks. They noted that salivary insulin levels may correlate with serum levels of insulin. They further found that increased levels of salivary aspartame with diet soft drink consumption correlated with increased levels of salivary insulin.
These results of the study indicates that diet soda still influences insulin levels, even though these artificially sweetened beverages are sugar-free and low-calorie. Insulin release is a very essential part of blood sugar regulation, cellular metabolism, and muscle growth but in high quantities, insulin levels can lead to complications including weight gain due to the promotion of excess fat deposition and increased cardiovascular risk due to hypertension and atherosclerosis. High and inappropriate long-term insulin exposure can lead to micro and macrovascular complications associated with the morbidity and mortality increase in diabetics including retinopathy, erectile dysfunction, neuropathy, kidney disease, myocardial infarction, and stroke.
As much as the research was small, further studies are needed and the public would benefit from awareness of potential long-term metabolic health consequences that may exist with artificial sugar use in diet beverages.