Is it safe to drink non-sugary drinks (like coke zero) while on a diet? Or do the artificial sweeteners just make you fat in some sneaky way?
In: Chemistry
Assuming you don’t slyly adjust your consumption (“I had a Coke Zero, I deserve a donut!”) they do not contain any calories your body can use. Without that, they do not contribute to weight gain.
They may have some minimal effect on your blood glucose, but I haven’t found that to be the case. I’ve done a 1 week and a 2 week fast, both with zero food. Water + electrolytes only. I measured my weight, blood glucose, and ketone levels 2-3 times per day. I drink Coke Zero during fasts sometimes just cause I like it, and it has no appreciable effect on my blood glucose or weight. When I’m not fasting I never drink soda.
So the simple answer is no, not directly. Indirectly? Time will tell. But they will be minor effects. Things like variations in metabolic rates and making your body “hold on to fat” and the like tend to be VASTLY overblown in the diet/fitness world. A diet coke won’t make you put on 2 donuts worth of weight when you only ate one. Your body is already very efficient at getting nutrients out of food. If it wasn’t you’d know because you’d either be sick and malnourished, or having diarrhea 24/7.
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