Now For The Best Foods
All of the foods on our list have a low;glycemic index; and provide important nutrients you need to stay healthy.
What Color Is Your Pee When You Have Diabetes
Can Cloudy Urine Be a Sign of Diabetes? Diabetes can cause cloudy urine when too much sugar builds up in your urine. Your urine may also smell sweet or fruity. Diabetes can also lead to kidney complications or increase risk of infections of the urinary tract, both of which can also make your urine appear cloudy.
It Can Affect Your Bone Health
Women above 60 are more likely to develop osteoporosis than men and this problem can be caused by drinking diet soda, according to the researchers at Tufts University. According to them, women had around 4% lower bone density in their hips than those who steer cleared of soda.
The research also covered the vitamin D and calcium intake of the participants. In addition, a study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found the major cause of low bone density is all kinds of cola intake in women.
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Fanta Orange Zero Sugar
Fanta is known for their fun fruit flavors. From Pina Colada to Strawberry;and from Fruit Punch to Grape, Fanta has many tasty flavors to pick from. Each one of them is entertainingly joyous in its own right. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for Fanta’s diet options.
In the United States, the most prevalent diet soda by Fanta is Fanta Orange Zero Sugar. While it’s better than the previously mentioned diet drinks on this list, there’s nothing fun about it. Instead, it’s a mediocre drink that basically tastes like carbonated Tang that has been watered down so much so that you can barely taste the orange flavoring.
Hopefully, one day, Fanta will learn how to bring their collection of fruit flavors to the world of diet sodas. But as it stands, it’s obvious that they haven’t figured out how to do that. When you’re in the mood for a fruity Fanta drink, your best option right now is just to drink a regular Fanta and forget all about the diet options.
What To Know About Sodas
Soda builds plaque Soda contains sugar that helps bacteria to build up plaque on your teeth. Each drink loads the mouth with sugar and makes it an ideal breeding ground for plaque.
Empty Calories An average soda can adds up to 150 calories and it harms more than good.
Soda is Acidic A regular can of soda can wreck havoc on your oral health. It improves the risk of enamel decay, cavities, and gum diseases.
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Diet Drinks And Type 2 Diabetes
Research indicates that sugary soft drinks are linked with type 2 diabetes and research indicates that there may also be an association between artificially sweetened beverages too.
A French study, published in 2013, even indicated that the risk of type 2 diabetes may even be higher for those that regularly consume diet soft drinks than people that consume sugary versions.
The researchers note that information on the participants diets could not be closely monitored and it is therefore not possible to conclude that diet soft drinks were a cause of type 2 diabetes.
The Lowdown On Diet Soda
Research suggests a strong link between regularly drinking diet soda and type 2 diabetes. One study found that the artificial sweeteners in diet soda are harmful to gut bacteria, and there’s a resulting relationship between drinking diet soda and increased insulin resistance, weight gain, and diabetes.
Scientists have proposed that other behaviors that go along with drinking diet soda are to blame for weight gain, insulin resistance, and diabetes. There seems to be both a direct and indirect effect between drinking diet soda and diabetes.
However, the artificial sweeteners in diet soda and other sugar-free beverages have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration . They have not been found to cause other health issues and can provide flexibility for planning diabetes-friendly meals.
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Nutrition Facts For Sugar Free Drinks
As a person with diabetes or prediabetes, counting carbohydrates should be a top priority when it comes to nutrition.
Getting the proper vitamins and minerals from whole foods is also important, but limiting the number of carbs you consume will directly affect your blood sugar more than any other dietary habit.
Drinking plain water day after day can get boring and you may be tempted to reach for a soda, a Gatorade, or an energy drink.
But before you take a sip, consider the amount of carbs in that bottle!
If youre sipping on a regular Monster energy drink or a regular Coke then youll be downing close to 40 grams of carbs per serving ;
Luckily, there are sugar free versions of many beverages on the market today, and they definitely are far superior to their sugar-filled counterparts.
Consider this nutrition facts label for a Monster Absolutely Zero energy drink.
This drink only contains 1 gram of carbs per serving!
How is this possible?
In this case, the company swapped out cane sugar and high fructose corn syrup for a sugar alcohol called erythritol.
Sugar alcohols taste sweet but they dont raise your blood sugar the way regular sugar does, plus they are completely free of calories.
Some people experience digestive distress from sugar alcohols, however, and those folks should stick to natural plant-based sweeteners like stevia, which has virtually no known side effects.
Summary Of The Evidence
As the effectiveness of substituting ASBs for SSBs for weight loss and improvement of glucose control in type 2 diabetics has been called into debate, the obvious question arises: could these compounds have the opposite of their intended effect and actually negatively influence blood sugar control? Relatively few high powered randomized controlled studies have been done to study this. Hence, the most reliable articles tend to be meta-analyses.
According to a 2014 meta-analysis by Christopher Gardener et al, the body of evidence for the direct effects of ASBs on glycemic control is severely limited. Many studies have compared Non-nutritive Sweeteners to placebo looking for any ill effect on glycemic control with null results. However, these studies fail to address the potential effect of replacing SSBs with ASBs in the diet. The studies that directly compare NNS to sugars are limited by low sample size and other potential confounders.
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Foods And Drinks That Can Cause Blood Sugar Swings
Is your blood sugar up and down? Certain foods and drinks could be to blame.
Just when you think youre making all the right food choices, your blood sugar takes a leap or dive. Foods and drinks can have an impact you might not expect, and these surprise blood-sugar changes can be harmful . Here are some things you should consider:
Dont let bagels betray you. Counting carbs is a way of life when you have diabetes. Bread can really rack up those carbs, but not all bread is created equal.
Think theres no difference between a bagel and an English muffin? One plain English muffin has 140 calories and 27 grams of carbohydrates. A bagel thats 4½ inches in diameter serves up 294 calories and 58 grams of carbs. Thats about as many calories and even more carbs than a glazed donut.
Its about portion size. Some bagels are the size of a plate, says Pamela Allweiss, MD, MPH. Shes a medical officer in the division of diabetes translation at the CDC.
A fruit in any other form may be twice as sweet. All fruits have sugar, but did you know that different forms of the same fruit have vastly different amounts?
Dried fruit packs a sugary punch compared with its fresh counterpart. Ten grapes, which weigh about 1.75 ounces, have 34 calories and 8 grams of sugar. Theyre also full of water, which helps fill you up. A 1.5-ounce, single-serving box of raisins packs 129 calories and 15 grams of sugar, but none of the water.
Fresca Original Citrus Soda
If you want a perfectly average diet soda, buy a can of Fresca Original Citrus Soda. This drink isn’t amazing but there’s also nothing to dislike about it. It has a clean, crisp taste that you can definitely live with. It’s highly unlikely that you’ll be wowed, but its subtle goodness could very well make you a fan for life.
The best attribute of Fresca Original Citrus Soda is the fact that it’s refreshing. On a hot afternoon, there’s not a more refreshing diet soda. Within moments, your thirst will be quenched.
Fresca has four other diet soda flavors: Blackberry Citrus, Black Cherry Citrus, Strawberry Citrus, and Peach Citrus. While there’s nothing wrong with trying any of these flavors, you’ll eventually circle back around and go with the Original Citrus flavor when you want a refreshing soda. The other four flavors are equally as clean and equally as crisp, but the Original Citrus has the most enjoyable taste.
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Healthy Alternatives To Water
Again, the best beverage to reach for when you have type 2 diabetes is plain water. But if you find it hard to drink eight cups of plain water a day, here are some ideas and alternatives that will help you reach your goal:
- Flavor filtered water by adding one or two slices of fresh fruit, such as lemon, lime, or orange, or a few berries, cucumber slices, or herbs like mint. You’ll get the essence of the flavor without added calories or carbs.
- Make homemade iced tea by steeping herbal or green tea bags in hot water and then chilling. When you use a fruit-flavored tea bag to make your iced tea, you might even find it doesn’t need additional sweetness.;Not to mention, you’ll reap additional health benefits of green tea.
- Serve flavored sparkling waters in wine glasses with dinner. To take things to the next level, add a splash of tart cherry juice and a few fresh or frozen cherries as garnish.
Risk: Gut Bacteria Imbalances
A healthy balance of gut bacteria is essential to metabolic and immune health. Research shows that drinking diet soda changes the composition and behavior of your intestinal bacteria. Bacterial imbalances can contribute to metabolic syndrome, glucose intolerance, and inflammation. These conditions make diabetes treatment harder.
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Diet Drinks In Pubs Bars And Restaurants
Most bars and restaurants in the UK these days serve at least one diet soft drink.
Diabetes.co.uk is aware that people with diabetes are occasionally served full sugar soft drinks accidentally by bar or restaurant staff.
This is more likely to happen in loud or busy environments.
It may be possible to reduce the chances of being served a sugary soft drink by accident by:
- Checking with the bar or waiting person that it is a diet soft drink
- Asking for the diet soft drink in a can or bottle
- Telling the bar or waiting person why you need it to be a diet drink
Water: The Gold Standard
While sugar substitutes are generally healthier than what theyre replacing, Benavides says water is still the best beverage of all.
Water is the gold standard of beverages, Benavides said. It has no calories, no carbs and goes with just about any meal.
If you find yourself getting tired of plain water, try infusing it with some fruit or fresh mint. Infused water is virtually calorie-free because the nutrients from infused fruit is negligible. However, sugar, calories and fiber can still be consumed if you eat the fruit itself.
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Diet Canada Dry Ginger Ale
A good ginger ale has a complex flavor profile. First, you’re met with a satisfying zing. Then, a burst of flavor balances the zing and prepares your mouth for the next sip. From there, you rinse and repeat until your can of ginger ale is gone. At the end, you have a smile that has spread from ear to ear.
Sadly, none of that magic happens if you dare to drink Diet Canada Dry Ginger Ale. Instead of a zing, you’re met with an off-putting bitter bite that will cause your mouth to pucker. At that point, you’ll wait for a second wave of flavor but it will never come. No ginger goodness. No blast of sweetness. Nothing at all. You’re left with a mouthful of bitter diet soda that will be difficult to swallow.
Even if you typically adore Canada Dry products, you won’t enjoy this diet drink. Move on to something better.
Get At Least Seven Hours Of Sleep Per Night
Lack of sleep can affect two hormones in the body that are crucial for maintaining a healthy weight: ghrelin and leptin. Levels of ghrelin, which signal your body to eat, ramp up while the production of leptin, which decreases appetite, slows down. So when you dont get enough shut-eye, you may be prone to unhealthy cravings, including those for sugar. A growing body of research suggests not getting sufficient sleep can significantly increase your risk for obesity, according to a review published in July 2011 in the journal Current Opinions in Clinical Nutrition & Metabolic Care.
Sleep deprivation can also make you crankier and more impulsive, so youre less prepared to make the effort that sometimes it takes to make that healthy choice, Dobbins says.
According to the National Sleep Foundation, most adults should aim to get at least seven hours of sleep per night.
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The Downside Of Diet Soda
“The downside is you gain no nutritional value from drinking it,” Hart says. “It is full of potentially harmful additives, and research shows an increased risk of diabetes, weight gain and metabolic syndrome in both diet and regular soda intake.”
According to the University of Rochester Medical Center, diet soda on a regular basis can lead to weight gain. Although the exact reason is not known, it might be that when people drink diet soda, they eat more sugary foods.
Artificial sweeteners in diet sodas may also increase your risk of heart and blood vessel disease. The American Optometric Association says that diet soda is not necessarily a healthier alternative to regular soda. Drinking more than four cans a week may increase your risk of diabetic eye damage, a common diabetic complication called diabetic retinopathy that can lead to blindness.
“Some research has even found that drinking diet soda could cause changes to our gut microbiome. The artificial sweeteners found in these beverages may alter the gut flora, which is quite alarming because healthy gut bacteria play a crucial role in maintaining immune and metabolic balance,” Hart says.
It’s a healthier swap compared to regular soda, but is it the best swap you can make?
Is Diet Soda Safe For Diabetes
Diet soda and diabetes
Managing blood sugar levels is an everyday goal for people with type 1 and type 2 diabetes.
While eating sugar doesnt cause either type of diabetes, keeping tabs on carbohydrate and sugar intake is an important part of managing both types of diabetes. Eating healthfully and staying active can also reduce your risk for developing type 2 diabetes.
Being overweight or having obesity is linked to the development of type 2 diabetes. In fact, obesity is one of the leading causes of type 2 diabetes.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , more than one-third of American adults have obesity. Obesity can put you at risk for diabetes and other health conditions.
Eating highly processed foods that are high in sugar, unhealthy fats, and empty calories increases your risk of gaining excess weight.
Drinking sugary drinks is also a risk factor for developing type 2 diabetes. If youre working to keep your blood sugar in check or manage your weight, you might choose diet soda.
Low in calories and sugar, diet sodas appear to be a good alternative to sugary drinks. Diet sodas are 99 percent water, and when checking the nutrition facts panel, you should see less than 5 to 10 calories and less than 1 gram of carbohydrate per serving.
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