More Food for Thought

I told some of you that as part of my new years resolution I decided I would cut back soda consumption to 1 beverage on 1 day of the week. I didn't have any formal evidence at that point that drinking even diet sodas led to weight gain, but I've lost 10 pounds since then (I know right?). I read this article on artificial sweeteners today that backed up my intuition on the subject.(Click here to read the article)

Here are a couple notable quotes from the article:

"The report, published in Behavioral Neuroscience, presents some counterintuitive findings: Animals fed with artificially sweetened yogurt over a two-week period consumed more calories and gained more weight — mostly in the form of fat — than animals eating yogurt flavored with glucose, a natural, high-calorie sweetener."

And then my favorite...

"A University of Texas Health Science Center survey in 2005 found that people who drink diet soft drinks may actually gain weight; in that study, for every can of diet soda people consumed each day, there was a 41% increased risk of being overweight."

Although I also gave up fried foods (i.e. french fries) except for one day a week at the same time, I'm comfortable with the belief that giving up soda has played just as an important role in the weight loss. And lets be honest people, it takes less time to give up soda than to go out and exercise.