Diet advice is rarely one-size-fits-all. But one particular vice — enjoyed daily by more than half of Americans — has become the bane of health experts.
Dietitians really, really want us to step away from the sugary soda.
At a recent nutrition conference in Washington, DC, with more than 3,000 professionals, I asked around about what we should all be eating more of. While everyone had a different answer, nearly all agreed on what to avoid: cutting back on sugary drinks is a simple way to improve your health.
The dietitians (and doctors and researchers) I spoke with had a long list of reasons you should consider swapping out soda, from blood sugar crashes to potential links to increased cancer risk.
Here’s what we know about why soda may be uniquely harmful, and you may be better off eating ice cream instead.
Why is soda bad for you?
The problem with soda and other sweet drinks is that they’re a major source of added sugar, often in huge amounts.
The recommended daily limit for added sugar ranges from 25 grams to 50 grams, per the American Heart Association and the USDA, while a typical can of soda contains about 40 grams of sugar.
Too much sugar is linked to a wide array of health issues, such as:
- Type 2 diabetes
- Cancer (including colon cancer, now the leading cause of cancer-related death in people under 50)
- Obesity and related health issues, including metabolic syndrome
- Heart disease
- Tooth decay
- Liver damage
- Kidney disease
Sweetened drinks are a particularly concentrated source of sugar, which means the side effects can hit harder: for instance, causing more intense blood sugar spikes and crashes.
Marian Neuhouser, one of the dietitians who told me we should cut back, studies diet and cancer risk at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center in Seattle. Some of her work has found that drinking more sugar is linked to a higher risk of cancer.
And sugary drinks are more closely linked to cancer risk than almost any other ultra-processed food (except processed red meat like bacon), said Kenny Mendoza, a professor at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center.
“Definitely, I would recommend avoiding ultra-processed sugary drinks and ultra-processed meats because those are actually consistently associated with a higher risk of cancer,” Mendoza said.
Sodas are the most popular sweet drink, but the advice also applies to other beverages with added sugar, including energy drinks, fruit drinks (except for 100% juice), sports drinks (yes, even with electrolytes), and sweetened coffee or tea.
Other ultra-processed foods can be high in sugar, too, from obvious sweet treats like pastries and cookies to sneaky sources of sugar like bread, condiments, and yogurt.
Sugary beverages may be especially harmful, however, because they add calories and sugar without providing much nutritional value, and the liquid form makes it easy to consume too much.
Nicholas Marchello, a registered dietitian and nutrition professor at the University of Central Missouri, said he’d rather see people eat ice cream than drink soda.
“There are no benefits. It’s just sugar; it’s going to leave your stomach in seconds. At least ice cream would fill you up,” he said.
Is diet soda healthier?
If you’re a regular soda sipper, your first instinct may be to switch to sugar-free, but it can have mixed benefits, according to the latest research.
Reducing your overall sugar intake is a good thing, so diet soda can be a smart way to cut back. However, it may not be completely risk-free.
Emerging evidence suggests that alternative sweeteners may have side effects of their own. Popular sweeteners like aspartame, sucralose, and stevia have been linked to disruptions in the gut microbiome. Over the long term, too much of these compounds may be linked to risks for heart health or metabolism, a recent study suggests.
The strongest evidence on potential issues linked to artificial sweeteners comes from studies on mice and rats, often given doses many times higher than what any human would drink. Rigorous long-term studies on specific ingredients and human health are notoriously difficult to do. There have been observational studies in humans that have found a link between higher intake of artificial sweeteners and increased risk of heart attack, as well as metabolic changes. These studies show a correlation, but don’t prove that the artificial sweeteners cause these health issues, so further research is needed to better understand how they might affect our long-term health.
For now, the best advice from doctors and dietitians is to drink mostly plain water throughout the day. For a bit of fizz and flavor, opt for seltzer or 100% fruit juice. If you need an energy boost, lean into coffee and tea, which have extra health benefits as long as you skip the cream and sugar.
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