The Diet-Coke Girlies are Screaming
Allow me to paint a picture for you. It’s a hot summer day and you are working tirelessly at your day job. Your body needs a mental “pick me up”. You grab a cub of crispy pebble-ice from your freezer and place it in a decorative glass cup, as you slice up fresh lime soon to be juiced. You then grab an ice cold Diet-Coke from your fridge. Its aesthetic alone brings ease to you. Its retro design and complementary colors are soothing to your overworked brain. As you open and pour your soda into your glass, you can hear the sizzle of the carbonation as bubbles become close friends with ice crystals and acidic lime juice. A treat that thousands enjoy around the world, inspiring an international “Diet-Coke Run” for thousands of corporate employees and friends alike.
In its delectability, rumors are circulating saying that said “pick me up” is highly dangerous and addictive. The caffeine component found in the soda (approximately 25 mg per can) is what makes the treat so addictive. As caffeine poses known addictive properties, along with the dopamine spike accompanied by the mid-day treat. But how can something so delicious be so dangerous?! Simply put, aspartame. Aspartame is the most commonly known and widely used artificial sweetener. By checking the ingredients list on anything labeled “sugar-free” or “low-calorie” chances are you will see aspartame near the bottom. But why? Aspartame is commonly used in such foods, because while is contains the same caloric density as regular sweeteners, it’s 200x as potent, making it not only cheaper for companies to use but also reaches a larger market as it can produces an opportunity to label such foods as “sugar-free” or “low-calorie”. And simply stated, the larger profit a company can make on a product the more likely we are to see aspartame on our product labels. Its wide use is what makes it so concerning. While being known as a widely used artificial-sweetener, Forbes has it on good authority that the World Health Organization (WHO) will be announcing on July 14th, that the artificial-sweetener is carcinogenic. Supposidely, the sweetener is connected to increasing risk for not only obesity but also breast cancer, tumors, cardiovascular diseases, strokes and hypertension (Olipop)!
When the American Beverage corporation ( company owning Coca-Cola brand and many others ) was questioned about its use of aspartame in its drink its statement was concerning.. The corporation stated that the FDA ( Food and Drug Administration ) approved the use of aspartame as a general sweetener in 1996 and that it “stood by aspartame’s safety”. What is concerning is aspartame's potency. The JECFA declared aspartame safe to use within a certain daily intake in 1981. The common American saying “everything in moderation” strikes again! The FDA said that the ADI ( acceptable daily intake ) for aspartame was 50 milligrams per kilogram of body weight, while the EFSA ( European Food Safety Administration ) stated their ADI as 40 milligrams per kilogram of body weight. This is where things get confusing.. Because if a 132 pound person were to replace their dietary allowance for added sugars with aspartame it would only be eight or nine milligrams. So then why is the ADI a minimum of 40-50 milligrams per person? In stark contrast, it was also noted in a study by the Journal of the American Heart Association that aspartame can be beneficial for those who are diabetic, as it does not increase blood sugar levels. It noted in the study that when subjects of average weight were placed into three groups: only drinking water, only drinking water and sugary drinks, and only drinking water and drinks that are artificial sweetened; that there were no changes in their weight. On the contrary, those subjects who were considered overweight experienced significantly less weight gain while drinking water and artificially sweetened beverages, and those who drank water and sugary beverages experienced a ten pound weight gain, on average. So maybe the Diet-Coke girlies are safe?! They are most definitely confused.
A better option.. OLIPOP!
The brand was created in 2017 by Ben Goodwin and David Lesser, accompanied by a team of research specialists. Ollipop focuses on creating probiotic sodas that improve our gut health! They use their functional formula OLISmart:“ a blend of seven unique botanicals, plant fibers, and prebiotics, each hand-picked for their distinct biome-supporting benefits.” inside their sodas. Each flavor is inspired by nostalgic sodas that range from classics, like Vintage Cola (Coca-Cola inspired), to innovatie summer favorites like Watermelon Lime! The best part… No aspartame! Ollipop uses natural sweeteners inside their sodas, so the girlies can get their Diet-Coke break with added health benefits! Now that is simple.
Sources used: Health Facts on Sugary Soda: The Truth about Artificial Sweeteners – OLIPOP.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/ariannajohnson/2023/06/30/what-to-know-about-aspartame-the-sugar-substitute-in-diet-coke-that-will-reportedly-be-declared-a-possible-cancer-risk-by-who/?sh=678e5dc01a4a
https://drinkolipop.com/pages/our-story