What conflict? Study Funded By Soda Industry Concludes Diet Soda Helps People Lose Weight

The findings of an industry report have been met with criticism from ThinkProgress, with the publication detailing the perceived absurdity of the results. With each successive paragraph, the incredulity of the findings has been further highlighted.

“A new study fully funded by the American Beverage Association — whose members include Coca-Cola and Pepsi — draws some favorable conclusions for the soda industry, suggesting that drinking diet beverages can help people lose weight. The findings contradict previous studies that have found diet soda is linked to weight gain and health problems.

Researchers conducted a 12-week clinical trial with a sample size of 303 people. Participants were split into two groups: one that was allowed to drink at last 24 ounces of diet beverages each day, and one that wasn’t allowed to drink any soda or add artificial sweeteners to their coffee. The two groups both participated in the same weight loss treatment program, and at the end of the three month period, researchers found that the people that were allowed to drink diet soda had lost an average of four additional pounds.

The study authors concluded that it’s easier for people to stick to a diet and exercise plan if they’re not also depriving themselves of the diet sodas they’re used to drinking.

“This research allows dieters to feel confident that low- and no-calorie sweetened beverages can play an important and helpful role as part of an effective and comprehensive weight loss strategy,” John Peters, one of the co-authors of the study and the chief strategy officer at the University of Colorado’s Anschutz Health and Wellness Center, said in a statement.

But other public health researchers have criticized the study’s methods, saying that a 12-week trial is too short to discern the long-term health effects of soda. “What the prospective studies actually suggest is that if you go out 7 years, 10 years, 15 years, 20 years, the cohorts of individuals who are consuming diet sodas have much worse health outcomes,” Susan Swithers, a professor at Purdue University whose research has found that diet soda drinkers have the same health issues as soda drinkers, told CNN. ”

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