Maybe drop that diet soda and reach for some water, as two new studies presented at the American Diabetes Association’s Scientific Sessions in San Diego say you’re not doing yourself a favor with diet soft drinks.

According to Science Daily, one study from the School of Medicine at The University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio showed data that drinking diet sodas is associated with increased weight circumference. The other says aspartame raises blood sugar in diabetes-prone mice.

“Data from this and other prospective studies suggest that the promotion of diet sodas and artificial sweeteners as healthy alternatives may be ill-advised,” said Helen P. Hazuda, Ph.D., professor and chief of the Division of Clinical Epidemiology in the School of Medicine. “They may be free of calories but not of consequences.”

Diet soft drink users, as a group, experienced 70 percent greater increases in waist circumference compared with non-users.

And here we thought we could just spend our days guzzling Diet Coke and not give a damn. ime to drink water and exercise, eh?

Waistlines in people, glucose levels in mice hint at sweeteners’ effects: Related Studies point to the illusion of the artificial [Science Daily]

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