It is widely believed that the consumption of sugary soft drinks leads to a weight increase which in turn leads to a higher incidence of type 2 diabetes.
It is also believed by many diabetic patients that the consumption of diet soft drinks is healthy choice in the context of the diabetic condition.
A recent French study suggests that the consumption of diet drinks increases the risk of type 2 diabetes when compared to the standard sugary soft drink.
This study involved 66,000 French women who were middle aged or older when the research began. The women completed a dietary assessment and then were monitored over a period of 14 years.
It was found that women who consumed diet drinks drank on average a total of 2.8 glasses whilst women who drank the standard sugary drinks consumed a total of 1.6 glasses per week.
Researchers also found that women who drank diet drinks had a higher risk of developing type two diabetes.
Compared to to drinking a standard soft drink, when half a litre per week of diet drink was consumed the risk was 15 percent higher and when 1.5 litres was consumed it was a massive 59 percent higher.
A study in 2010 showed that aspartame which is widely used to sweeten diet soft drinks can trigger insulin peaks just like sugar does.
French research also shows that that consumers of diet drinks have on average higher sugar levels than consumers of standard drinks. This could in fact lead to an overproduction of insulin and ultimately type 2 diabetes.
