Is my diet soda making me fat?

Many diet sodas, including diet 7-Up, diet Coke, diet Pepsi, as well as many other non-diet sodas and generic brands, have the preservative Sodium Benzoate in them. It is used in foods because of its ability to extend the shelf life of the product. It is also used in many salad dressings, sauces, Catsups, and pickles. Some people can taste Sodium Benzoate and for those who can taste it, it leaves an unpleasant flavor in their mouth. There are a lot of websites that say Sodium Benzoate occurs naturally in some foods; that information is incorrect. It is benzoic acid that occurs naturally in some foods. The benzoic acid that occurs naturally in food is not harmful. But when benzoic acid is combined with sodium hydroxide, the harmful, unpleasant tasting, Sodium Benzoate is created.

We do not know all of the harmful effects of Sodium Benzoate but from medical research we do know that it damages yeast DNA (genes) in the mitochondria and it may do the same to humans. Sodium Benzoate has also been shown to reduce leptin (a hormone in our body that we need to keep us trim). In general, if our leptin levels are reduced, we will gain weight or have more difficulty losing weight. This is likely why Sodium Benzoate and other preservatives have been implicated in increasing our food consumption, even when we’ve had enough to eat. In addition, Sodium Benzoate can become even worse when it is combined with Vitamin C, together they form a deadly cancer causing agent called Benzene. Even in the presence of the good preservative Citric Acid, Sodium Benzoate can turn into Benzene.

Sodium Benzoate is like that kid your mother always told you to stay away from because nothing good would ever come from the relationship! Our healthy vitamin C packed drinks in the presence of Sodium Benzoate turn into poison, and in addition it sabotages our attempts to lose weight and corrupts our attempts to become healthier. There is nothing healthy or good about Sodium Benzoate, stay away from it!

Conclusion: Sodium benzoate is not a natural substance and should not be in our food. It may damage our genes and make us fat.

Action Item: Read labels, avoid products with Sodium Benzoate.

For More Information:

• http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23134605
• http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21801469
• http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19730134
• http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23531214