Does drinking water before meals promote weight loss? A recent study suggests that drinking just two glasses of water before each of your meals can result in you eating up to 90 fewer calories per meal. Although 90 calories does not sound like much, it can add up to over 2 pounds of fat loss within a 30 day period.
In this article I wanted to answer the extremely common query, “In place of drinking water, can I drink 0-calorie drinks such as: Vitamin Water, diet sodas, diet ice tea, etc.?” Admittedly, there is a large amount of controversy around diet drinks and weight reduction; in this report we will tackle this question once and for all.
For those of you who are in a rush, the quick reply is “No.” For those of you who desire a bit more information , let me explain…
The body is very efficient at digestive function and absorption. In reality, the body is so efficient that you begin to see modifications in the biochemistry of the blood the second you taste food, even before you have absorbed any nutrients!
When you taste something sweet, such as candy, cake, or even fruit, the brain transmits a signal to the pancreas to get ready for glucose. The pancreas, being an overachieving organ, decides to pump out a little insulin into the blood in an attempt to plan for the glucose energy. The trouble with synthetic sweeteners is you get the sizzle without the steak; the sweetness results in insulin production without any sugar actually getting into the bloodstream. So why is this such a major problem?
There are two main reasons: First, insulin will cause the blood sugar to drop, which results in cravings and rebound eating. Second, any increase in insulin results in a cessation in fat burning.
Research confirms that consuming artificially sweetened beverages does, in actuality, encourage weight gain, not weight loss. In the San Antonio Heart Study, folks who ingested artificially sweetened beverages over the course of 7 years elevated their body mass index (BMI) by 47%! The more artificially sweetened beverages they drank on an every day basis, the more overweight they became.
Many people turn to natural sweeteners such as stevia, Truvia, xylitol, erythritol, and other natural sweeteners without calories. Unfortunately, these sweeteners can also pose a risk to the waistline because it is the sweet taste that causes the problem, not necessarily the chemical.
As you can see, drinking water is the way to go. If you have tried to drink water and it is just too bland, try including lemon and/or a bit of cranberry concentrate to the water. Keep in mind, tart is ok, sweet is not and the next time you’re surfing through a weight loss blog and you see an individual recommend replacing normal soda with diet soda, be sure to spread the word and link to this article!
Want to find out more about drinking water and weight loss, then visit Dr. Ray Hinish’s site on how to choose the best weight loss blogs