Is diet soda bad to drink when you are pregnant?

Question

I went to the fair the other night, and my sister in-law told me it was bad to drink diet soda when pregnant because it has a lot of bad chemicals in it. I didn't know this. The past few months that I've been on here, most women recommend other women to drink diet soda if they have a craving for actual soda and drink it every day.

I don't drink soda all the time; most of the time I drink water.

I just need some input. Thank you! =]

Answer 1

Everyone is right.  Stay away from diet soda and regular soda for that matter.  But if you must have a soda, drink one sweetened with splenda.  It's a sweetener that's derived from actual sugar and has had no studies to show any bad side effects on adults or babies.

Answer 2

nope dint listen to her. Your fine with soda as long as its caffeine free. I was a coca cola feine before i was preggo. Now I just stick with caffeine free root beer and only have one or two a week. and I'm having a healthy baby girl.

Answer 3

Don't freak out about it.  It's probably not the best thing in the world to do health wise, but, come on, you're a human being.  You have a right to some tastes, and this is an overall ok thing to do.  Your kid won't come out with two heads because of it.

Even pregnant women sometimes want food that's not quite on their food pyramid recommendations.  You can indulge yourself a little, and should, without feeling guilty or worried about it.  You're not off doing crack cocaine, or getting drunk or even just smoking.

Don't panic.  Panic is worse for the baby-to-be than soda is.

Answer 4

OH LORD!  Here is the deal.  You've already stated that you mostly drink water and only have an occasional soda so DO NOT LOSE SLEEP OVER THIS!!   IF you are a woman who tries educates herself on proper eating habits, IF you are a woman who doesn't have a list of bad habits that you didn't quit when you got pregnant, IF you don't go overboard with the things that people shake their fingers at you for doing, and IF you really do try and work at makind a conscious effort to keep your body healthy for your growing baby, then have a $#@%! soda once in a while, really.  Just realize that moderation is so important when you are pregnant and if you ARE going to drink pop, even once in a while, just move to caffine free.  

Yes there is tons of c**p in pop and likely in any processed food you might eat too...and anything with ingredients you can't pronounce...

There is caffine in lots of drinks that you would not think there would be, so when you are aware of the choice, do try to make it.  I didn't change my drinking habits when i was pregnant, but my ONLY bad habit is my morning coffee, i know i know, rebel...i have 2-ish cups and i drank pop once in a while, mostly caffine free....no biggie IF you don't abuse it.  

My frustration is not  towards you, I get very frustrated when people make issues black and white when they are not.  Just keep it in moderation, put mostly healthy foods and liquids in your body and have a pop once in a while sweetie.

Answer 5

diet soda its VERY bad...

if you "need" soda.. have caffeine free soda...

its better for you and the baby....

Answer 6

I won't have diet anything when I am pregnant, I am too paranoid about potential harm from artificial sweetners, I would rather just consume the calories or drink water.

Answer 7

Diet soda is bad for you anytime.  Aspartame is absolute poison.

But particularly during pregnancy, you want to avoid exposing the fetus to aspartame or other chemicals.  The caffeine content is really the least of the concerns, compared to the other things that are in a can of diet soda.

If you crave an occasional soda during pregnancy, drink a regular one.

Answer 8

i would not drink any form of pop whether you was pregnant or not, it's laced with chemicals. Read the ingredients.

Answer 9

Well diet sodas are filled with aspartane, which isnt very good for the grown body. So i cant imagine it would be very good for the baby. Id say yes, its bad, stop doing it. But for the risks or consquences of aspartane you would have to ask a docotor.

Answer 10

Diet soda contains aspartame, which leads to birth defects.  Maybe they meant to recommend caffeine free soda.

Answer 11

when i was pregnant with my twins i asked the specialist if i could drink one diet coke a day and she laughed at me.  said it was perfectly fine.  i carried 37 weeks and they were both about 7 pounds and very healthy.  i wouldn't fret over it...  and congratulations!

Answer 12

If you were to drink excessive amounts it is thought that too much nutrasweet can lead to cancer.  But this is in no way proven.  If you are drinking mostly water you should be fine.  Caffeine is also a new problem although I don't necessarily believe that myself.  Just be careful and an occasional soda, diet or otherwise won't hurt.  Milk is great while pregnant as well.  I couldn't get enough with my youngest.  

Answer 13

I'm pretty sure caffeine in any form is really bad for the baby.

Answer 14

You should DEFINITELY avoid them... the fake sugar in them is bad for baby.  Plus most of them still have caffeine. Just drink a little bit of a regular one if you can't stand it... Or you could try things like sparkling juice?  I read with my last pregnancy that 1-2 cups of coffee a day were fine.  So maybe that's the same with soda.  Good Luck!

Answer 15

soda in general isn't very good for you but its only bad when in excess. diet soda however is from the devil. (figuratively)  i think the bad chemical your friend was talking about is the sugar substitute used in diet sodas. its called aspartame. it can cause retinal damage, insomnia and when heated to like 98 degrees ( I'm pretty sure of the number) it becomes a nuerotoxin. if you drink it frequently and stop it causes headaches. when tested in labratories it caused tumors in mice. google it.