Last month a controversial study linking diet soda to a heightened stroke risk was presented at the American Stroke Association’s International Stroke Conference. The poster suggested that people who drank diet soda daily had a 61 percent increased risk of a cardiovascular event compared to those who drank no soda.

Although this study is not without controversy and criticism few would disagree that overall consumption of diet soda should be minimal at best. Past studies have linked diet soda to metabolic syndrome and diabetes. Diet soda also does not add any nutritional value to a meal. With all of its shortcomings it is hard to disagree that it certainly is not a bad idea to replace diet soda with water and other more natural beverages.

The truth of the matter is soda, diet or regular, is unhealthy and should be consumed sparingly at best. The study certainly highlights the increasingly negative information we are getting about the consumption of non-caloric sweetened beverages, but it really does not tell us anything we did not already know. People drink diet soda to save calories and enjoy a sweet taste. Some even prescribe it to help curb cravings and facilitate weight loss; however, diet soda hasn’t lead to weight loss and now appears to be causing more problems than it solves.