A landmark 14-year Australian study of more than 36,000 adults has revealed that drinking just one artificially sweetened beverage daily increases your risk of developing type 2 diabetes by 38 percent—significantly higher than the 23 percent increased risk from consuming sugar-sweetened beverages. This groundbreaking research from Monash University challenges the widespread belief that diet drinks are a healthier alternative to regular sodas and shows that artificial sweeteners may damage your body’s ability to control blood sugar in ways that have nothing to do with weight gain. The findings suggest that your daily diet soda habit may be more dangerous for preventing diabetes than drinking a regular Coke.
Diet Sodas Harm Blood Sugar Control Even Without Weight Gain
The most striking finding from this comprehensive study was that artificial sweeteners appear to increase diabetes risk through completely different pathways than regular sugar. When researchers accounted for participants’ body weight and waist measurements, the link between regular sodas and diabetes disappeared entirely, confirming that sugary drinks increase diabetes risk mainly by causing people to gain weight. However, diet beverages maintained a strong 38 percent increased diabetes risk even after controlling for body weight, suggesting these chemicals directly interfere with how your body handles blood sugar (Frontiers in Microbiology, May 15, 2025;16:1531131). This means that diet sodas damage your blood sugar control through mechanisms that have nothing to do with calories or weight changes.
Artificial Sweeteners Damage the Beneficial Bacteria in Your Intestines
The reason artificial sweeteners increase diabetes risk likely involves serious damage to the trillions of helpful bacteria that live in your intestines, collectively called your gut microbiome. These bacteria play a crucial role in helping your body control blood sugar levels. Recent research shows that synthetic sweeteners like sucralose and saccharin kill off many types of beneficial bacteria while allowing harmful bacteria to multiply. These artificial compounds reduce the variety of good bacteria in your intestines and promote the growth of disease-causing germs that are linked to inflammation and poor blood sugar control (Frontiers in Microbiology, May 15, 2025;16:1531131). When your intestinal bacteria become unbalanced in this way, it creates inflammation throughout your body that makes it much harder for your cells to respond properly to insulin and control blood sugar.
Some Artificial Sweeteners Are Worse Than Others
Not all artificial sweeteners damage your health equally, with man-made chemicals causing more severe problems than naturally derived alternatives. Laboratory studies show that sucralose, which is regular sugar with chlorine atoms attached to it, causes the most dramatic destruction of beneficial gut bacteria while promoting the growth of harmful germs. When people consume aspartame, their bodies produce higher levels of a chemical called kynurenine that is specifically linked to diabetes development. Acesulfame-K creates long-lasting changes in your intestinal bacteria that don’t return to normal even after you stop drinking diet sodas. In contrast, naturally derived sweeteners like stevia cause less damage to the beneficial bacteria in your intestines and interfere less with normal blood sugar control.
Long-Term Health Problems Go Far Beyond Diabetes
The damage caused by regularly drinking artificially sweetened beverages appears to extend far beyond diabetes risk, potentially contributing to multiple interconnected health problems. Research shows that chronic exposure to these synthetic compounds may make your cells less responsive to insulin, increase your risk of heart disease, and contribute to a cluster of health problems including high blood pressure and abnormal cholesterol levels. The artificial sweetener-induced changes in your intestinal bacteria also affect how well your body absorbs nutrients, how effectively your immune system functions, and the production of beneficial compounds that help regulate your appetite and energy levels. These findings support growing evidence that artificial sweeteners may actually cause many of the same health problems they were designed to prevent.
My Recommendations
Eliminate artificially sweetened beverages from your diet immediately, as they pose a greater diabetes risk than sugar-sweetened drinks while providing no real health benefits. If you’re trying to reduce sugar intake, gradually replace all sweetened beverages with water, unsweetened tea, or sparkling water with fresh fruit slices rather than switching to artificial sweeteners. Focus on supporting the health of your intestinal bacteria through regular consumption of fiber-rich vegetables, fermented foods like yogurt and sauerkraut, and plant foods that feed beneficial bacteria and help control blood sugar. For people with diabetes or those at high risk, work with your healthcare provider to monitor your blood sugar levels if you’ve been regularly consuming diet beverages, as stopping artificial sweeteners may improve your blood sugar control within weeks.