Pregnant and diet soft drinks

1. In diet soft drinks, sugars are replaced by sweeteners. The sweeteners used have been in a bad light since the 21st century. Natural alternatives have emerged for people who think the synthetic variants can be harmful. Many pregnant women therefore wonder whether diet soft drinks are safe during pregnancy. Due to the lack of scientific evidence for the potential health damage of approved sweeteners with normal use, diet soft drinks can be safely drunk to a certain extent during pregnancy.

Natural sweeteners

1. The intensive natural sweeteners approved in the EU in June 2018 are thaumatin, also known as E 957, neohesperidin dihydrochalcone, also known as E 959 and steviol glycosides, also known as E 960. Thaumatin is extracted from katemfefruit, neohesperidin dihydrochalcone is made from orange peels and steviol glycosides are extracted from the stevia plant. New natural intensive sweeteners are still being found, such as monk fruit

Sweeteners during pregnancy

1. There is a Danish study from 2010 which shows that there is an increased risk of premature birth when drinking diet soft drinks during pregnancy. However, a large number of other studies show that sweeteners do not pose any danger. The nutrition center also indicates that diet soft drinks are safe for pregnant women as long as the ADI is not exceeded. An amount of up to 6 glasses per day, without the use of other products containing sweeteners, can be safely drunk during pregnancy. Be careful with diet sodas that contain caffeine, as you may be allowed to drink less during pregnancy. Whether the diet sodas are made with natural or synthetic sweeteners makes little difference to health and safety.