Study analysis · Diabetes · 2025
Drinking water instead of diet soda doubled women's chance of reversing type 2 diabetes — here's why it's not what you think.
Women with diabetes who swapped diet soda for water lost more weight and nearly doubled their chance of reversing their diabetes.
Overview
What the study found
The study in plain English — the bottom line, every takeaway we extracted, and what to do with them.
In simple terms
This study showed that when women with diabetes switched from diet soda to water, they lost more weight and their diabetes got better. But it doesn't prove water made it happen — maybe they ate better or exercised more because they knew they were in the 'water group.'
What’s the bottom line?
Women with obesity and type 2 diabetes were split into two groups: one drank water instead of diet soda, and the other kept drinking diet soda. After 18 months, the water group did much better.
How strong is this study?
The study did a good job by randomly putting people in groups, which helps make things fair. But no one was blinded, so people might have changed their habits just because they knew what they were supposed to do — that makes the results a little less trustworthy.
40 / 100
- COI disclosure+40/40
- Data availabilitydata not shared
- Code availabilitycode not shared
65 / 100
- Randomization+20/20
- Blindingblinding unclear
- Control group+15/15
- Sample size (n=81)+6.7/20
- Follow-up+10/10
100 / 100
54 / 100
- P-values+15/15
- Effect size+20/20
- Confidence intervalsno confidence intervals
- Pre-registrationnot pre-registered
Each component is scored out of 100 and then capped by the study design — a case series cannot reach the ceiling a randomised trial can, however well it is reported.
Where it sits
RCT reviewsReviews of RCTs (Meta-analyses)
Max 100Randomized TrialsRandomized Trials
Max 90Reviews of Cohort StudiesReviews of Cohort Studies
Max 85Cohort StudiesCohort Studies
Max 72Reviews of Case-Control StudiesReviews of Case-Control Studies
Max 63Case-Control StudiesCase-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional & Case SeriesCross-Sectional & Case Series
Max 50Expert OpinionExpert Opinion
Max 564 / 100
Probability of being correct
Participants are randomly assigned to treatment or control groups, minimizing bias. The gold standard for testing whether an intervention causes an effect.
This design can establish causation. Randomization supports causal inference, but lack of blinding introduces potential performance and detection bias, which may weaken the strength of causation.
No Conflicts
No conflicts of interest identified
No conflicts of interest were disclosed by any authors, and no funding sources were declared; study appears independently conducted.
Conflict Details
N/A: No conflicts disclosed
N/A: No conflicts disclosed
N/A: No conflicts disclosed
Although no funding or conflicts of interest were disclosed, the absence of a formal funding statement raises a minor transparency concern, though no evidence of bias or industry influence is present.
Key takeaways
- 01
Water group lost 6.82 kg on average; diet soda group lost 4.85 kg.
- 02
90% of the water group reversed their diabetes; only 45% of the diet soda group did.
- 03
Yes — losing nearly 2 kg more and more than doubling the chance of reversing diabetes is a big, meaningful difference for health.
Surprising findings
- Diet soda didn’t just fail to help — it actively reduced diabetes remission rates.Most assume diet soda is neutral — this study shows it may be harmful in the context of diabetes recovery, contradicting the belief that 'no sugar = no impact.'
- The effect persisted over 18 months — long after the initial weight loss phase.Most weight loss studies show rebound effects — but here, the water group didn’t just lose more, they maintained better metabolic health longer.
Practical takeaways
If you have type 2 diabetes or prediabetes, swap diet soda with water after meals — especially lunch, as done in the study.
This study only included women with obesity and type 2 diabetes — results may not apply to men, children, or people without diabetes.
high confidenceWhy this study matters
90% vs. 45%: The Diabetes Remission Shock
In this 18-month trial, 90% of women who replaced diet beverages with water achieved type 2 diabetes remission — compared to just 45% of those who kept drinking diet soda. That’s a 45 percentage point difference, with p<0.0001.
Most people think diet soda is a 'safe' sugar-free alternative — but this shows it might be actively holding back metabolic recovery in people with diabetes.
1.97 kg More Weight Loss — It Adds Up
Women who drank water lost an average of 6.82 kg, while those who stuck with diet soda lost 4.85 kg — a statistically significant difference of 1.97 kg over 18 months.
That’s like losing an extra 4.3 pounds without changing anything else — just by swapping one drink. It proves small swaps can have big long-term effects.
It’s Not Just Weight — It’s Insulin Sensitivity
The water group saw significant improvements in fasting glucose, insulin levels, HOMA-IR (a measure of insulin resistance), and triglycerides — all key markers for reversing diabetes.
This isn’t just about calories — it suggests artificial sweeteners might interfere with how the body processes sugar, even without sugar present.
Want the whole report?
Detailed mode opens the full scientific breakdown — every score component, the methodology, conflicts of interest, the evidence analysis behind each claim, and the raw study data.
Overview
What the study found
The study in plain English — the bottom line, every takeaway we extracted, and what to do with them.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Women with obesity and type 2 diabetes were split into two groups: one drank water instead of diet soda, and the other kept drinking diet soda. After 18 months, the water group did much better.
Research results
Water group lost 6.82 kg on average; diet soda group lost 4.85 kg. 90% of the water group reversed their diabetes; only 45% of the diet soda group did.
What this means - more context
Yes — losing nearly 2 kg more and more than doubling the chance of reversing diabetes is a big, meaningful difference for health.
To evaluate whether replacing diet beverages with water improves sustained weight loss and type 2 diabetes remission over 18 months in women with obesity and type 2 diabetes.
In an 18-month randomized trial, women who replaced diet beverages with water lost significantly more weight (-6.82 kg vs. -4.85 kg) and had a 45 percentage point higher diabetes remission rate (90% vs. 45%) than those who continued diet beverages, along with improved metabolic markers.
Methods Used
81 adult women with obesity or overweight and type 2 diabetes, who regularly consumed diet beverages, were randomly assigned to either replace diet beverages with water or continue consuming them 5 times/week after lunch for 18 months; analysis used intention-to-treat.
Main Finding
Replacing diet beverages with water led to a mean additional weight loss of 1.97 kg and a 45 percentage point increase in diabetes remission (90% vs. 45%, p<0.0001), along with significant improvements in BMI, fasting glucose, insulin, HOMA-IR, and triglycerides.
Confidence Level
High — randomized controlled trial with intention-to-treat analysis, reported effect sizes, and statistically significant outcomes (p<0.001).
Study Flags
Red Flags
- •Small sample size (n=81)
- •No reported confidence intervals
- •All participants were women — limits generalizability to men
No biological mechanisms were identified in this study. This may be an epidemiological, observational, or survey-based study that reports associations rather than proposing causal biological pathways.
Surprising Findings
Diet soda didn’t just fail to help — it actively reduced diabetes remission rates.
Most assume diet soda is neutral — this study shows it may be harmful in the context of diabetes recovery, contradicting the belief that 'no sugar = no impact.'
Practical Takeaways
If you have type 2 diabetes or prediabetes, swap diet soda with water after meals — especially lunch, as done in the study.
RCT reviewsReviews of RCTs (Meta-analyses)
Max 100Randomized TrialsRandomized Trials
Max 90Reviews of Cohort StudiesReviews of Cohort Studies
Max 85Cohort StudiesCohort Studies
Max 72Reviews of Case-Control StudiesReviews of Case-Control Studies
Max 63Case-Control StudiesCase-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional & Case SeriesCross-Sectional & Case Series
Max 50Expert OpinionExpert Opinion
Max 564 / 100
Probability of being correct
Participants are randomly assigned to treatment or control groups, minimizing bias. The gold standard for testing whether an intervention causes an effect.
Human RCT
Subject
Moderate probability
on the GRADE evidence scale
This study showed that when women with diabetes switched from diet soda to water, they lost more weight and their diabetes got better. But it doesn't prove water made it happen — maybe they ate better or exercised more because they knew they were in the 'water group.'
No conflicts of interest were detected in this study. No score impact.
Strengths
- Randomized controlled trial design with intention-to-treat analysis
- Long follow-up period (18 months)
- Clear intervention protocol (replacing DBs with water)
Weaknesses
- Blinding was not reported and is likely impossible (participants knew their beverage assignment)
- Small sample size reduces precision and increases risk of overestimation
- Single-center study with homogeneous population (women only)
Methodology
Evidence Keywords
Statistical Reporting
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Women with obesity and type 2 diabetes were split into two groups: one drank water instead of diet soda, and the other kept drinking diet soda. After 18 months, the water group did much better.
Research results
Water group lost 6.82 kg on average; diet soda group lost 4.85 kg. 90% of the water group reversed their diabetes; only 45% of the diet soda group did.
What this means - more context
Yes — losing nearly 2 kg more and more than doubling the chance of reversing diabetes is a big, meaningful difference for health.
To evaluate whether replacing diet beverages with water improves sustained weight loss and type 2 diabetes remission over 18 months in women with obesity and type 2 diabetes.
In an 18-month randomized trial, women who replaced diet beverages with water lost significantly more weight (-6.82 kg vs. -4.85 kg) and had a 45 percentage point higher diabetes remission rate (90% vs. 45%) than those who continued diet beverages, along with improved metabolic markers.
Methods Used
81 adult women with obesity or overweight and type 2 diabetes, who regularly consumed diet beverages, were randomly assigned to either replace diet beverages with water or continue consuming them 5 times/week after lunch for 18 months; analysis used intention-to-treat.
Main Finding
Replacing diet beverages with water led to a mean additional weight loss of 1.97 kg and a 45 percentage point increase in diabetes remission (90% vs. 45%, p<0.0001), along with significant improvements in BMI, fasting glucose, insulin, HOMA-IR, and triglycerides.
Confidence Level
High — randomized controlled trial with intention-to-treat analysis, reported effect sizes, and statistically significant outcomes (p<0.001).
Study Flags
Red Flags
- •Small sample size (n=81)
- •No reported confidence intervals
- •All participants were women — limits generalizability to men
No biological mechanisms were identified in this study. This may be an epidemiological, observational, or survey-based study that reports associations rather than proposing causal biological pathways.
Surprising Findings
Diet soda didn’t just fail to help — it actively reduced diabetes remission rates.
Most assume diet soda is neutral — this study shows it may be harmful in the context of diabetes recovery, contradicting the belief that 'no sugar = no impact.'
Practical Takeaways
If you have type 2 diabetes or prediabetes, swap diet soda with water after meals — especially lunch, as done in the study.
RCT reviewsReviews of RCTs (Meta-analyses)
Max 100Randomized TrialsRandomized Trials
Max 90Reviews of Cohort StudiesReviews of Cohort Studies
Max 85Cohort StudiesCohort Studies
Max 72Reviews of Case-Control StudiesReviews of Case-Control Studies
Max 63Case-Control StudiesCase-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional & Case SeriesCross-Sectional & Case Series
Max 50Expert OpinionExpert Opinion
Max 564 / 100
Probability of being correct
Participants are randomly assigned to treatment or control groups, minimizing bias. The gold standard for testing whether an intervention causes an effect.
Human RCT
Subject
Moderate probability
on the GRADE evidence scale
This study showed that when women with diabetes switched from diet soda to water, they lost more weight and their diabetes got better. But it doesn't prove water made it happen — maybe they ate better or exercised more because they knew they were in the 'water group.'
No conflicts of interest were detected in this study. No score impact.
Strengths
- Randomized controlled trial design with intention-to-treat analysis
- Long follow-up period (18 months)
- Clear intervention protocol (replacing DBs with water)
Weaknesses
- Blinding was not reported and is likely impossible (participants knew their beverage assignment)
- Small sample size reduces precision and increases risk of overestimation
- Single-center study with homogeneous population (women only)
Methodology
Evidence Keywords
Statistical Reporting
Scoring
How strong is this study?
The study did a good job by randomly putting people in groups, which helps make things fair. But no one was blinded, so people might have changed their habits just because they knew what they were supposed to do — that makes the results a little less trustworthy.
40 / 100
- COI disclosure+40/40
- Data availabilitydata not shared
- Code availabilitycode not shared
65 / 100
- Randomization+20/20
- Blindingblinding unclear
- Control group+15/15
- Sample size (n=81)+6.7/20
- Follow-up+10/10
100 / 100
54 / 100
- P-values+15/15
- Effect size+20/20
- Confidence intervalsno confidence intervals
- Pre-registrationnot pre-registered
Each component is scored out of 100 and then capped by the study design — a case series cannot reach the ceiling a randomised trial can, however well it is reported.
Where it sits
RCT reviewsReviews of RCTs (Meta-analyses)
Max 100Randomized TrialsRandomized Trials
Max 90Reviews of Cohort StudiesReviews of Cohort Studies
Max 85Cohort StudiesCohort Studies
Max 72Reviews of Case-Control StudiesReviews of Case-Control Studies
Max 63Case-Control StudiesCase-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional & Case SeriesCross-Sectional & Case Series
Max 50Expert OpinionExpert Opinion
Max 564 / 100
Probability of being correct
Participants are randomly assigned to treatment or control groups, minimizing bias. The gold standard for testing whether an intervention causes an effect.
This design can establish causation. Randomization supports causal inference, but lack of blinding introduces potential performance and detection bias, which may weaken the strength of causation.
No Conflicts
No conflicts of interest identified
No conflicts of interest were disclosed by any authors, and no funding sources were declared; study appears independently conducted.
Conflict Details
N/A: No conflicts disclosed
N/A: No conflicts disclosed
N/A: No conflicts disclosed
Although no funding or conflicts of interest were disclosed, the absence of a formal funding statement raises a minor transparency concern, though no evidence of bias or industry influence is present.
Standing
The people behind it
The researchers who wrote the study this analysis is built on.
Authored by
3 researchersIf this is your work, this is how we attribute it on Fit Body Science. Mireille Nasr is listed as the lead author.