5. Diet Soda
Sorry, but switching to diet soda won’t make the difference if you’re trying to avoid arthritis pain. Artificial sweeteners come with their own side effects, and are just as prone to causing inflammation as refined white sugar or high fructose corn syrup.
Artificial sweeteners are chemical products that alter the balance of healthy gut bacteria. This means that the body struggles to metabolize glucose and in response it releases inflammatory cytokines. Normally the good bacteria in your gut can release anti-inflammatory compounds to compensate, but not if you’ve killed it all with fake sugar.