No-caffeine cola recipes: Splendid Table. NYT.
DIY Dr. Pepper. An extract based recipe for Dr. Pepper syrup.
Nature’s Flavors organic (cane alcohol) cherry cola flavor extract, natural (ethyl alcohol) cherry cola flavor extract and almond cola flavor extract, and erythritol sweetened cherry coffee syrup.
Bickford flavors and extracts including cola. EC Blend cola flavor concentrate.
SweetLeaf (stevia) Cola Sweet Drops and Root Beer Sweet Drops.
Wholesale caffeine powder.
Coffee extract overview. DIY caffeine extraction.
Diacetyl is used as an artificial butter flavoring but has been associated with lung disease (in its powdered form) and should thus be avoided.
Organic cane alcohol is okay.
Negative health impacts of diet sodas
- Cleveland Clinic article
- Diet soda consumption is correlated to weight gain. Mechanism is because artificial sweeteners may increase desire for high-calorie foods (fats and sugars) (just as does sugar consumption). (Stevia does not have that effect.)
- Insulin confusion – sucralose consumption may increase both insulin and blood glucose levels.
- Addiction.
- A 2014 aspartame study on obese rats showed that aspartame negatively impacted their gut biome, elevated their fasting glucose levels, and impaired their insulin-stimulated glucose disposal. “Regular consumption of artificially sweetened soft drinks is associated with disorders of the metabolic syndrome, including abdominal obesity, insulin resistance and/or impaired glucose tolerance, dyslipidemia and high blood pressure.”
Additives
Maltodextrin
Maltodextrin comes in two forms: digestible and digestion-resistant. Both are a processed plant starch, generally from corn in the US and from wheat in Europe. “maltodextrin” in an ingredient list usually refers to the digestible form which has a GI of 110 (100 for sucrose) since it rapidly converts to glucose in the gut. Digestion-resistant maltodextrin may be listed as “resistant maltodextrin” or (in the US) as “soluble corn fiber”. (Digestible) maltodextrin is bad; soluble corn fiber is good: a low GI (around 25), high fiber sweetener, thickener, and prebiotic. Soluble corn fiber is not equivalent to cornstarch; though they come from the same source the former is a dietary fiber while the latter is a carbohydrate.
Sugar Alcohols
Sugar alcohols: xylitol, erythritol, sorbitol, maltitol, mannitol, isomalt, lactitol. In general, close in sweetness to sugar but with less than half the calories (0 to 2 calories per gram vs 4 cal/g), fewer carbs, lower GI, and starve instead of feed dental plaque. On the downside, they may (per association not causation studies) increase the risk of blood clotting, and the undigested portion (which is the reason for its lower GI and slower rise in insulin levels) can cause GI problems (especially for people with issues with IBS, Crohn’s disease, or sensitivity to FODMAPs).
Maltitol is okay but still contains carbs and the other sugar alcohol issues.