Theresa Rowley, from Grand Rapids, Michigan, celebrated her 104th birthday on 1 January 2018 with friends at the Sentinel Retirement Community where she moved to 15 years ago.

“I’m surprised that I’m 104,” she told WZZM.

“It just doesn’t seem like I should be that old.

“When I was 100, I thought I’d never be 104.

“I thought I’d pass away by that time but it just didn’t happen,” Theresa said.

“Here I am 104, and still nothing happens.”

And, the reason the care home resident believes she has had such a long life is because she consumes at least one can of Diet Coke everyday – a drink that launched in the United States in 1982, when Illinois-born Rowley was 68 years old.

“I drink it because I like it,” she explained.

“I’m going shopping Wednesday, and I need more Diet Coke. I have a bag full of empty Diet Coke cans that I need to return to buy more Diet Coke.”

However, scientists would disagree that the fizzy drink had any effect on her longevity with diet beverages repeatedly linked to chronic diseases as well as obesity.

Last year, a fresh review by Imperial College London argued that there is “no solid evidence” that low-calorie sweeteners are any better for weight-loss than full-sugar drinks and challenged the idea that such beverages are automatically healthier.

Meanwhile, a study of US adults published in the American Journal of Public Health showed that 22 per cent of adults who were obese drank diet beverages.

“Scientific consensus has yet to find a direct, indisputable link between diet beverages and harmful health effects,” said Jaclyn London, nutrition director at the Good Housekeeping Institute.

“On the flip side, calories from added sugars — especially those found in sugary beverages like regular soda, juice, and even coffee drinks — are linked to a slew of chronic diseases as well as obesity.”

While it’s nothing new that diet fizzy drinks aren’t great for us, a recent study by Boston University found that they are actually more likely to cause strokes and dementia than sugary alternatives.

In fact, adults who drink one can of diet soda a day are three times more at rik, the researchers found

The original article was published in the Independent.

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