I gave up diet soda for a week

Thank you all so much for your replies, encouragement, and information!

Thank you for sharing your stories. I hope all of you trying to get off soda succeed.

I didn't have withdrawl symptom, maybe because I drank caffeine free diet pepsi. The only caffeine I get is from the one cup of regular coffee I drink each day, so I wasn't a big caffeine fiend. I know caffeine withdrawl is awful. I've tried to switch to decaffeinated coffee unsuccessfully. I just need that small amount each day.

If you're trying not to drink soda, but like carbonation, San Pelligrino or Perrier is good. I have one of each of those on my work days, one for lunch, and one during the afternoon.

Another thing I've noticed is that food I eat seems to taste better when drinking water with it instead of soda. I don't know why that is, but I have noticed it.

So I will keep this up and keep you all posted. Hopefully I continue to lose a little weight. Being postmenopausal, it's increasingly difficult to lose weight or keep it off.

a reply to: Lindarm

Thanks for sharing.

I discovered that dairy milk also was triggering migraines. I stopped drinking that and switched to unsweetened almond milk. I have to be careful with cheese also, can eat small amounts though. I love chocolate, but try to avoid it. For the most part, I don't ever drink red wine, but I gave in and had a small glass of cabernet sauvignon today. Now I'm crossing my fingers.

So it's doing little things and tweaks to eat and drink healthier. I don't believe in dieting. It's never worked for me.

originally posted by: ChiefD
a reply to: zazzafrazz

Now that's different. I'll have to try that (knock on wood) the next time I get a migraine.

You get auras. OMG, I feel for you. I only had one migraine with an aura. I thought I was having a stroke, scared the hell out of me. Once the pain hit, I was sicker than hell for two days.

I'm glad that works for you.

If you get Auras , that start with a slight disruption of vision that seems to be in the same spot, if you close one or both eyes, and its still there. Then as this goes off in about an hour, a pounding headache starts. To stop it take a couple of capfuls of cider vinegar in an eight oz. glass of water. This will hasten its end.

But the prime cause might be a blood pressure spike, which affects the optic nerve. So check your blood pressure.

a reply to: anonentity

Thanks for the advice. As I'm on medication for high blood pressure, yes I would be careful to check my blood pressure. The few times I took Imitrex, I felt like my heart rate was going through the roof.

a reply to: ChiefD

I was going to add that if you think carefully, you very well might have consumed some fat before the episode. Most probably some Dairy. This type of fat goes into the blood stream fast and blocks the small arterioles that supply the body with blood. The heart compensates for this by working harder and raising the blood pressure The acetic acid in the vinegar works quite fast to dissolve the fat and drops the Blood Pressure and stops the attack. But overall its best to cut out the fats as these triglycerides in Dairy are accumulative. Especially as we age.

I wouldn't drink any water bottled in California if I were you. No mineral or spring water. Purified water only. I can't drink Diet Coke anymore either, they changed the formula and now it causes some dehydration issues if I drink too much. Electrolyte enhanced water is the best.

a reply to: Asynchrony

I'm looking into buying some electrolyte enhanced water, have heard good things about it from different sources.

Right now, the only bottled water I drink is San Pelligrino and Perrier. Otherwise I have a pitcher of water with a Brita filter that I drink at home. Saves money too.

Is bottled water in California that bad?

a reply to: ChiefD

good for you. though 1, did you even think this was ever healthy? cuz drinking soda, of any persuasion is #ing mistake.

originally posted by: FlyersFan

originally posted by: texasgirl
What were your symptoms?

NONE until one of the stones decided it was time to move from my Kidney and it 'passed'. I had no clue that I had kidney stones prior to that. Then at 1:30 am I woke up from sleep and ... BAM! ... The pain was unbearable. Hours and hours of it. Throwing up too. Pain where the kidney is .. all the way from the back to the front. I was in the car on the way to the hospital (husband driving) and I had so much pain I was on the edge of passing out. I've never felt anything like that before or since (and I even took a beach umbrella impalement through the leg, didn't use any pain killers, and it still hurt less than that kidney stone).

Three days later, after it passed, there was visible blood in the urine for a day or so. The test of the stone showed the typical calcium stone. (it looked like a kidney bean).

The xrays showed more stones in both kidneys.
I'd rather die then go through that again. I mean it.

You should start doing liver/gall bladder cleanses, you can flush that stuff out painlessly, because indeed the pain is so bad suicide comes to mind.

I have done them and it is unreal what comes out.

a reply to: ChiefD

Your thread has inspired me to see how long I can go without any soft drinks. So far, I have lasted almost 24 hours. Very early days, but I going to try be very disciplined about this and hope to get through at least 1 full week like you did.

Yes it is bad and it is also said to make you gain weight. And people call it diet lol. By the way almost all fake sugars are aspartame. It has been renamed many times to still be able to market it to consumers. One of Dick Cheney's projects. If you wonder how they get away with it.a reply to: ChiefD

a reply to: ChiefD


I only drink water pretty much - I may have a fruit juice now and then and a Dr Pepper even less frequently.
Water is amazing and nobody should drink too much fizzy drinks or coffee or anything like that.
Water is life and I'm sure anyone , as you have found, who gives up drinking crap and just drinks water will get huge benefits from it.

Thanks for sharing your experience.

One of the best changes I made to my diet was to use honey instead of sugar or sweetners. I know people may say that honey is metabolised in the liver and can cause a fatty liver but when on average I might have 4 half tea spoons a day its not vast quantities. One of the things I notice when switching to honey is everyone pulls faces because they are adamant that honey makes teas/coffees taste "funky" but when I let them try mine they thought it didn't taste all that different, honey being naturally sweeter than sugar means if you substitute 1 teaspoon for 1 teaspoon sugar it will taste odd, so half it. I've had honey now for years.

I sometimes have a soda, maybe once every 2 weeks to a month because it doesn't overly disagree with me although the sugar rush is much more profound and it makes me wonder how people can drink it everyday. The artificial sweeteners I stay clear off as they are more negative on my mood and well being, they increase cravings for sweet things and so best avoided. One thing I did try was the stevia soft drinks, hailed as the new "natural" low calorie alternative. Twice I've tried it and twice I've had rather odd experiences verging on the realms of a feeling of being disembodied and hallucinations (not seeing things so much but visual disturbances/color shifting). It made me feel quite paranoid and unreal, which is an experience I don't care to repeat. I know everyone has different experiences and anecdotal accounts are far from comprehensive for anyone considering using stevia but its something I'd share.

Quit sugar, the refined type in food. Keep to natural sources of sugar, like fruit. Seriously, stop eating sugar. Sugar is bad. Must stop eating sugar.

originally posted by: Dark Ghost
a reply to: ChiefD

Your thread has inspired me to see how long I can go without any soft drinks. So far, I have lasted almost 24 hours. Very early days, but I going to try be very disciplined about this and hope to get through at least 1 full week like you did.

Thank you for sharing your story. Congrats on avoiding soda for 24 hours. Keep up the good work. You should notice differences soon.

Into my second week of drinking just water. I continue to feel more energetic, and I'm not eating as much.

Woke up this morning with the telltale blisters and pain of shingles. I'm now taking anti viral medication, along with gabapentin for pain and Benadryl for the horrid itching. So I feel like crap. But I find that drinking water makes me feel a little less crappy. I'd like to flush this damn virus right out of my system.

So I will continue with the water for the time being. Also, when I was at urgent care, they took my blood pressure. I had a mocha café earlier and thought my blood pressure would be through the roof. It was 118/70. Hoping that had to do with the water drinking. Since the soda I drank had sodium, I'm thinking this will be good to keep my blood pressure low.

Now for some reason I'm craving chocolate milk. Not good. Milk triggers migraines. I bought dairy milk to keep the hubby happy, and use for cooking. I just can't drink a whole glass, as I may wind up with a migraine. Don't need that with everything else I'm dealing with.

I'm going to do some baking. I want to find a decent substitute for sugar that's not artificial. One of you talked about honey. I wonder if that's good for baking. When I cook for recipes that call for butter, I substitute about half to a third of the amount and use organic extra virgin cold pressed coconut oil. It works out good, and the food tastes better.

I decided to indulge. It has been a long time since I tried a soda. I poured about 3 or 4 ounces of ginger ale in a cup, threw in an ice cube, and sipped it down.
I felt like a crack head. I know this stuff is bad for me, but it does really taste good.
I choose, through an act of will power, to stay away.
I'll stick with water, tea, and beer.

Brown sugar is white sugar with the molasses added back . It's not natural. Stevia is a no calorie sweetener and is natural. You can grow your own. Supper sweet. Agave nectar is another low cal natural option. Honey and maple syrup act the same in your body as sugar does by raising glucose levels in the blood. Glucose is what allows your body to store fat. Without it fat is burned for fuel and cannot be stored in fat cells.
I agree white sugar and other refined white foods are death disguised as nutrition.
White bread, white rice lack fiber by being altered and turn into sugar when your saliva reacts with it.
Brown rice is also a carb but it's fiber slows down the release of glucose so it's better for the body. Same with whole grain breads cereals and pasta. And it tastes so much better . Just takes longer to cook.


a reply to: Sparkymedic

I used to drink 12-18 cans of Diet Coke every day, it was a terrible addiction and one that took years to finally curb. I quit drinking soda of any kind 5 years ago. While I do have many health ailments before quitting, I wish I could say I noticed a huge change in my health after I quit. I unfortunately feel the same now as I did then. With that said, no one could ever tell me that aspartame is good for you. I still avoid it like the plague. Every once in awhile someone will have me try the new great soda flavor they love and I will take a sip. To me it just tastes like chemicals, I can't imagine ever going back. Now, if I could just quit the rest of my vices I would be happy!

a reply to: athenatree

Good on you for quitting the soda like that. Pretty awesome.



Yeah, the changes I'm noticing are subtle, not any big thing. I didn't go into this expecting a lot. Like you, I feel aspartame is pretty bad.

It may sound silly, but without the chemical tang of diet soda, I can smell and taste food better. I don't know if any of you have experienced this.