Diet drinks 'could harm the kidneys'

I'm not surprised that diet drinks can harm your kidneys. I used to drink them all the time and I felt much better in general after I stopped. I will say that I had a headache for about a week that wouldn't go away after I stopped drinking them. I don't know if it was the sweetener or caffeine, but there seemed to be some kind of withdrawal after stopping. I drank nothing but water and juice during that time. Anyway, it went away after a week and I felt much better.

As for the whiskey. I used to drink it with coke zero. I would recommend using soda water instead. A good aged scotch doesn't need it, but the only ones I can drink plain are rather expensive. Southern Comfort is excellent with nothing but ice.

THIS! IS! ASPARTAME!

Ok, with that now out of the way (I couldn't resist), I must say I'll probably continue drinking Coke Zero regardless of it killing me off faster. When you think about it, scientists are coming out with all sorts of claims. One day they'll find out that we aren't supposed to be drinking water and that we'll end up dying. They'll tell us that if you know more than twenty words, your chances of getting cancer will increase, and they'll tell us that if you listen to reggae you'll end up getting diabetes.

We can't win, so we might as well enjoy stuffing our faces with whatever.

dammmmm. that sucks.

it's a good excuse to drink the real stuff though.

I have some ideas, some personal experiences, and have done some research.

Diet soda in small quantities will not kill you unless..... the aspartame degrades as you suggest. I have tasted diet soft drinks when they are fresh and when the aspartame has degraded into poison. Fortunately, to some extent the diet soda tastes terrible once the poisons have formed in large quantities. Unfortunately, they may be undetectable in smaller percentages, but also less harmful.

So here's a strategy to use of you really want to drink soft drinks with aspartame. Only choose a type that prints an expiration date on the containers. Next, do some research on how far out the expiration date goes for "new production" Wal-mart tends to have high product turnover so check there to see how far out the expiry is for fresh product.

Then if you want to add a safety margin to your aspartame soft drink consumption, check the date before you buy it. If it's already getting close to expiration, don't get it but look elsewhere for fresher stuff. Maybe even set an expiration date for your own consumption months ahead of the date on the can or bottle. (cans probably keep longer than bottles as they have better barrier properties).

And lastly, keep some small sample amounts around well past the expiration date, like a year past the date. Then take a small sip and be prepared to spit it out. The purpose for that is to know what the poison tastes like, so you can taste test for it before using it.

I've mostly switched back from aspartame to regular soda, but i don't drink much regular soda anymore either. I never had problems drinking moderate amounts of aspartame soft drinks but if I drank too much (like 5 cans a day) I started feeling discomfort in my kidneys, so I think moderation would be important too even if it's fresh and contains no poison yet.

Hope this helps.

I mean drink soda that has (natural) sugar instead of Sweeteners.

Expired diet soda basically tastes like Alka Seltzer... very bitter and without a single hint of 'sweetness.' It's very bad and totally undrinkable. You can tell when it is just about to turn when it just doesn't register as sweet enough. After that, it's a very quick drop-off to the bad stuff. When it gets to the point where the sweet taste begins to drop off, I ditch the whole batch (I normally buy cases of cans.)

You run a high risk of kidney stones my friend. Too much calcium and beer is not good.

I used to be exactly the same. I LOVE milk and have a problem with stomach acid, so tended to drink a lot of it. I've just recovered from small kidney stones and believe me, they are no laughing matter!

Doctor put it down to a high calcium diet. Go figure, they tell you milk is good for you!

It was caffeine withdrawal you were suffering from.

Southern Comfort is not a whiskey, it is a liqueur.

All "soft drinks" cause problems, drinking anything other then filtered water is not very smart.

this i agree with completely.

There are thousands of small bottlers out there with "no name" soft drinks in glass bottles that use REAL sweetener. And it is the greatest tasting soda i've ever had in my life.

pfft
filtered water? Come on man, get off it.

There's plenty of drink in this world that won't harm you, your statement is half full (or empty?) or unadulterated ignorance.

Maybe a couple that won't harm you, maybe, but there absolutely unneeded. like i said drinking anything but water is dumb

There are a lot of things that humans do for enjoyment that is "dumb." Drinking a variety of beverages for the taste and/or effects you get from them can be a small joy in a hard, cruel world. Moderation, and all of that, and you'll be fine.

I have to paraphrase Spalding Gray on this one:

"Everything out there causes cancer, and everything else cures it."

Tell it like it is! I swear, it is like talking to a wall some times and we are the crazy people for coming up with this wacko information(other peoples opinions!).

If they would stop watching unreality TV and stop lookning down at their phones for new text messages 80% of their day! Like, read a book(s), non fiction, in particular, and do some research, and get off facebook for a couple days, please!


I have been telling people and the girl I have been calling my girlfriend, waaaay too long!, to stop fkn drinking, eating diet anything!!!! Look how much sodium is in these drinks also!

Don't mince words, asperatame, spenda, etc..., the same poison. There are natural alternatives out there, and are getting more popular. Do some research.
Why not check out the Searle company and our old friend Don Rumsfeld which was one of main persons responsible for pushing it on the public way back in the day. Its all about the money!

Of course, they(friends, family or not) don't listen or do their own research. I know several people addicted(yes, it is addicting!) to diet coke, going through case a week, or so. If you quit this stuff, you will go through withdraws just like drug addiction, headaches, and many other symptoms involved with a recovering drug addict.

reply to post by nik1halo

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Yes, you will have withdraws and feel like sht after weening yourself from diet drinks if you have been drinking them for some time.

There have been shows on Coast to Coast AM with G. Noory. Do a search and listen to some of these Dr's discussing this topic. Other sites and books available on this topic too.

By the way, I am a Jim Beam/ & Coke w/lime indulger!

Kind of a family drink with 4 of the 5 of my brothers!


I refuse all diet drinks!!!!

reply to post by PRS395

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You are absolutely right about having withdrawls from the diet drinks. I quit drink Diet Pepsi after drinking it for 20 years and I was miserable for about three whole weeks. I felt sick and my whole body hurt. I am pretty much over it now, but it was a B**ch to get over!

reply to post by ModernAcademia

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If I were you I'd just ditch the diet drinks completely and go for the full sugar ones. Better the devil you know.

After I stopped drinking diet drinks, I moved onto the full sugar versions. The result was, that because I was conscious of drinking so much sugar, I cut down the amount of carbonated drinks drastically, and have now nearly completely converted to drinking only milk and water.

Currently I'm stressing over the fact that humans cant really digest milk, also the fact that it's got a bunch of weird hormones in it. And my tap water has a definite chemical smell and taste.

It's getting to a point where I'm going to have to start filtering all the water I drink, because basically nothing you put inside yourself is safe anymore.

I probably drink 2 or 3 caffeine free Sodas per year. I drink nothing but water and occasionally organic milk. No alcohol, no soda, no juices, no coffee or tea.

Whenever I drink any of that stuff I don't quite feel right. Makes sense that it would mess you up somehow.

[edit on 5-11-2009 by DJM8507]