I drink 2-3 diet cokes a day. I usually have 3 or 4 8oz glasses of water as well, but that's about it for liquid consumption. Is this a bad thing? I mean, I know that water is a good thing when dieting, to help flush out the system and keep everything moving...but is it wrong to supplement with a couple of diet cokes as well? It's mostly water anyway. I know there are some that believe that nutrasweet is not good for you, and I'm of the opinion that anything to excess is not healthy anyway. I've also heard deragatory remarks about caffeine and carbonation.
Well, Ive heard simular things. Popular rumor at the moment says:
1) carbonated beverages can leech away minerals etc. and may contribute to osteoperosis etc.
2) aspertame is bad for you. I know that people here in Sweden are starting to phase it out of food.
3) caffine is a stimulent, and probably not too good for your body BUT many MANY ppl consume larger amounts of caffine and seem fine so I think its more a personal decison. I stopped drinking anything with caffine 3 years ago and I am glad I did. I just feel better. I sleep better, concentrate better etc. I still drink green tea to help headaches tho, as it helps open blood vessels and relax me
I think that caffine also acts as a diuretic (spelling?) and takes water out of your system. I would add a extra glass of water for everyhting you drink containing caffine.
I would say that you should try and get your pop consumtion down to 1 a day. If nothing else its cheaper. Maybe try slicing up some oranges and adding them to a pitcher of water (I love this!) and leaving it in the fridge. Its less sour than lemon water, and tastes really good. You may also want to try finding a caffine free diet pop.
If you need a test dummy for diet soda pop - I'm probably it
My father worked for 35 years in the carbonated beverage industry - he was a chemist in charge of formulating diet drinks for one of the soda companies out here (after working for some time with the Coca-Cola Company). So naturally, while I was growing up with my three sisters, we had a GARAGE FULL of diet pop of all flavors - including his 'testers' Over my - ahem! - 40 years, I've probably consumed enough artificial sweeteners and diet soda to cover Everest - my sisters too. I am convinced that Aspartame (Equal) is harmless to 99% of the population - it's one of the most studied and researched products ever to come down the pike. My dad can remember first hearing about aspartame in the mid-60s, and started working with it in the lab in the very early 70's. My sisters and I started consuming it around 1974 - in Dad's testers, and in gumballs that we got in huge bags from Monsanto (the company who 'discovered' NutraSweet). All four of us girls, as well as my parents, are perfectly okay - no medical problems and their kids are perfectly normal (three of my nieces and nephews are on the Honor Roll at their schools in fact).
Dad doesn't surf the Net - and can't believe the hubbub about aspartame (his words: "Do you think I would give POISON to you girls?").
Anyway, I feel aspartame is going to be a moot point in the next few years anyway, now that Splenda is on the market - Splenda being a better product as it can be heated without breaking down.
As for carbonated bevvies being bad for you. Nope. The amount of phosphoric acid in soda pop is VERY low - check this out:
As far as caffiene - Diet Coke has 62 milligrams per can - less than a cup of coffee (85 mg) and about the same as tea (40-60mg).
With that - what I do is PRIORITIZE my water consumption - I shoot for a gallon of H20 a day. I generally drink a quart during my workout, then during my work day I drink another 2-3 quarts. I do not allow myself to have a diet pop until at least 75% of my water intake for the day has been met
I know a lot of people like Crystal Light, but personally I can't stand the taste. Here are my 'pop alternatives':
Pellegrino, Calistoga or seltzer water with some key lime juice served over ice
Iced tea with lemon and sweet & low
I'm not a coffee drinker...once in awhile I'll have a cup of green tea...hope this helps a bit!
caffiene doesn't count as your water servings according to weight watchers, so if you want to drink diet soda, try caffeine free! then you will get more for you money!
I think whatever you like, I used to drink a lot of soda, then i stopped, and now i hardly ever drink it. I like low cal fruit punch, i think they replace sugar with something else, i dunno
I also drink a lot of diet coke. But since I have joined Weight Watchers I also try to drink at least six glasses of water a day. I try to drink my water at work, because once I get home I know I won't drink it. I'll be back on my diet coke.
Hello!
I am with MrsJim-I drink sodas-usually Diet coke, Diet Dr. Pepper, or Pepsi One-usually about 3 per day-and have for years. The only one I watch out for is Diet Mt. Dew-I get that in caffiene free, since it has more caffiene than cola. Other than that, I just make sure to have all of my water, as well as my soda, to stay hydrated, and try to avoid the caffiene the last couple hours before bedtime.
It really does have a lot less caffiene than coffee-I can drink a diet soda or glass of tea and be fine-and after one cup of jo I get jitters.
I think as long as you are still getting your water in, then you will be fine. You can buy caffiene free versions of these sodas if you want to avoid that, but I really don't think aspartame is harmful. I do like Splenda, because I can bake with it and it tastes better in recipes, but I don't use it out of fear of aspartame poisoning!
Aphil
I used to drink just 2 diet cokes per day - got kidney stones directly attributable to the carbination. Haven't touched any soft drinks since...and no recurrence of kidney stones! Just be sure you are drinking plenty - at least 8 cups - of water.
I know some people are allergic to aspertame, but should it be banned? Puh-lease. Here are some well-researched sites to check out in your spare time 1) www.snopes.com 2) www.junkscience.com
The big hype about diet pop these days is that they contain apartame but I heard that for it to do any harm to your body, you have to drink at least 20 cans a day for like 20 years. I am a big diet coke/diet pepsi drinker but I also drink a lot of water. I drink regular water at the gym but I can't drink it like that any other time, so i sweeten it with crystal light and I can drink tons of it and it counts for my water sevings at weight watchers...sweet!
Hi... thought I would throw in my two cents here! I used to drink a lot of Diet Coke -- but a friend "challenged" me to do some deep digging and research on the effects of Nutrasweet and artificial sweeteners, so I did... and haven't touched the stuff since! Interestingly enough, some of the symptoms I read about were things I had been experiencing and did not know why. I am convinced the stuff is not only harmful to our systems, but also addictive and actually increases cravings; at least that is my own experience.
I find that once I break the habit I am totally content without it -- chopping up a lemon and putting it into my water bottle is just great! And much healthier.
I would rather have a "real" soda if I'm going to cheat & have a soda in the first place. I just don't like the taste of diet.
And since I would rather eat my calories then drink them, I have maybe 1 soda per week. I have my 2 liters of water during the day & sparkling (seltzer) water w/my dinner.
Tea/coffee/diet soda/seltzer doesn't count as your water. Water counts as your water. Chopping up a lemon or lime into it makes it a little more palatable.
I'm hooked on water, and get more than my 8 glasses a day. I avoid diet drinks mainly because of my budget, and not my diet. However if I have one, I prefer diet Sierra Mist over any other diet drink. It just tastes good.
I recently broke a habit of 6-8 cans of Diet Pepsi a day. I've been drinking that much for about 20 years. Even during my pregnancies I would just cut down to 3 cans a day. I thought that after drinking that much Diet Pepsi for that long, that the caffeine wouldn't affect me any more. I also recently started having a lot of trouble with anxiety and my blood pressure was up, so the first thing that my doctor said was to lay off the Diet Pepsi. I was really surprised to find that the caffeine had been affecting me. I sleep much better and my anxiety problems are much less. I drink only water now and don't miss the Diet Pepsi at all. Everybody is different, but that's what's worked for me.
Basically, the most important thing you need to start doing is to control your calorie intake-you need to burn more than you take in-for your current body weight, you will burn a lot more calories than I, but as you lose a lot of weight, you will need to drop the calories a little later on.
Start out with eating 2000 calories a day for your current body weight-evenly spaced into 3 meals and a snack or two...so that you are eating regularly, and not starving all of the time. For you, that would be maybe 500 calories each for breakfast and lunch, 700 for dinner, and two smaller snacks of about 150 calories each. Each meal will not be exact in calories, but as long as the end result is close to 2000 calories-you will be fine, and start to lose.
The most important thing if you are going to control your calorie intake, is to eat good foods, and not use your calories for a bunch of junk, like chips or chocolate. A small amount now and then-like once a week-is fine within your calorie range, but for best results, you need to eat plenty of fruits, vegetables, and lean meats-those types of foods. Snackwell's may be low in fat, but they are high in sugar-and will still make you fat if you eat the whole box, instead of one cookie. Everything is that way-an apple is a great snack-healthy and low in calories-but if you eat 20 of them-it can make you gain weight, just like anything else.
You should be able to find the calorie content in about any food on the label, or for fresh produce or meats-online, or in a book with the calorie counts of common foods.
If you are eating healthy foods like those mentioned above, your diet will be lower in fat naturally. As far as cholesterol, most cholesterol comes from animal fat-so foods like fried chicken with the skin still on, bacon and sausage-those are the more heart unhealthy choices. I will still eat a slice of bacon now and then-like maybe once every couple of months, but it is not a regular occurance for me.
If you eat out occasionally, there are plenty of choices available as well in restaurants-check out the fast food and restaurant nutrition here on the site. My new fave is the snack size fruit and yogurt parfait at McDonald's-without the granola topping. It is only 130 calories, and 2 grams of fat. Subway is also great, and has their nutrition content of their sandwiches on the napkins, and up in their stores.
At your present weight, some exercise options may not yet be comfortable for you, but it is also important for you to start moving more-even if it is only a 10 minute short walk each night-soon you will weigh less and become stronger, and you will be able to go further and further! If bad weather is a concern, take a walk around your local Wal-Mart or in the mall...a lot of people do that.
I wish you luck...please pm me and let me know how you are doing-if you are having any trouble and need a question answered, or even if you are just having a bad day and need someone to listen. I have found the support that I have gotten here over the past couple of years invalueable...
I am truly rooting for you and will feel fabulous if I can help you succeed and do better for yourself.
Aphil
Should I avoid diet coke?
Over my - ahem! - 40 years, I've probably consumed enough artificial sweeteners and diet soda to cover Everest - my sisters too. I am convinced that Aspartame (Equal) is harmless to 99% of the population - it's one of the most studied and researched products ever to come down the pike. My dad can remember first hearing about aspartame in the mid-60s, and started working with it in the lab in the very early 70's. My sisters and I started consuming it around 1974 - in Dad's testers, and in gumballs that we got in huge bags from Monsanto (the company who 'discovered' NutraSweet). All four of us girls, as well as my parents, are perfectly okay - no medical problems and their kids are perfectly normal (three of my nieces and nephews are on the Honor Roll at their schools in fact).
