Coke Zero - Yay or Nay?
 

I posted this on the other board, but got no responses.

Is coke zero good if you wanna fill yourself up without the added calories or is it more bad than good?

Nay. ;) But this is such a personal choice. However if you took a poll, I'd answer "nay".

I gave up all pop at the start of this mainly because it's such a trigger food for me and a bad craving. Artificial sweeteners give me migraines, so I stay away from all of them. I've learned to drink only water and I don't miss flavored drinks at all.

Soda is bad for you whether its 0 calories or not. I say cut out soda all together.

Yay and nay. I still consume diet Pepsi when everyone else is drinking alcohol but I'd like to move away from using it as a bit of a crutch. It's made of crap and isn't beneficial but I think it's a good alternative for some. Still, I wish I didn't drink it. I do love the taste.

I have a love/hate relationship with it.

Meh. I don't think it's much worse than anything else. I find diet soda to be a great tool for me. I try not to drink too much b/c I really need more water instead but I think it's fine in moderation.

I would say Nay. I cut out sodas when I started my weight loss journey. I was drinking anywhere from 4-5 mountain dew a DAY and always had trouble with headaches/migraines. Since cutting them out cold turkey I have only had one migraine and I think it was from working too hard and not eating as often as I needed to that day!

I have felt 100% better since cutting out sodas. If I get the urge for something to boost energy or just give me the kick mountain dew used to I turn to Celsius Green Tea/Raspberry Acai drink. It's great for jump starting an intense workout..but even those are far and few between!

I stick to water and if I want something sweet I have a juicer and make a homemade fruit smoothie! (Or I will splurge and buy the Bolthouse Farms smoothies)

Nay....it bloats you up like a balloon

I like it!! It has been a helpful tool for me in this losing weight business, and I plan to continue to drink it in moderation.

We are entitled to have our little treats and this is one that I will not give up. It doesn't bloat me, it is not a trigger food for me, I am not allergic to artificial sweeteners, etc.

This is just another thing that proves we are all different! :wave:

Just like anything else, enjoy it in moderation. Telling me I can't have something makes me want it that much more.;)

I have taken the advice of my fellow posters and switched to mostly water. I was drinking a ton of Coke Zero... I have not given it up completely and probably won't, but I am down to 1-2 cans per month.

I have never tried it but I can't stand diet coke so I guess I probably wouldn't like it. I try to avoid artifical sweetners as much as possible, though I will drink sugar free Red Bull sometimes.

If I really want a pop I will drink a regular coke or a throwback Pepsi (I wish they made coke with real sugar that was readily available in my area). I'd say I probably have one one a week or less and haven't noticed any adverse results.

I love Coke Zero. Not that I drink often - but sometimes, at work, I allow myself a can. Sometimes I go without one for a month, sometimes I have 2 in a week.
I think the taste is great and I had to FIGHT HARD for our cafeteria to carry it (they had regular and Diet Coke. Diet Coke has the most terrible taste and I never buy it).
Also, I find that in a pinch, if I am really hungry but cannot eat (i.e. I am stuck in a meeting or on a long con call, the sweetness of Coke Zero tides me over).

Otherwise, I have switched from regular water to soda completely. I started to enjoy the bubbles and it tastes so much better than just H2O. I have the Sodastream soda maker at home - I drink only plain soda, I don't use any of the flavourings. Coke Zero is my ocassional treat.

Coke Zero is a lifesaver for me. I used to drink a TON of pop (it made up the bulk of liquids I took in during the day- how terrible is that?? :fr:) and now that I'm walking a healthier, calorie counting path, I need baby steps to get me there. Diet Coke tastes nasty to me, but a friend introduced me to Coke Zero. She took a health and wellness class that said Diet Coke and Coke Zero are disgusting with all the weird stuff in them, but that Coke Zero was the lesser of two evils -if- used to step down from pop altogether. I still drink some Coke Zero, but over the past month I've started only allowing myself some pop if I've drank at least 1 liter of water already that day. There are many days now that I have no pop at all, and I don't seem to miss it.

I will say that if I have too much Coke Zero, now that the bulk of my liquid intake is water, it does bloat me pretty badly. But giving it up cold turkey would be so punishing to me that I might give up altogether, and that's not good either.

So I guess I agree with the thought that its a very personal choice.

i used to drink tons of soda (in scotland we call it fizzy juice, irn bru is my favourite and its our unofficial national drink!) but since i started living healthier i haven't had any. i'm not saying i will never have it again, but i will only have it occasionally. i know sodas can be full of bad things even if they are calorie free, and they give me cravings so i'm staying away from them for now.

Cherry Coke Zero is a dear, dear friend. :)

That being said, I'm not sensitive to artificial sweeteners, diet soda isn't a trigger for me, and I know that water is, and always will be, best.

But yeah, I definitely indulge in the occasional Cherry Coke Zero. Maybe once or twice a week, and it's definitely more of a weekend thing when I'm off my regular weekday routine - during which I drink water, coffee, and tea.

I can taste all the chemicals in diet soda. They taste nasty. I can't drink them at all.
I just make tea...no sugar, or sometimes I add a spoon of honey.
And I drink ice water, sometimes with a twist of lemon or lime.

If you are bothered by artificial sweetners or it is a trigger for you than avoid it. Otherwise I don't see it as a big deal one way or the other.

Diet Dr. Pepper is also pretty great, as far as diet soda goes. Diet Coke is pretty awful, as people have said. I tried Diet Coke sweetened with Splenda and it was somehow worse than normal Diet Coke! Coke Zero is still my favourite, though.

Surprisingly good: Diet Pepsi with cherry.

If you're drinking in place of water, NAY! If you're drinking it in moderation, as a sweet pick me up, go for it.

I don't think it's a good option to "fill yourself up". There are plenty of low-cal snacks that will satiety and keep you feeling full for a while.

i don't think that you should completely eliminate it from your diet if it's something that you enjoy, but using it as a crutch to keep you full might end up biting you in the end. soda always made me feel hungry, but everyone is different. :P

can you afford the extra sodium intake? would you use it as a replacement for water, or still be sure to drink your daily requirement?

if you're looking for something that adds a little more flavor than water, FUZE is a really great option. it's low calorie (if you pick the right kinds, only 10-20 a serving) and is packed with vitamins. it also fills me up pretty well! it does have some sodium, but not the amount that soda does.

Yum, me love coke zero. It doesn't cause me any problems, and I find it a nice sweet tasting treat. I try to limit it a bit, but not much really, I probably drink 5-7 a week. My DH gets on me about the chemical content....maybe one day I'll give it up, but not yet!

Personally, I'd say nay. I did have one the other day because my sister recommended it. I'm not a big fan of the aftertaste that diets have and the sweetners in them are kinda scary.

But, if you just have to have a pop...I guess that's better than consuming a regular pop.

I haven't drank any sodas since I started my diet. I was just looking for alternatives - especially drinks, that I can sip and feel full.

I'm a big water drinker now.. so I guess I'll just continue that.

yay as long as it's in moderation. I drink a few glasses once a week. But if you're using it as a crutch instead of water then ehh maybe not a good idea.

Nay.

Drink water. Period. Just my opinion, for what it's worth.

Yay as long as you don't drink tons of it at the expense of other liquids. Also if soda is a big trigger for you, it could be bad for your mental health.

But treating yourself once in a while to a zero calorie soda is hardly a punishable offense. I have a Coke Zero maybe once a month. I find I can't finish a 12 oz. can and feel weird after drinking it, but the first few sips are divine.

After taking anatomy and nutrition...NAY!! That, and a previous chemistry professor actually worked for the FDA as a food chemist said that the only reason artificial sweeteners have been approved for human consumption it to collect long term large scale data. Just google it..After 20 minutes in your body, Aspartame begins to break down from its ingested compound. What is in your body, then?
Methanol
Formaldehyde (a Class-A carcinogen used to embalm corpses)
Formic acid (ant venom)

Stay away from the stuff!

I find that when I have serious cravings, it helps me manage it. So as everyone said, in moderation...

Nay for me. Drinking soda is one of the things I gave up when I started trying to lose weight. I used to love Coke Zero and I used to allow myself a glass of it a week, but my taste for it has changed drastically. I can taste the chemicals in it now and they're not yummy.

Coke zero is the only soda I'll drink. I have one a day. I still lose weight easily and it hasn't caused binges so it works for me. I know I shouldn't make it such a staple though..I definitely should cut back.

True. I tried to cut out all soda, but I really just love diet Coke -- aspartame and all! I drink one a day...

They sell it in some little Mexican groceries near me. Plus, you can buy it during Passover. Plan ahead!

water and tea would be better to fill up on and have no calories and are good for you.

coke zero tastes good (but alot of things taste good that we shouldn't be going overboard on) and I have a soda once in awhile for a treat, but I wouldn't fill up on it. I don't think sodas were ever meant to replace water and be drank by the liter the way they are. the sodas are so bad for your teeth and bones...I know some people say they drink them all the time with no effects, but you just don't know if down the line they did more damage than good.

I LOVE it, but limit myself to about 3 a week. Even though it is 0 calories I know the junk in it isn't good for me. I keep a 12 pack in the garage fridge (not as accessable) and I use it as a reward.

Jessica

nay, I loved it but it was making me bloat big time. I now fill my cravings for fizz with carbonated water :D

i say yay. i LOVE diet coke and enjoy one maybe once or twice a week as a treat. be aware that it does bloat you though!

I personally find all the artificial flavoring and additives disgusting, so I decided to quit drinking diet soda a little over a month ago. It's really hard, but who knows what all those additives are doing inside your body, it creeps me out.

But like another poster said, it's a very personal thing.

big ole nay. I cut sodas when I was 16 thinking that it would help control my weight. I lost weight and bloat pretty quickly.

12 years later I may have a soda 1-2 times a year. It tastes gross (sickly sweet) and does funky things to my body.

If using it as a treat, there's far more enjoyable and healthy options out there.

Nay. But I don't drink any soda. I've had one glass of soda in about 2 years. It does nothing for me.

It is bad for your kidneys. All soda has phosphates but cola is the very worst. I personally don't want to injest a bunch of chemicals and sweeteners that have been shown to cause cravings. You should be filling up on water.