Giving up coke.. Will it really help that much?

[Enigma]

Soft drinks.. Are they really that bad?

This morning I woke up and I realized that I drink 5-6 cans of coke each day, and that just can't be good for me.. So I decided to go cold turkey on it.. and reading about other people's experiences makes me realize that it's not such a small deal, people are actually having withdrawal syndroms and the nagging small headache im having could be the start of mine..

 

Coca cola was basically the only really frequent unhealthy thing I ate/drank. I dont smoke or drink. I rarely eat fast food (Mom's homemade food mmm...). I do take regular walks, granted, they used to be only to get some more coke but I will still keep on taking them with my girlfriend.

 

Thing is, I'm chubby, I'm not overweight to the point where it interferes with my daily life but I could really lose a few pounds..I know my girlfriend loves me like I am but I cant help but feel abit unsexy with those extra pounds around my stomach. Will quitting coke help? I mean.. theres approx 144 calories in each coke.. thats 720-864 calories less each day. I don't really know alot about these things so I can't really tell if that's alot or not.

 

What I wanna know is. Will quitting coke help me lose these extra pounds, or am I going through all the withdrawal for nothing?

[Pyro]

You will definitely lose those extra pounds by not drinking any soda, plus I hear that if you drink enough of it, your teeth will stain.

[933KJL]

I am a coke (well pepsi) fiend and also need to quit. I have quit in the past and it will take 5 pounds off me in a month without an ounce of excercise.

 

I switched to iced tea as bottled water seemed so boring to me and it works well

 

It is a 2006 resolution to go cold turkey again

[sophia34]

Take the math further. If you cut out 5 to 6 sodas a day--let's call that 750 calories--you'll cut 3,750 calories in only 5 days. There are 3,500 calories to a pound, so that's a pound every five days. That means that in 30 days, you'll have cut back a total of 22,500 calories. If you don't eat or drink other calories to substitute for those you're cutting out, you'll lose 6 pounds in 30 days by doing nothing more than cutting out your cola habit.

 

Add in a little exercise, and you could lose 10.

[933KJL]

Take the math further. If you cut out 5 to 6 sodas a day--let's call that 750 calories--you'll cut 3,750 calories in only 5 days. There are 3,500 calories to a pound, so that's a pound every five days. That means that in 30 days, you'll have cut back a total of 22,500 calories. If you don't eat or drink other calories to substitute for those you're cutting out, you'll lose 6 pounds in 30 days by doing nothing more than cutting out your cola habit.

 

Add in a little exercise, and you could lose 10.

See and I did not even go to all that trouble calculating it!

[jasmine111]

Yes, you will definitely lose some weight. Probably not a significant amount, but drinking 5-6 cans a day doesnt sound healthy

 

people are actually having withdrawal syndroms and the nagging small headache im having could be the start of mine..

Maybe it's because they drank diet sodas, I heard diet sodas were really addicting. (doesnt make it much of a diet, eh)

[Art_Critic]

I gave up caffeine a little over a year ago.. I switched to caffeine free coke

they have 120 calories per can..

I lost no weight..

About 3-4 months ago I switched to Caffeine free diet coke and I lost 10 lbs in about 6 weeks..

 

No exercise.. my kind diet

[pippen_2k]

If your not willing to exercise then yeah you should cut back on the Soft drink or give it away all together...

 

But if you do exercise on a constant basis you will be able to eat and drink the foods you enjoy.

[bab]

Yes caffeine is very very addictive. I just went cold turkey, and the first day I had a massive headache. I laid on the couch around 7:30 and dozed in and out for about an hour. I got up for a bit and then went to bed around 9:30, and slept for 12 hrs. That was only two days ago, and I'm already starting to feel better. I haven't given up other sugery drinks yet, but I will after the New Year, and am hoping to loose a couple pounds because of it. Good luck! It's a lot harder than it sounds!

[newbby]

not only will you lose weight, but you will feel more energetic and able to do more excercise as a result. carbonated drinks also leach vitamins out of your system, so its not just the caffiene and sugar that is bad for you. you will get caffiene withdrawal. most headache tablets are full of caffeine, because most headaches are caused by caffeine withdrawal. it wont last long though. give it a couple of weeks and you will be feeling so much better

[HotCaliGirl]

You drink more cans of soft drink per day than the total amount I've had in the past twenty years. Try substituting the soft drinks with water or some decaf coffee or iced tea if you're hooked on the caffeine, maybe some chocolate for the transitional stage which has a mixture of the caffeine plus the sugar. Do not substitute for diet drinks with the fake sugar which is worse than the regular stuff for your health.

[alphamale]

Do not substitute for diet drinks with the fake sugar which is worse than the regular stuff for your health.

what up HCG? I must disagree with the above stmt. Drinking diet with "fake" sugar may not be great for you chemically but it beats drinking 800 empty sugar calories per day. I'm thinking long-term here.

 

So what if one of your great-great-great-grand kids are born with three legs cause you drank nutrasweet or splenda? you'll be long dead

[LBC]

I gave up caffeine a little over a year ago.. I switched to caffeine free coke

they have 120 calories per can..

I lost no weight..

About 3-4 months ago I switched to Caffeine free diet coke and I lost 10 lbs in about 6 weeks..

 

No exercise.. my kind diet

 

yep. My friend did the same thing. Swithced to the no sugar no caffine diet soda and lost 10 lbs in a few weeks. Its the sugar, if yuo just cut your sugar intake in half, you will lose wieght.

 

The taste takes some time getting used to. But now after a few years, I cannot even drink a whole sugar soda, way too sweet.

 

Diet Rite makes some tasty diet sodas.

[SmoochieFace]

Diet Rite makes some tasty diet sodas.

 

Diet Rite cola is the best-tasting diet pop to me. Beats Diet Coke and Diet Pepsi easily. The raspberry one is good too.

[Outcast]

I haven't got the links handy, but there were studies showing that people who drink pop - diet or not - put on weight more easily than people who don't. If you're having caffeine cravings, try green tea, which is actually good for you.

[Lil Honey]

I'm a Diet Coke nut. My boss told me that he was going to get me an IV bottle with Diet Coke. (McDonald's has the best and restaurants that serve it from a tap.)

 

Of course, Diet Coke doesn't have the sugar in it, but cutting out the pop, you can lose weight and I think it's due to the decrease in sodium. Also, caffeine is not good for your bones.

 

I've stopped before and then start right back up again. Some things just taste better (like a burger) with a Coke (rather than water).

[Outcast]

If you want a sweet beverage to complement salty foods, go for chocolate milk. If you use low-fat milk, the chocolate doesn't add many more calories and the calcium in the milk seems to protect against people laying down belly fat (several studies all concluded this!)

[HotCaliGirl]

what up HCG? I must disagree with the above stmt. Drinking diet with "fake" sugar may not be great for you chemically but it beats drinking 800 empty sugar calories per day. I'm thinking long-term here.

 

So what if one of your great-great-great-grand kids are born with three legs cause you drank nutrasweet or splenda? you'll be long dead

Hey Alpha, it's just that lab rats that are given nutrasweet and the fake sugars - 100% of them develop early cancer - no wonder so many people have cancer in this country compared to other countries. There was a steep rise in cancer followed by the advent of the fake sugars and shortly after they came out, there were lawsuits threatening to take them off the market but of course all those big companies won - who could fight coke and just about every other food company out there that benefits from selling "sugar free" products!

 

Maybe it IS better overall compared to someone who drinks several cans of regular coke with all the sugar which might have equally bad side effects, namely the weight gain and associated health hazards and complications associated with it so I guess I can't argue there...

 

Ideally there will in the future be for this person yet another switch from "diet" drinks to regular, natural alternatives like juices, water, unsweetened or naturally sweetened iced tea etc.

[Lil Honey]

I used to walk with a woman who said that artificial sweeteners gave her terrible headaches. I don't know if that was really the case or if she "thought" they did that to her.

 

I use artificial sweeteners. I've often wondered if they have some addictive substance in them to make a person keep wanting/using more. Or I wonder if there is something in it that makes a person want to eat more, so they buy more food with the sweetener in it, thinking that they are making a good choice . . . Does that make sense?

 

I'll never claim to know a single thing about chemistry, but I don't know how some of the sweeteners can be made "from sugar" or maybe they say it's "like sugar". In my mind, it's either sugar or it's not. When one changes even a single chemical in a substance, it becomes something different, does it not?

[jasmine111]

I use artificial sweeteners. I've often wondered if they have some addictive substance in them to make a person keep wanting/using more. Or I wonder if there is something in it that makes a person want to eat more, so they buy more food with the sweetener in it, thinking that they are making a good choice . . . Does that make sense?

Yeah, they do, they contain aspartame (man-made sugar), in the news it says aspartame is pretty poisonous. It stimulates your brain into thinking it taste sweeter. So its really addictive, the caffiene also makes it addictive. So it makes the person drink more diet soda than they probably would regular. Its does a lot worse than just making you gain weight. I would definetly stop eating/drinking diet anything all together.

[justagirl64]

Enigma

Coke is full of sugar and carbonated water and some caffeine. All of these things (mainly sugar) create acidity in your body and will eventually make it very hard for your body to operate effectively. In other words,your body will be working hard to correct the pH balance and this takes energy. Your blood may be experiencing slight toxicity as a result of this and you may also have side problems like inflammation and frequent minor illness. By removing coke, you body will stand a better chance to get back to proper pH (in addition to a good diet) and this will immediately make it work more efficiently, losing weight will be a byproduct!!!! You wont even have to work at it too hard at losing weight, just eat lots of fresh fruit, vegetables, some good quality protein every day, and grains. A choose uncarbonated water to drink! Of course any form of exercise will be beneficial, but if you are pretty active, just changing a few things will give you good results.

 

GOOD LUCK

[Outcast]

In other words,your body will be working hard to correct the pH balance and this takes energy. Your blood may be experiencing slight toxicity as a result of this and you may also have side problems like inflammation and frequent minor illness

 

More false science. Incredible how many of these pseudo-scientific theories draw people in.

[justagirl64]

Sugar is one of the major causes of the body's pH being changed. Try reading:

"Nutrient Metabolism" Martin Kohlmeier, 2003. Elvsevier.

 

Outcast, you may want to read this first.

[jinna45]

How do you know it isnt true? I'm not sure if it is all this sh*t is true or not but i know that if it was, the FDA and medical industries wont tell you. They'll lose billions. Don't you think they'll do anything to make money like putting more unhealthy, cheaper man-made things in our food, and maybe brainwashing people to think its good with advertisment and stuff. Again, I'm not saying all this is true, but if they were, no one from the FDA or doctor or food company is going to let you know. They're all in it just for the money.

[Outcast]

Um. There are a million books (and websites) on 'nutrition' by a million charlatans. That someone wrote a book doesn't mean he knows his butt from his backpack.

 

Try reading scientific articles in peer-reviewed publications if you really want to get informed about the body and nutrition.

 

Here's what Quackwatch has to say about this:

 

You should not believe that it matters whether foods are acidic or alkaline, because no foods change the acidity of anything in your body except your urine. Your stomach is so acidic that no food can change its acidity. Citrus fruits, vinegar, and vitamins such as ascorbic acid or folic acid do not change the acidity of your stomach or your bloodstream. An entire bottle of calcium pills or antacids would not change the acidity of your stomach for more than a few minutes.

 

All foods that leave your stomach are acidic. Then they enter your intestines where secretions from your pancreas neutralize the stomach acids. So no matter what you eat, the food in stomach is acidic and the food in the intestines is alkaline.

 

the FDA and medical industries wont tell you. They'll lose billions. Don't you think they'll do anything to make money like putting more unhealthy, cheaper man-made things in our food, and maybe brainwashing people to think its good with advertisment and stuff. Again, I'm not saying all this is true, but if they were, no one from the FDA or doctor or food company is going to let you know. They're all in it just for the money.

 

Right. Of course. But the quacks who sell their 'healthy solutions' for these so-called problems are out for the good of mankind.

 

If you really honestly believe that millons of people in thousands of medical facilities, universities, and research institutes are all involved in a secret plot to divest you of your money, then I hope you have a lot of aluminium foil for your hats.