I have officially stopped drinking Diet Coke. I have tried numerous times in the past 15 years to quit the habit and drink healthier beverages. The problem is that I like caffeine. Do I need it? Probably not, but it is certainly helpful to get a jump start on my mornings. I do not like coffee. I am one of those weird people who doesn’t even like the smell of coffee, let alone the taste. The same goes with beer. I know, shocking. Especially since I was born and raised in Wisconsin. I guess I have always been a little different.
In recent years there have been numerous online articles about the potentials harmful chemicals in Diet Coke:
http://www.livestrong.com/article/428411-bad-side-effects-of-drinking-diet-coke/
http://www.foxnews.com/health/2013/10/29/10-reasons-to-give-up-diet-soda/
http://aspartame.mercola.com/
Regular Coke isn’t considered as bad, as it is the aspertame in Diet Coke and other Diet soda products that is considered harmful. However I do not like the taste of regular Coke. Nor am I fond of the calories.
I thought I would poll my Facebook friends to see if there was something else similar that I could switch to drinking and it would be sufficient to my taste buds, provide caffeine, and not be as harmful to my body. Here is the posting I made:
There were 59 comments on this posting that I made about Diet Coke. I got a lot of great ideas of alternatives to replace Diet Coke. I tried quite a few. I was determined to make a switch to something new and give up Diet Coke. I did it! Thanks to the suggestions of so many friends and family! I replaced my Diet Coke with Zevia. It is a natural soda sweetened with the natural herb Stevia. It tastes similar enough to Diet Coke that I don’t feel like this change has been too dramatic. It has now been 20 days with NOT ONE Diet Coke! I drink 1-2 Zevia’s a day as well as 1 kombucha. Of course I drink a lot of regular water throughout the day. I always have a bottle of water with me wherever I may be during the day. Thank you Pati from my bible study for bringing me a Holy Kombucha one day to the bible study. After the bible study I picked up a dozen from Central Market and have been drinking them daily ever since!
I am still shocked that I made the change. I don’t know where I heard it, but the other day someone said that research has shown that Diet Coke is more addictive than Crack. Not sure how true that is, but I can say that I have never been more hooked on a single product in my entire life!! I quit though! It can be done!
Proof that the habit is permanent? I went through 8 days of all three kids getting sick, two runs to urgent care, Justin being out of town almost that entire time, and then I got sick. All the while, I never gave in to my Diet Coke habit. When I needed to run to urgent care at 9 PM and was exhausted, I was the only parent at home, and had to take all three kids…I typically would have grabbed a Diet Coke. Instead I grabbed a Zevia and smiled. My new beverage of choice is a great replacement for me. I am thankful and feeling blessed that there is even such an option available! I had no idea until friends on Facebook mentioned it. Thank you my friends!!!
Now that you have not had a Diet Coke for a little over three months are there any noticable changes in yourself that you are willing to share? Mountain Dew (which is loaded with sugar!) to me is what Diet Coke was to you!
Yes! I do feel better now that I am not drinking Diet Coke anymore. I don’t know if it is a physical change or just mental, but I do truly feel healthier.
Nice blog mate! Thanks for posting!
Thank you!