Soda / Diet soda / Alternatives

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  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,238 Member
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    bossyblackdog wrote: »
    rileysowner wrote: »
    jjpptt2 wrote: »
    rileysowner wrote: »
    jjpptt2 wrote: »
    There's nothing inherently wrong with them. Some people prefer to avoid the artificial sweeteners, colors, and sodium that can come with them, but in most cases, those things in reasonable quantities won't matter much. They certainly won't impact your weight loss. As for nutrition, look at your overall diet to determine nutrition, not a single food/item.

    Personally, I drink a fair bit of diet soda and a lot of various water "enhancers". No issues here.
    lehach1 wrote: »
    It's not just the sugar content of soda that's detrimental to your health, it's the sodium content and artificial sweeteners too. Even diet soda is sabotaging your weight loss and your overall health. Also consider the carbonation keeps your belly bloated and stomach stretched. What you're REALLY craving when you drink soda is the sweetness. So if you absolutely cannot do without it, I suggest going to Crystal Light water supplement or some of the other water supplements. Plain water can get boring so I completely understand. Just keep an eye on the calories and avoid using it with every drop you drink. (75 lbs. lost here and consume one full calorie soda every once in a while...I don't really miss it).

    Have you ever actually looked at the nutrition information on a can of pop? They have almost the same amount of sodium as water, and in some cases less. It definitely has less than the milk I have with my breakfast.

    Yep, like I said in my post... in reasonable quantities, it won't matter.

    I just find it odd that sodium is constantly pointed out as a negative with them and in many cases water has more. Basically they are flavored water, so I agree with you that it is not an issue unless a person has an actual issue with it, in which case it is like anything that a person has a sensitivity to or allergy to, they should avoid it.


    I completely agree with this - but I do wonder why I seem to retain water with them. Could it be that they are carbonated? I think caffeine is a diuretic so that shouldn't be it. It is also completely possible the it is all in my head... maybe it just happened a couple times for unrelated reasons and now I associate it with diet pop...

    It could be for various reasons possibly related to the diet soda or something else you eat or drink when you consume them. It is sort of difficult to say. Then again, retaining water is just retaining water, unless you have a medical condition that is exacerbated by water retention, it isn't really an issue long term.
  • kwtilbury
    kwtilbury Posts: 1,234 Member
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    Here's what I drink for caffeine:

    Coffee - Hot in the morning and iced with protein powder pre-workout
    Amino Energy
    Energy drink packets from Wal-mart - sugar free flavors /caffeine
    Monster/Rockstar/Diet Mt Dew - A couple of times a week
  • Tacklewasher
    Tacklewasher Posts: 7,122 Member
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    I'm still not a big fan of the taste of diet pop, or artificial sweeteners in general so don't drink a lot of them. I've got a sodastream and am quite happy with straight bubbly water. I don't even flavour it.

    3 coffee's in the morning (black, no sugar) and water for the bulk of the day.
    Wine with dinner.
  • srk369
    srk369 Posts: 256 Member
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    I realized that I wasn't drinking enough water in a day and back in August decided to cut my diet pop from my diet to force my water consumption to increase. You read everything that says how much better you will feel. I still drank my morning coffee and then nothing but water and soymilk (never have liked cows milk). I did this for 4 months and was miserable. I've been back to drinking my diet pop now for 2 months and am happy and feel better. It's not worth it for me to give up for no gain. I just am making sure I'm getting sufficient water in during the day now too.
  • Commander_Keen
    Commander_Keen Posts: 1,179 Member
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    madamso1 wrote: »
    My diet no longer allows for sugar soda because there are so many calories. What do you think about drinking diet soda or alternatives to soda like crystal light mix drinks or diet Gatorade? Are they really "Free" of calories?

    Will the processed sweeteners hurt my diet or nutrition in other ways?

    Sooo.. what my family drinks are the sparkling flavored water. Its sugar free, its water , and for me it passes as soda
  • Lizarking
    Lizarking Posts: 507 Member
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    Free of calories? No, not really. There's often 2-3 cals per serving of diet soda, but labeling rules allow it to be 0.

    That said, I drink diet soda exclusively. (ZERO water/etc)
    About a gallon a day.

    Doesn't affect my weight loss.
  • prattiger65
    prattiger65 Posts: 1,657 Member
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    madamso1 wrote: »
    My diet no longer allows for sugar soda because there are so many calories. What do you think about drinking diet soda or alternatives to soda like crystal light mix drinks or diet Gatorade? Are they really "Free" of calories?

    Will the processed sweeteners hurt my diet or nutrition in other ways?

    I'll answer the question. Diet sodas are fine. Yes they are free of calories. No they will not.
  • shandy82165
    shandy82165 Posts: 184 Member
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    I think diet soda is fine, I never had a negative effect from it. The only effect I had from artificial sweeteners is that high amounts of them make me less sensitive to the sweetness in sugar, and foods that contain natural sugars. Since i've eliminated most of the artificial sweeteners in my diet, fruits taste much sweeter to me now.

    But I don't think you'll be harmed by consuming it.
  • subcounter
    subcounter Posts: 2,382 Member
    edited February 2017
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    Carlos_421 wrote: »
    srk369 wrote: »
    I realized that I wasn't drinking enough water in a day and back in August decided to cut my diet pop from my diet to force my water consumption to increase. You read everything that says how much better you will feel. I still drank my morning coffee and then nothing but water and soymilk (never have liked cows milk). I did this for 4 months and was miserable. I've been back to drinking my diet pop now for 2 months and am happy and feel better. It's not worth it for me to give up for no gain. I just am making sure I'm getting sufficient water in during the day now too.

    Considering that diet pop is 99% water, you'd essentially be no better hydrated drinking 8 oz of water vs 8 oz of diet pop. Coffee too, for that matter.

    I second this. I like my water cold; shaken, not stirred. Coffee on the other hand, thats a different thing entirely :smile:

  • GottaBurnEmAll
    GottaBurnEmAll Posts: 7,722 Member
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    shandy82165 wrote: »
    I think diet soda is fine, I never had a negative effect from it. The only effect I had from artificial sweeteners is that high amounts of them make me less sensitive to the sweetness in sugar, and foods that contain natural sugars. Since i've eliminated most of the artificial sweeteners in my diet, fruits taste much sweeter to me now.

    But I don't think you'll be harmed by consuming it.

    I never understand this "sweetness sensitivity" position. I guess people's palates are different, sensitivity-wise?

    I use artificial sweeteners all the time. I drink diet soda.

    Fruit tastes plenty sweet to me.

    So do some vegetables that aren't even ordinarily thought of as sweet. I brought home some pretty sweet broccoli last week. Almonds taste sweet to me.

    I can only shrug over this whole thing. I don't get it.
  • srk369
    srk369 Posts: 256 Member
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    Carlos_421 wrote: »
    srk369 wrote: »
    I realized that I wasn't drinking enough water in a day and back in August decided to cut my diet pop from my diet to force my water consumption to increase. You read everything that says how much better you will feel. I still drank my morning coffee and then nothing but water and soymilk (never have liked cows milk). I did this for 4 months and was miserable. I've been back to drinking my diet pop now for 2 months and am happy and feel better. It's not worth it for me to give up for no gain. I just am making sure I'm getting sufficient water in during the day now too.

    Considering that diet pop is 99% water, you'd essentially be no better hydrated drinking 8 oz of water vs 8 oz of diet pop. Coffee too, for that matter.

    Oh, I count it as my water but for some reason I can drink 2 or 3 of them and then not want anything else and I was feeling dehydrated over the course of a day. I guess my break from it did get me liking to drink water, but I'm much happier now with a both througout the day :)
  • goblue8426
    goblue8426 Posts: 41 Member
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    I drink 1-2 cans of sparkling water every day which I find to be a great sub for soda if you choose not to drink it. I drink it because I love carbonation and the variety of tastes with sparkling water.
  • Emily3907
    Emily3907 Posts: 1,461 Member
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    I still drink regular pop on occasion, like once or twice a week (yay Coke!). But, I switched my multiple can a day habit to La Croix water. I love that stuff and it has been a great alternative for me.
  • AllOutof_Bubblegum
    AllOutof_Bubblegum Posts: 3,646 Member
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    I drink diet soda almost every day. It saves my life during my competition preps.
  • Emily3907
    Emily3907 Posts: 1,461 Member
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    bossyblackdog wrote: »
    On another note - I just looking back up at the other replies I noticed annacole and I are the only ones calling it pop, everybody else is saying soda. Then I have a quick glance at her profile and see she is also Canadian lol - must be a Canadian thing! My husband says "soda" and I always wondered where in the heck he got it from... he was the only person I have ever met that did so!

    FWIW, I grew up in Ohio and now live in Indiana and everyone around here calls it pop too. :)
  • T1DCarnivoreRunner
    T1DCarnivoreRunner Posts: 11,502 Member
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    I drink a lot of diet soda and have done so for decades. I started when I was gaining weight and have continued while I've lost weight over the past 3 years. It hasn't made a difference in either case.
  • T1DCarnivoreRunner
    T1DCarnivoreRunner Posts: 11,502 Member
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    Emily3907 wrote: »
    bossyblackdog wrote: »
    On another note - I just looking back up at the other replies I noticed annacole and I are the only ones calling it pop, everybody else is saying soda. Then I have a quick glance at her profile and see she is also Canadian lol - must be a Canadian thing! My husband says "soda" and I always wondered where in the heck he got it from... he was the only person I have ever met that did so!

    FWIW, I grew up in Ohio and now live in Indiana and everyone around here calls it pop too. :)

    Here in Iowa, most people call it "pop." In different regions of the U.S., it is either "soda," "pop," "soda pop," or sometimes "Coke." *Coke is used to refer to carbonated cola beverages in some regions regardless of whether it is Coca-Cola branded "Coke" or another brand.

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