Mountain Dew Diet?!?!

TalonaCat
TalonaCat Posts: 241
edited September 20 in Food and Nutrition
I knew the topic would get some people's attention. I have a question for all you people out there.

I've mentioned my husband in the past, and how he's that lucky guy with awesome genetics who stays trim no matter what.

Today I asked him to drink some water with me and he said,"No, I'm good." At this point I asked him,"Have you had ANY water today?" And he said, "I haven't had pure water for over a month."

:noway:

Are you kidding me? Aside from the obvious drinking water to lose weight issue that I'm seeing here, I absolutely KNOW this can't be good for him.

I need you gurus out there to give me some HARD FACTS to encourage him to drink water. I can't do this myself. He's too stubborn. I don't want my husband to DIE from dehydration or a mountain dew addiction.

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE HELP!!!!!!

Replies

  • Яaquel
    Яaquel Posts: 90
    My Husband hasn't had a glass of water for about 3 months all he drinks is Snapple's, I am worried as well but i don't push him into anything....I have tried to tell him but it's no use!! =/
  • katie30
    katie30 Posts: 55
    I would love to hear the answers to this one too. Mine drinks 2 cases a week along with his "super sweet" iced tea. The only time I see him drink water is a small swallow when I hand it to him with his daily vitamin.
  • TalonaCat
    TalonaCat Posts: 241
    My Husband hasn't had a glass of water for about 3 months all he drinks is Snapple's, I am worried as well but i don't push him into anything....I have tried to tell him but it's no use!! =/

    I just don't get it? I LOVE water? Why do some people seem to have such a massive aversion to it? While I'm sorry your husband is doing it too, I'm glad to see I'm not alone here.
  • TalonaCat
    TalonaCat Posts: 241
    I would love to hear the answers to this one too. Mine drinks 2 cases a week along with his "super sweet" iced tea. The only time I see him drink water is a small swallow when I hand it to him with his daily vitamin.

    I can't even get mine to take a multivitamin. :huh:
  • sangrea
    sangrea Posts: 26 Member
    I don't have any hard facts but i did speech on drinking water back in speech class years ago and I know there is a lot of information out there on the internet and in books and mags.
    One thing i do remember is that the suggested amount is 8 glasses a day butwe really need a half ounce for every pound (that a lot of water for me). Water helps clean out our systems and keeps up from getting sick. Theres a comerscial on TV for a water bottle and it talks about what percentage of our bodies are made of water from total body (78%?) to muscles I will try and write them down next time i see it.
    Good luck.
  • jenken99
    jenken99 Posts: 564 Member
    water is the best thing for any one,, being that your body is made up of a lot of water what does happen when you pee:blushing: it out and never put it in???

    kidneys and bladders need water.. maybe if he drank some water he wouldn't be drinking mountain dew all day cause his thirst would be quenched!!!!!! very interesting topic,,,
    GOOD ONE!!!!
  • mlv333
    mlv333 Posts: 86 Member
    If he's anything like my patients (and I'm sure he is), the proof is in the pudding. If he feels fine, he's not going to change. IF you can get him to go to his primary care doc, tell his doc about your concerns. You don't even need to go with him. Just call his nurse, or leave a message with the doc before his appointment. All it takes is a blood pressure, pulse, and simple blood test to see if he is getting enough water. 1 of 2 things is happening for him. Either he's getting enough water from his food, or he is dehydrated and his body is compensating for him. If compensation is the case, he can get sick easily. And on top of that it would take a long time for his body to repair.

    Good luck!
  • thumper44
    thumper44 Posts: 1,464 Member
    If he's anything like my patients (and I'm sure he is), the proof is in the pudding. If he feels fine, he's not going to change. IF you can get him to go to his primary care doc, tell his doc about your concerns. You don't even need to go with him. Just call his nurse, or leave a message with the doc before his appointment. All it takes is a blood pressure, pulse, and simple blood test to see if he is getting enough water. 1 of 2 things is happening for him. Either he's getting enough water from his food, or he is dehydrated and his body is compensating for him. If compensation is the case, he can get sick easily. And on top of that it would take a long time for his body to repair.

    Good luck!

    I agree with this about the doctors.

    Men are stubborn, and if he feels that he doesn't have any problems, he's not going to change. He probably thinks why fix it if it's not broken.

    Good luck.
  • Яaquel
    Яaquel Posts: 90
    haha same here & I always tell him.... well this is the only sip of water your body's getting from this vitamin!!
  • DrBorkBork
    DrBorkBork Posts: 4,099 Member
    My step dad was (still is even after what I'm about to tell you) a MD-a-holic. He pretty much drank it exclusively. I can't tell you how many times he's gotten kidney stones, and been in excruciating pain. I think he's even been on dialysis once. Does he quit the Dew? Nope. Is Mtn Dew obliterating his kidneys and slowly killing him one pop at a time? Yup.
  • TalonaCat
    TalonaCat Posts: 241
    My step dad was (still is even after what I'm about to tell you) a MD-a-holic. He pretty much drank it exclusively. I can't tell you how many times he's gotten kidney stones, and been in excruciating pain. I think he's even been on dialysis once. Does he quit the Dew? Nope. Is Mtn Dew obliterating his kidneys and slowly killing him one pop at a time? Yup.

    This is precisely what terrifies me. :(
  • thumper44
    thumper44 Posts: 1,464 Member
    Not that this would make him quit, but MD has more caffiene and sugar than Pepsi or Coke.
  • TalonaCat
    TalonaCat Posts: 241

    O.O That's officially all the information I need. I will be printing this and putting it in his work vehicle!
  • brunion
    brunion Posts: 60 Member
    i know how your husband feels the only thing i drink is diet dew and i drink a lot about 8 a day i just cant stand the taste:smile: of water .
  • questionablemethods
    questionablemethods Posts: 2,174 Member

    O.O That's officially all the information I need. I will be printing this and putting it in his work vehicle!

    Well, driving while reading is also bad for him. :wink: (But I'm guessing that's not what you intended.)

    I just wanted to chime in to say that I also don't understand the aversion to water. I know some people who just absolutely cannot stand to drink it plain. I am the opposite. My thirst is not quenched by anything but plain water. One time I didn't have water near me so I took a sip of fruit juice because I was thirsty. I swear I ended up feeling MORE thirsty after that!
  • DrBorkBork
    DrBorkBork Posts: 4,099 Member
    i know how your husband feels the only thing i drink is diet dew and i drink a lot about 8 a day i just cant stand the taste:smile: of water .

    Get some crystal light. It really helps!
  • sunshinestate
    sunshinestate Posts: 110 Member
    Amen for Crystal Light! I also hate water. HATE IT! Especially tap water. I drink so much water with Crystal Light, my blood is probably sweet.
  • mromnek
    mromnek Posts: 325
    Hello, my name is Michael and I am a recovering Diet Dew addict.:blushing:

    Let me ask you all, do any of you have an addiction to coffee? You know, when you get up in the morning, you are as grumpy as a bear with hemhorroids? :mad: Or do any of you order iced tea at any and every meal? Now you understand what a Mountain Dew addiction is like. :grumble:

    I have never liked coffee or tea, so Mountain Dew was always my caffiene source of choice. About a decade ago, I switched from leaded (regular) to unleaded (diet). Until September of last year, I would drink at least 4 liters of the stuff a day. In fact, it was mentioned on more than one occassion by numerous people that I always had a bottle in my hand.

    I can tell you that no amount of "scary" data would deter me from drinking it. Actually, I would liken it to cigarrette smoking (which I also gave up almost two years ago). No amount of scary data deterred me from smoking. It wasn't until a doctor asked me when I had a heart attack that I was prompted to quit. :smokin:

    I drank the soda because my stomach would be sour if I drank too much water. Or at least that was what I thought. It turns out that was only because I hadn't "acclimated" to the water.

    Here are my suggestions for dealing with your husbands:
    1. Don't nag. Sit down with him and explain that it would mean everything to you if he would try to get more water in each day. Perhaps 2 bottles of water.
    2. Provide him with some alternatives to just plain water. I would personally no recommend crystal light, because it is too sweet IMHO. It will not bridge the gap. However, if that is the only way, it is better than nothing. I personally like the lightly flavored waters (my wife drinks Fruit-2-o... and she HATES the taste of water).
    3. Be understanding. Caffeine is an addiction. Withdrawal is real. He may not be able to quit "cold turkey."

    Remember, he didn't necessarily sign up for the quest for fitness, and he definitely didn't sign up to quit drinking soda. So, if you want to move him to "the dark side," you must be patient.

    I am sure you have all at some time exercised your feminine wiles to bring him over on some other point.:wink::wink:
  • TalonaCat
    TalonaCat Posts: 241
    I am sure you have all at some time exercised your feminine wiles to bring him over on some other point.:wink::wink:

    Guilty as charged. It worked for like a day.
  • HEK81
    HEK81 Posts: 50 Member
    Years ago I worked at a store and had unlimited access to MD. When I tried to stop drinking it, I started getting headaches. I had become physically addicted to it. I have ready that you can become dehydrated and even constipated from lack of water. I know it sounds gross but I've read that they body will try to reabsorb the water in your bowels. The lack of water will cause toxins to build in the body. There are many benefits of drinking water but it may be a good idea to show him tasty alternatives like Crystal Light, to help him kind of step down.
  • deba1963
    deba1963 Posts: 13
    OK, as a registered dental hygienist, I just can't let this post go without commenting. Besides the obvious points already made about MD addiction....most people don't know that ANY carbonated drink is hard on your teeth. It changes the pH of the mouth to a very acidic environment. and it takes a minimum of 20 minutes for your mouth to recover and regain it's natural balance. So if you take another drink within that 20 minutes -- like most people do -- you are just bathing your teeth in acid. This is true for regular and diet drinks alike. Mountain Dew is much worse than most drinks because it not only contains the acid nature of the carbonation, but also has citric acid in it. You might as well be washing your teeth with diluted battery acid - literally!! I see decay -- very rampant decay -- from Mountain Dew drinkers daily. Do whatever you have to do, but get off the stuff!!! I love it as much as anyone, but I limit myself to one diet soda a day and that is with a meal, which is easier on your teeth. Just a little professional side note to the Mountain Dew dilemma......:wink:
  • lisawest
    lisawest Posts: 798 Member
    I am a recovering MD addict. I haven't had a drink in 10 years, and 3 months (Jan. 1, 2000, it is the ONLY NYR I've EVER kept:noway: ). I went from a MINIMUM of 3 liters a day, to NONE. I do NOT recommend cold turkey. The addiction is real. I had a caffeine withdrawal headache for over a month. I would not allow myself to even take excederin to relieve the pain (it contains caffeine). I know that for me, what got me to finally quit was a lack of sleep. I slept MAYBE 2 hours a night because of all the caffeine (I have since discovered that I am abnormally sensitive to caffeine:ohwell: ). After the headache subsided, I began to feel MUCH better, and I SLEPT! I made the mistake of replacing my MD with Hawaiian Punch Fruit Juicy Red:laugh: Umm, I think it may actually have MORE sugar! But no caffeine!

    My advice to you is to not push the issue. If he already knows your thoughts and feelings on the matter, just let it lie for awhile. Nagging will only cause him to dig his heels in even further. You CAN stop buying MD. I know that this won't stop him from going to the nearest gas station and buying it, but it WILL make it that much more difficult for him! When he does finally make the decision to quit, ABSOLUTELY NO "I TOLD YOU SO"s!!!! NO "About time"s!!!! Also, NO "FIIINALY!"s. Do whatever he needs you to do to support him. It's not easy.

    If you will settle for merely adding water in ADDITION to his MD, perhaps you can make a deal with him? To start, maybe it can be that if he drinks 8 oz of water (even if it's flavored water!) for every 16 oz of MD he has during the day, then you will fix him his favorite meal, go on a date with him, or whatever will trip his trigger:wink: . Once he can consistently do that, then up it to 8 oz H2O for 8 oz MD. I don't if it will work for him, but this is what I am doing for my 2.5 yo son who only wants to drink milk. (Good for him, I know, but he would drink a gal a day by himself if I let him!)

    Good luck! Please let us know if you find something that works for you!
  • questionablemethods
    questionablemethods Posts: 2,174 Member
    OK, as a registered dental hygienist, I just can't let this post go without commenting. Besides the obvious points already made about MD addiction....most people don't know that ANY carbonated drink is hard on your teeth. It changes the pH of the mouth to a very acidic environment. and it takes a minimum of 20 minutes for your mouth to recover and regain it's natural balance. So if you take another drink within that 20 minutes -- like most people do -- you are just bathing your teeth in acid. This is true for regular and diet drinks alike. Mountain Dew is much worse than most drinks because it not only contains the acid nature of the carbonation, but also has citric acid in it. You might as well be washing your teeth with diluted battery acid - literally!! I see decay -- very rampant decay -- from Mountain Dew drinkers daily. Do whatever you have to do, but get off the stuff!!! I love it as much as anyone, but I limit myself to one diet soda a day and that is with a meal, which is easier on your teeth. Just a little professional side note to the Mountain Dew dilemma......:wink:

    Wow. That's really good to know. And scary! Now I know how my dental hygienists always know that I don't drink much soda.
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