Diet Coke substitute?

NickyCat101
NickyCat101 Posts: 69
edited October 4 in Food and Nutrition
I am addicted to Diet Coke. I know it is horrible for me but I need the caffeine in the morning. I hate hot drinks so I'm at a loss for what I can use instead. Energy drinks make me jittery and I'm not much for tea (haven't found one i like).

Any tips? Thanks :)
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Replies

  • ChantalAguiar
    ChantalAguiar Posts: 55 Member
    I find it's the carbination I'm addicted to. I've switched to carbinated water!
  • JeepsMcCreeps
    JeepsMcCreeps Posts: 19
    I drink Zevia. It's a "diet" soda sweetened with erythritol and stevia.
    http://www.zevia.com/
    It doesn't have a whole lot of caffeine in it but it's a good substitute and doesn't taste syrupy and icky like regular soda. I also love love love seltzer water though.
  • kristilovescake
    kristilovescake Posts: 669 Member
    Can you do iced coffee? You could use drip (or espresso if you have a machine), nonfat milk, and sugar or a substitute and you still have a relatively low calorie option that isn't hot.

    I used to only drink my coffee with tons of creamer and now I drink it straight black.. I tried nonfat milk + sugar for a while.. then omitted the sugar... and then omitted the black. It's an acquired taste, so if you can do it, you could have plain iced coffee (or brew it the night before and stick it in the fridge so you can drink it cold).

    Drip coffee is low calorie and better than aspartame (I don't trust the stuff).

    Otherwise, an iced chai is delicious if you add milk and a touch of sugar.
  • appleseeds
    appleseeds Posts: 212 Member
    I was never much for tea, and I totally have diet coke addiction as well.

    But then I started buying tea from T2

    http://t2tea.com/

    And now Iḿ basically in love with tea. I didn´t know it could taste so good.
    Far superior to anything you can buy in the supermarket.
  • JLove2Zumba
    JLove2Zumba Posts: 54
    I also love seltzer water! I have completely eliminated soda.. Its the carbonation I crave as well.. They have umteen million flavored seltzers out there.. They have no caffine, No calories, No artificial sweetners, Just pure joy! Polar seltzers or Club sodas are my favorite.. Check it out.. You may love it!
  • swander572
    swander572 Posts: 20
    Can somebody explain to me why Diet Coke is bad??
  • phylliswill
    phylliswill Posts: 1
    I am the same - totally addicted to Diet Coke. I no longer drink it first thing in the a.m. For 6 weeks, I have had the following every morning: 1/2 cup orange juice in a 32 oz. Cup mixed with ice and water. It keeps your sugar constant. I never got headaches from going off caffeine. I still drink Diet Coke once in a while... but I don't have it every day. I've lost 12 pounds so far.
  • appleseeds
    appleseeds Posts: 212 Member
    Can somebody explain to me why Diet Coke is bad??

    Its awesome if your just talking about calories and weight loss. I know a friend who lost 10kg and all he did was swap regular soft drinks for diet soft drinks (he drank a LOT of soft drink)

    I hear a lot of people say that it increases water retention - but that should only matter if you are drinking less than 8 cups of water a day

    Also people like to say it will give you cancer. Iḿ not sure about the scientific data on that one though..lol!
  • appleseeds
    appleseeds Posts: 212 Member
    http://www.drinkvenga.de/en-au/home/


    These are delicious too! Some of the contain caffine ie the one called calorie burn.

    Don believe the marketing though! haha, the calorie burn drinks do speed up your metabolism but the effect is insignificant in relation to weight loss
  • SimpleStepsHealthCoach
    SimpleStepsHealthCoach Posts: 121 Member
    Hi Nicky,

    There are products where you can make your own soda, like Sodastream, seen in almost every retail store these days. These products apparently have better calories and sugar then the mainstream brands.

    When I was breaking my soda addiction I feel towards Izze, Steaz, and Honest Tea. I know you mentioned you're not a fan of tea, but I would encourage you to try tea-based beverages outside of the big named soda companies - you never know, you might like them!

    Hope this helps,
    y.
  • SimpleStepsHealthCoach
    SimpleStepsHealthCoach Posts: 121 Member
    Can somebody explain to me why Diet Coke is bad??

    Hey swander572,

    Most people who choose not to drink Diet Coke due to a controversial ingredient, aspartame. You can Google it for more information.

    Cheers,
    y.
  • DeBlue
    DeBlue Posts: 254 Member
    Water!

    Ok, if you must have your caffene, there are a ton of great tasting teas you can make in a pitcher in your fridge. The black teas are stronger and have the kick you are looking for. Try the Aztec Chili Tea - marvelous, unexpected and refreshing.
  • Pebble321
    Pebble321 Posts: 6,423 Member
    Can somebody explain to me why Diet Coke is bad??

    Like everything else, it's a personal choice. If your only focus is weight loss, it's probably a good thing.
    But, for general health there are a few issues, especially if you are drinking it in large quantities:
    - It's very bad for your teeth.
    - It's encouraging you to keep drinking sweet stuff which probably isn't a good habit in the long term.
    - There is a lot of conflicting information on artifical sweeteners, lots of people (me included) think they aren't really good for you.
    - It may deplete calcium in your bones, leading to osteoporosis and fractures.

    Google it.. you'll find lots of info about the problems/risks.
  • HMonsterX
    HMonsterX Posts: 3,000 Member
    Can somebody explain to me why Diet Coke is bad??

    Like everything else, it's a personal choice. If your only focus is weight loss, it's probably a good thing.
    But, for general health there are a few issues, especially if you are drinking it in large quantities:
    - It's very bad for your teeth.
    - It's encouraging you to keep drinking sweet stuff which probably isn't a good habit in the long term.
    - There is a lot of conflicting information on artifical sweeteners, lots of people (me included) think they aren't really good for you.
    - It may deplete calcium in your bones, leading to osteoporosis and fractures.

    Google it.. you'll find lots of info about the problems/risks.

    1) Not an issue if you have a good dental hygiene routine, and certainly isn't limited to just diet coke.

    2) I've never had any problems with diet coke encouraging me to keep drinking sweet stuff, and even is it does,show some self control and don't do it.

    3)
    Answer
    Aspartame is generally well tolerated by most people with the exception of a small number of people--about 1 in 16,000--who have the hereditary disease phenylketonuria. Aspartame contains phenylalanine, which should be avoided by the these people. People with advanced liver disease and pregnant women with high levels of phenylalanine in the blood also may have trouble metabolizing the substance.

    The FDA considers aspartame to be one of the most thoroughly tested and studied food additives the agency has ever approved. More than 100 toxicological and clinical studies the agency has reviewed confirm that aspartame is safe for the general population. The Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI) for aspartame set by FDA and reevaluated and reaffirmed several times is 50 milligrams per kilogram (mg/kg) of body weight per day. At this level, for example, a 150-pound (60-kilogram) person would need to consume 15-16 cans (12-ounce) of diet soda containing aspartame to reach this level of intake.

    4)
    Controversy
    Although some studies have found that consuming beverages with phosphoric acid can cause lower levels of calcium in the body, not every study has found the same results. A study published in a 2001 issue of the "American Journal of Clinical Nutrition" found that phosphoric acid did not cause depletion of calcium in the body. This study did find, however, that the caffeine in soft drinks could cause decreased levels of calcium. It is worth noting that this study was funded by the dairy industry and suggested that the loss of calcium due to carbonated beverage consumption could also be due to caffeinated drinks replacing dairy in the diet.


    Read more: http://www.livestrong.com/article/484669-does-phosphoric-acid-deplete-your-calcium/#ixzz1dAcfQpEf

    Assuming you are a "normal" person, i.e. with no medical conditions, diet coke is absolutely fine in moderation. Just don't go guzzling 15 cans a day, and it's all good. :) So much scaremongering!
  • NickyCat101
    NickyCat101 Posts: 69
    Can somebody explain to me why Diet Coke is bad??

    Diet coke has aspartame, which makes you crave carbs. It also has been shown in studies to cause brain tumors if consumed in mass amounts over a period of time (like drinking diet coke your whole life and eating things it is in). I read a study once (wish I could find it) that took a sample of people and what they found was 90% of diet coke drinkers were overweight while only 60% of coke drinkers were!!


    I hate seltzer water. It is the caffeine and the cold crispness I crave. Flavored seltzer has artificial sweeteners and I want to get off those. My best option is to find an iced tea drink I like. I went to China where there is NO diet coke. The government is way more stringent on healthfulness of products there, so there is only coca cola light (most awful tasting thing EVER). They drink coke or coke zero. I ended up trying about 5 different teas and Oolong was the best. It had a wonderful after taste to it. I just wouldn't want to drink it all the time.


    Yes I LOVE iced coffee drinks, but coffee makes me very jittery from the niacin. Thanks for all the tips :) I will definitely check some of the tea ideas out.
  • Rachiepie6
    Rachiepie6 Posts: 423 Member
    WATER :laugh:
    Any addiction to soft drink will fade over time. Then you can have a can on the weekend or something along those lines.

    I :heart: WATER
  • MîîśÊmÿłõü
    MîîśÊmÿłõü Posts: 285 Member
    none at all, im the same i used to have 6-7 normal cokes a day, down to none at all, dont buy it in my shopping anymore, i just try to forget about it and have a nice drink of juice in the morning
  • ccpace4
    ccpace4 Posts: 100
    I have the same problem..at least now..since I'm on campus..I never wanna carry it up four flights of stairs..but I still end up getting it every time I pass by a soda machine :(
  • Cold_Steel
    Cold_Steel Posts: 897 Member
    I am working on phasing it out. I was doing 42 ounces or more of REGULAR soda before my lifestyle change then I switched to diet. I am slowly phasing it out, its more of a treat now when I eat out. I simply dont buy it as much as I use too otherwise I burn right through it.

    If you are looking for cold and crispness (crispness is the carbonation) I cant really offer anything for the crispness but cold I would suggest ice coffees, I hate hot drinks as well and am a sucker for an iced coffee (my stomach is not however)

    It would be great if water was the solution to all of our problems but Diet Coke can be a beast in itself, my suggestion is just to phase it out and develop a taste for something else...
  • hoppinglark
    hoppinglark Posts: 213 Member
    Can somebody explain to me why Diet Coke is bad??

    It has phosphorous in it, so if you are very old , it is bad for your bones.
    As for the rest of us...no worries.
  • SimpleStepsHealthCoach
    SimpleStepsHealthCoach Posts: 121 Member
    Good luck NickyCat101,

    Be sure to follow up with us on what the results are. I am curious to see if you found an alternative that satisfies your Diet Coke cravings.

    Cheers,
    y.
  • HMonsterX
    HMonsterX Posts: 3,000 Member
    Please see my earlier reply. I know why diet coke is rumoured to be bad, i was just asking to see actual proof. I don't think it is, in moderation.
  • ElizabethRoad
    ElizabethRoad Posts: 5,138 Member
    As has already been said, I don't think one Diet Coke a day is all that bad for you. But assuming you actually do want to give it up:

    Are the 5 Hour Energy shots bad for you? I don't really know. One of those has as much caffeine as a cup of coffee. If you can find the generic brand they're like $1 each. (I know you said energy drinks make you jittery but these are different from Monster and those types.)

    Or, you could just get over your caffeine addiction.
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    Can somebody explain to me why Diet Coke is bad??

    Some think it is the artificial sweetener. But, despite numerous studies there is no medical evidence that they are bad for you. Aspartame is a common migraine trigger, but so are a lot of healthy foods.

    There is some evidence that artifically sweetened drinks can increase or maintain cravings for sweets. There was also a recent study suggesting that drinking cola (diet or regular) raised the risk of stroke.
  • SimpleStepsHealthCoach
    SimpleStepsHealthCoach Posts: 121 Member
    Can somebody explain to me why Diet Coke is bad??

    Some think it is the artificial sweetener. But, despite numerous studies there is no medical evidence that they are bad for you. Aspartame is a common migraine trigger, but so are a lot of healthy foods.

    There is some evidence that artifically sweetened drinks can increase or maintain cravings for sweets. There was also a recent study suggesting that drinking cola (diet or regular) raised the risk of stroke.

    Unfortunately that's only partially true. The FDA reports that "despite numerous studies there is no medical evidence that they are bad" however, third-party scientist have different results. This is why it's such a controversial ingredient, that and the way aspartame was introduced into our food system. With that said, always make your own judgement on what you feel is best. After all, it's your health and your life. While I choose to not consume aspartame I don't condone those who do. It's simply my choice. =0)

    Cheers,
    y.
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    Can somebody explain to me why Diet Coke is bad??

    Some think it is the artificial sweetener. But, despite numerous studies there is no medical evidence that they are bad for you. Aspartame is a common migraine trigger, but so are a lot of healthy foods.

    There is some evidence that artifically sweetened drinks can increase or maintain cravings for sweets. There was also a recent study suggesting that drinking cola (diet or regular) raised the risk of stroke.

    Unfortunately that's only partially true. The FDA reports that "despite numerous studies there is no medical evidence that they are bad" however, third-party scientist have different results. This is why it's such a controversial ingredient, that and the way aspartame was introduced into our food system. With that said, always make your own judgement on what you feel is best. After all, it's your health and your life. While I choose to not consume aspartame I don't condone those who do. It's simply my choice. =0)

    Cheers,
    y.

    Can you site the third-party studies? Are there significantly more studies showing harm than not? I know of no reputible medical or scientific entity that says artificial sweeteners are unhealthy? (I'm not sure I'd put the FDA in that category nor do I know their stance on artificial sweeteners)
  • SimpleStepsHealthCoach
    SimpleStepsHealthCoach Posts: 121 Member
    Since I don't want to hi-jack this thread, mind if I send you a pm?
  • hoppinglark
    hoppinglark Posts: 213 Member
    I don't think the FDA does any of their own studies. I think they just review studies done by others.
    Obviously the government can issue grants, but i think they are too busy ruining the the Pharmaceutical and cosmetic industry to run an in house study.
  • mallorybriann
    mallorybriann Posts: 1,380 Member
    Try adding MIo to carbonated water.
  • SimpleStepsHealthCoach
    SimpleStepsHealthCoach Posts: 121 Member
    Stumbled across this today, felt it was appropriate to share: http://tinyurl.com/6hwter4
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