I’ve come a long way in my efforts to break my diet soda habit. I very seldom turn to my old standby afternoon snack anymore. I am sad to say that occasionally there are those times when I still crave one.
There is a lot of controversy as to whether diet soda causes an increase in hunger and weight gain. For me, it was an appetite suppressant which is why I had such a hard time giving them up.
In the afternoons, I had a choice to eat (calories) or drink a diet soda (no calories). I always chose the diet soda and I was never hungry afterwards. I realize I was damaging my health in other ways, but I wasn’t taking in excess calories.
Giving up diet soda, for me, was like quitting a habit such as smoking regarding the appetite increase. It was much easier than quitting smoking (I’m guessing), but when I cut them out of my diet I was hungry all the time, specifically in the afternoons.
Now when I give into my occasional craving, I am sorry I did. It honestly makes me feel bad. I think it is my body’s rebellion against the aspartame, but I now get sluggish and sometimes get a headache.
Even so, diet soda has this death grip on me and won’t let go. There is always that temptation to grab one while I’m out shopping, or with certain foods. I will admit that some foods taste better with soda. Pizza is a good example.
So this grip that diet soda has got me thinking about a health seminar I went to once. Back when I had an office job and had the luxury of going off to health conferences, I was able to hear Dr. David Katz speak. It has been about 3 years now.
He’s got quite a track record. Not only is he associated with Yale, but he does the nutrition column in O magazine, is a medical contributor to ABC news and he was the nutritionist on the first season of VH1’s Celebrity Fit Club. That’s were I first saw him and then started learning more about his more professional attributes.
At this particular conference he spoke about the speculation that some foods have additives that can cause addictions. Thus, making us want to return to the food time and time again. Interesting stuff. It made me think twice about what I was eating, spurring on more of this fake food free quest.
It is remembering things like these that give me the motivation to stay away from sodas and break the habit once and for all. I have found that part of the craving for me is the carbonation. Sparkling water or water with gas is a great substitute. The only negative is that it is not popular in the US, which means it is expensive.
Does diet soda have a grip on you? Any tips for breaking the habit?
Photo by cohdra, morguefile.com
ugh, i know what you mean by the diet soda addiction. I can only imagine how many people out there are afflicted with this! I had a friend in college who would fill her nalgene with diet coke in the dining hall to get her through the afternoon. I got a great tip from Kyle, though. Switching to carbonated water! Some carbonated waters actually have flavors, too (although here in Chile I have yet to find one with just natural flavorings and no fake sugar) but I’m thinking of Poland Spring, for example. Otherwise sometimes just the bubblies help ease that craving, and I find it much more refreshing. I still go for that soda every now and then, though…
Wow, a whole Nalgene bottle. That would be interesting to see someone carrying around.
I used to teach group exercise with a lady who would fill a big travel mug with diet coke. That is what she drank when she taught classes instead of water!
I like mixing a little bit of fruit juice with my carbonated water. It gives it a little flavor.
The “coke man” at my old office used to say that Diet Coke drinkers are absolute crazy people: they never have an occassional diet coke, they drink them nonstop! He said Diet Coke was always the first thing empty in all the machines he refilled!
I have to admit, I used to be a Diet Coke (or Diet Dr. Pepper, Diet Mountain Dew, Diet anything with caffine) junky. Thank goodness I broke that one about a year ago! Like you, I feel so much better without it! But oh, the cravings from time to time!