Can you be successful on induction and drink diet soda?

[AllieBee]

I am having trouble with this addiction! Has anyone done a successful induction and not given up diet soda? I don't drink it all day long, it would basically be one can around mid-afternoon. It's when my sweet tooth and caffeine cravings are worst.

I'm really committed to losing weight, so I will cut it out if need be. But I'm only on Day 2, so I'm just wondering what others' experiences have been with including diet soda in your induction menu.

Thanks for letting me know!

[facelessnumber]

I can't speak for anyone else, but me, I drink quite a lot of Diet Mt. Dew and my diet has still been successful. Would it have been more successful without it? Maybe, I don't know.

[mspartytime]

I drink one on occassion but I do notice that it makes me have more "sweet" cravings rather than fix the problem. I think it's the caffiene that may stall you.

[facelessnumber]

That may also be true, but for what it's worth I ingest enough caffeine on a daily basis to give heart arrhythmia to a mammoth. But maybe if I didn't I might have better results. Maybe I have done well in spite of myself, don't know...

[DairyQueen]

i drink diet soda every day, all day. mostly diet coke and diet pepsi. I switch to sparking wine or mich ultra at night (heh heh)

[Ntombi]

Diet Mountain Dew often here as well, along with the occasional other diet sodas. I always say that I'm on strict Induction plus diet soda. My main drinks are water, hot tea (black tea), and diet soda.

Yes, I'm losing. That said, I don't have sweet cravings. Be mindful of yours: if it sets them off, I'd be prepared to drop them.

Will it work for everyone? No. But what does?

[facelessnumber]

So, what's bad about diet sodas with regard to LC anyway? Is it the aspertame? Does it affect ketosis? Or does it just cause sugar cravings for some people?

[mrwizard65]

I hear horrible things about aspartame and I've been stalling so I've decided to ween myself off diet soda. Many years ago I lost almost 80lbs in a year on LC and diet soda was a big part of that success. Now that I'm older, I wonder if it's doing more harm than good.

[Kisha1976]

I'm on Day 2 as well, and I'm drinking a Pepsi Max as I type. I'm going to try and ween myself off of that. I do have Waist Watchers, which is lesser of the two evils. But I've been getting 64-72oz of plain water in for the past two days, which is the most I've had in AGES.

[jeaniem]

Loved Pepsi One, but can't find it anywhere anymore.

[Ntombi]

Pepsi One is my cola of choice as well. Fountain Diet Coke, but at home, it's Pepsi One.

[Kisha1976]

Originally Posted by jeaniem

Loved Pepsi One, but can't find it anywhere anymore.

Where do you live? I live in North NJ, and they carry it in all the stores. Diet Cherry Coke is my weakness, but I'm going to try to by the Waist Watchers cherry soda instead since there's no aspertame or caffeine.

[Fickle327]

Caffeine nor art. sweeteners stall me. Or they haven't so far in my ups and downs. Diet Coke girl here. Always will be.

I drink hot tea, green or black in the am, and then diet soda in the afternoon/evening, but just because I think soda in general is bad on your kidneys I try not to go over 2 or 3. Try. Let's keep it at that LOL

[Kimberli33]

Im not a huge water fan.I drink Crystal Lite Peach Tea and Lemonade all day.Also 2-4 cups of coffee.Doesnt seem to hurt me none.

[jeaniem]

Originally Posted by Kisha1976

Where do you live? I live in North NJ, and they carry it in all the stores. Diet Cherry Coke is my weakness, but I'm going to try to by the Waist Watchers cherry soda instead since there's no aspertame or caffeine.

Finally found the pepsi one in Walmart yesterday here in Maryland I love the Waist watchers too! I mix it with protein powder and almond milk for fruity flavored shakes.

[margame]

Originally Posted by facelessnumber

So, what's bad about diet sodas with regard to LC anyway? Is it the aspertame? Does it affect ketosis? Or does it just cause sugar cravings for some people?

most diet (and non diet) sodas have caffeine and an over-consumption of caffeine may lead to an excess production of insulin and for anyone who is insulin resistant this is a big problem.

aspartame breaks down into a few different components when it's digested, one of them being methanol (wood alcohol). the american environmental protection agency (epa) sets the safe consumption level of methanol at 7.8 milligrams per day ... one litre of soda may contain up to (or more) 56 milligrams of methanol.
the weston a. price foundation has a good write-up about sweeteners under the heading "sugar-free blues".

don't know how it may affect ketosis, but sweeteners tend to get my sweet-tooth going and then before i know it i've over eaten, eaten off plan etc so yes, for me it certainly does affect my ketosis.

[facelessnumber]

Ah, I see... I'd read about the evils of aspertame before, but I wondered in this context whether it had an effect on ketogenic dieting. Guess I'm lucky in that it doesn't make me crave sugar. As for the caffeine... I take 400 mg of caffeine in pill form just to get out of bed, not kidding, I wish I was. I probably just have a ridiculous tolerance for the stuff.

[Mom2Mayhem]

Originally Posted by facelessnumber

I can't speak for anyone else, but me, I drink quite a lot of Diet Mt. Dew and my diet has still been successful. Would it have been more successful without it? Maybe, I don't know.

I drink it too--not as much as I use to, but I also drink it.
I am in day six of induction (with diet soda intake), and I am down 6.2 pounds.
I also do not know if I would have had more or less success depending on whether I had not drank diet soda.

[Mom2Mayhem]

Originally Posted by Kimberli33

Im not a huge water fan.I drink Crystal Lite Peach Tea and Lemonade all day.Also 2-4 cups of coffee.Doesnt seem to hurt me none.

I loooove Crystal Lite Peach Tea!!! Now I will have to go and get some.

[zombiegoat2000]

Yep I do!

[eterprincess]

I drank Diet Coke the first time round, and drink it now. It didnt impact me that i noticed. I think it may depend on your sensitivity to artificial sweeteners.

@Kisha, where in NJ? I live in central NJ lol

[straphe]

I usually have a Diet Coke on Wednesdays during team meetings at my workplace, and I find that it shows on the ketostix - yesterday I was in the deepest purple, today I'm only in the second "phase", very light purple. It usually takes a couple of days to get back to deep purple as well, but I didn't find that it affected weight loss, so, who knows.

[facelessnumber]

Originally Posted by straphe

I usually have a Diet Coke on Wednesdays during team meetings at my workplace, and I find that it shows on the ketostix - yesterday I was in the deepest purple, today I'm only in the second "phase", very light purple. It usually takes a couple of days to get back to deep purple as well, but I didn't find that it affected weight loss, so, who knows.

Interesting. Maybe that has something to do with why ketostix have never worked for me. I MUST be in ketosis though, right? I mean I'm on a ketogenic diet, and I have lost over 75 pounds. But they barely ever change color.

[straphe]

Yeah, you must be. I've read in another thread that the intensity of purple on ketostix has to do with how hydrated you are as well.

[Robofitz]

I type this in the most respectful way possible and not to offend anyone, but why drink diet soda filled with chemicals?? Isn’t the point of eating LC to lose weight and be healthy? Healthy doesn’t necessarily mean skinny. Diet soda is filled with chemicals to make it taste better but the effect’s it has on our bodies is horrible. I know a lot of people drink diet pop all day or everyday and say “hey I feel ok” but the long term effects can wreak havoc on our bodies and our brains. If you want my opinion try to wean yourself off of diet soda or soda all together. There are plenty of yummy things you can drink. If you drink it for caffeine purposes, try coffee or tea. There are tons of articles you can find on the web in regards to aspartame and all the other junk in diet pop. Again, healthy starts by cutting out all the junk that makes us feel like crap, the rest will follow.

[Trillex]

Originally Posted by facelessnumber

Interesting. Maybe that has something to do with why ketostix have never worked for me. I MUST be in ketosis though, right? I mean I'm on a ketogenic diet, and I have lost over 75 pounds. But they barely ever change color.

With regard to the ketostix -- Mine have NEVER shown any sign of ketosis. No sign at all. Not a trace. I haven't had any diet sodas or artificially-sweetened drinks, at all, not before the diet and not since I've been on the diet. I've only allowed myself to have artificial sweeteners (xylitol and liquid splenda) on Sundays and during the week between Christmas and 2 January.

I've lost 62.5 pounds since I started Atkins in May. And I haven't eaten a single thing off-plan since I started Atkins on 11 May, so I *hope* I'm keto-adapted. But those urine sticks have never shown me any sign of ketosis.

At the beginning of the diet, I was concerned about the ketostix not registering a measurable level of ketones so I did some research. "Ketonuria" is the urinary elimination of ketones and "ketonemia" is the measurable blood-level of ketone bodies. Apparently, the amount of ketones that are eliminated through urine isn't necessarily indicative of the blood-level of ketones. AND some people's bodies -- and I'm hoping I'm one of those people -- process ketones in a way that doesn't raise the level of ketonuria. AND ketostix only measure one of the three types of ketone bodies that are produced during nutritional ketosis: acetoacetate. Beta-hydroxybutyrate and acetone are the other two types of ketones. Most people produce equal amounts of acetoacetate and beta-hydroxybutyrate, and most people don't produce much acetone, so urinary ketone testing *should* be a sufficient gauge of ketosis. But this is not true of every individual.

Plus, after 2-4 weeks of consistent low-carbohydrate eating, the body becomes keto-adapted and the body's production of ketones dramatically decreases because skeletal muscle adapts to periods of dietary glucose deprivation by re-engineering the cells to burn fatty acids directly. About 75% of the brain's nutritional needs will still be fed by ketones for as long as dietary carbohydrates are restricted -- because fatty acids can't cross the blood-brain barrier until they've been converted to ketones -- but this level of ketones is relatively low, since the majority of the body's energy needs are fed directly by fatty acids.

[Ntombi]

Originally Posted by Robofitz

I type this in the most respectful way possible and not to offend anyone, but why drink diet soda filled with chemicals?? Isn’t the point of eating LC to lose weight and be healthy? Healthy doesn’t necessarily mean skinny. Diet soda is filled with chemicals to make it taste better but the effect’s it has on our bodies is horrible. I know a lot of people drink diet pop all day or everyday and say “hey I feel ok” but the long term effects can wreak havoc on our bodies and our brains. If you want my opinion try to wean yourself off of diet soda or soda all together. There are plenty of yummy things you can drink. If you drink it for caffeine purposes, try coffee or tea. There are tons of articles you can find on the web in regards to aspartame and all the other junk in diet pop. Again, healthy starts by cutting out all the junk that makes us feel like crap, the rest will follow.

Because we all have our "things." I eat fast food sometimes too. Low carb, but I will sometimes have a bunless quarter pounder with cheese. Not because I'm desperate, but because I want it. I eat healthy foods overall, I buy certain organic veggies (some aren't worth the word organic), I try to eat wild-caught, rather than farmed, fish, but I still like to drink diet soda, and I still like to eat fast food. I yam what I yam.

[Robofitz]

Originally Posted by Ntombi

Because we all have our "things." I eat fast food sometimes too. Low carb, but I will sometimes have a bunless quarter pounder with cheese. Not because I'm desperate, but because I want it. I eat healthy foods overall, I buy certain organic veggies (some aren't worth the word organic), I try to eat wild-caught, rather than farmed, fish, but I still like to drink diet soda, and I still like to eat fast food. I yam what I yam.

As mentioned I wasnt trying to offend anyone but I still stand behind what I said, its really bad for us and I guess I just cant understand why anyone would want to literally poison their bodies. While fast food isnt the best for you it still doesnt have aspartame it. Aspartame is linked with a slew of health problems such as depression, brain tumors, seizures, joint problems and the list goes on and on. Not trying to condemn anyone, just stating the facts. Again, I say this with the most respect. I say do what makes you happy and if drinking diet soda pop is what makes you happy then go for it, but it still doesnt make it any less bad for you and that is the only point I was trying to make

[Ntombi]

I don't think anyone here would argue that diet soda is healthy.

[brimmy]

Originally Posted by Robofitz

As mentioned I wasnt trying to offend anyone but I still stand behind what I said, its really bad for us and I guess I just cant understand why anyone would want to literally poison their bodies. While fast food isnt the best for you it still doesnt have aspartame it. Aspartame is linked with a slew of health problems such as depression, brain tumors, seizures, joint problems and the list goes on and on. Not trying to condemn anyone, just stating the facts. Again, I say this with the most respect. I say do what makes you happy and if drinking diet soda pop is what makes you happy then go for it, but it still doesnt make it any less bad for you and that is the only point I was trying to make

Respectfully could you please cite the scientific journals you've read these "links" in? I've searched all over the net at times to find credible sources of research that didn't involve things like consuming aspartame on the equivalent of 50-100 servings of it in a single day. Or it's supposed calcium leeching ability which has been shown to have the same level effect as things such as natural orange juice.

I recently switched from drinking diet soda to water, but mostly for cost sake, not because I believe any of the chemicals are harmful. I would legitimately be interested to read some recent research if has been shown to be harmful. The worst things I've read recently are THEORIES that the sweet taste in artificial sweeteners might result in an insulin response. However I've not read anything that has actually showed empirical evidence.