To think Diet Coke caused my visit to A&E?

[Lalalalalalalaaa]

At the weekend I was so unwell I rang 111 and ended up in A&E with severe stomach cramps that lasted days. I was really worried- they came in waves like period pain but when they kicked in a was bent over double and unable to move. Really scary.

Doctors were great but everything (bloods, urine) came back normal. I’ve been racking my brains to see if i ate/drank anything that may have caused this and this morning I suddenly realised that Diet Coke is the out of the usual thing I had on Friday- my symptoms came on after drinking it. I don’t usually- my husband got it as Coke Zero was out of stock. I also generally don’t drink a lot of fizzy drinks but was tired, saw it in the fridge and took it to work.

Now, I have one friend that swears she will never ever drink Diet Coke as it “rotted her stomach” to the point she needed surgery (I’ve messaged her for some more info!!!)

How likely do you think it might be that Diet Coke has caused this reaction? Has anyone else ever had awful side effects?

I’m scheduled in for an ultrasound but wondering if something like that will even show anything up if it’s that…

Apparently the new covid varient Has gastric issues as one of the symptoms, did they test for covid?
Both me and my dh had some kind of virus a few weeks ago which included stabbing pains in my stomach
It crossed my mind it may have been covid.

I can believe you've never experienced extreme gut pain such as you might get from trapped wind, gallstones, kidney stones etc.

@Lalalalalalalaaa One can of any drink is not going to 'rot your stomach' that is impossible. For your stomach to rot, you would need to cut off the blood supply. If you'd done that, you'd not be posting here.

People who drink huge amounts of fizzy drinks, sugary or articifical sweetener, might well experience some stomach issues and gut disorders - that is from the excess quantity rather than the drink itself. Consume an excess quantity of anything and you're likely to do yourself harm!

https://www.newsweek.com/common-sweetener-damage-gut-diarrhea-1893734
While the study (www.frontiersin.org/journals/nutrition/articles/10.3389/fnut.2024.1366409/full) featured in this article focuses mostly on neotame, neotame is chemically related to aspartame and the study itself goes into some detail explaining that neotame, aspartame and other artificial sweeteners can adversely impact gut bacteria, damage the gut, and cause a range of symptoms. These things are to be avoided.

You don't know whsts causing the tummy " boo boo" my son had bouts of sickness a couple of years ago
One weekend he wasent very well and collapsed on the Sunday night ,the paramedics immediately diagnosed him with Diabetes and he was in DKA which is life threatening he was in critical care within an hour where they found he had acute necrotizing pancreatitis, which had led to Diabetes.

Gallstones are not a tummy booboo.

I have chronic pain and disabilities HOWEVER acute abdominal pain, so bad you can stand and are vomiting and wretching could be anything from gallstones to liver failure to appendicitis, why WOULDNT you go to a and e with that?

Your/my personal normal amount of pain from chronic conditions is very different, I can now even go 'wrlk that's my gall bladder clearly, I'll take my meds and if in 5-6 hours it's worse or I have a fever I'll go to a and e as I've been instructed' the first few times with the pain that made me want to die with no known cause? Absolutely you go to a and e

How much Coke did you drink? If it was 1 can and you don't usually drink it, then personally I wouldn't say this was the culprint.

If it was 5 cans and it was the sugar version and you don't usually drink it and don't usually have much sugar in your diet then may be.

"Now, I have one friend that swears she will never ever drink Diet Coke as it “rotted her stomach” to the point she needed surgery (I’ve messaged her for some more info!!!)"

😂This sounds more like a Sun or DailyMail Story, I think were all dying to find out how it rotted her stomach and you fix a rotted stomach. Please comeback with more info 😂😂😂

That's amusing, seeing as I don't have all my bowel 😂
Funnily enough, I'm just not a baby who goes to A&E with stomach pain.

Gallstones are something that is referred by a GP. A gallstone attack is painful, but not an A&E job. You don't even know if the OP has gallstones - it could have been gas. Either way, she's clearly OK now, as all her results were fine and she's typing on Mumsnet. So, not an emergency 🙄

Also, you probably mean, "Retching".

OP - were the pains low? I only mention as also perhaps see if you can get a pelvic scan

Years ago - I had what A&E suspect was a twisted ovary. I kid you not but the pains were like labour pains to the point that A&E suspected I had a hidden pregnancy. Like period pains times a million percent. Doubled over. Couldn’t move. I was on gas and air whilst waiting to be assessed. It did twist itself back in the time I was in A&E. Worst pain, other than labour pain, that I’ve ever had. Literally no other symptoms though. Just throwing this other potential out there (sorry!)

Complications from gallstones absolutely are an a and E job though. My mum and sister have both ended up extremely unwell due to gallstones moving out of the gallbladder and into pancreas and liver making both very unwell. My sister was on the critical list and my mum ended up in resus.

Dp actually works for a cola company and they say that the aspartame thing is a bit of a myth to be honest. And to be fair it’s very unlikely that Diet Coke has resulted in abdominal pain at all

Ha, an employee of a cola company that uses aspartame says it’s harmless. And bears sh*t in the woods and the Pope is Catholic. Meanwhile back in reality, 92% of independent (of the industry) studies say aspartame has adverse health effects. You can Google it….

Yes but gallstone pain can be agonising and you don't know what it is for certain esp. the first time even if you may suspect you know.

If I got agonising pain I would definitely go to AE. it's an entirely reasonable response.

Coke gives me severe stomach pain i cannot drink it at all

It is when the person doesn't know where the pain comes from or what it's caused by.

Have you ever had acute gallstones? The GP will send you to a and e if you present with gallstones and a fever (I know because I've been sent just last week) however you don't KNOW it's gallstones until you KNOW.

Acute, severe, abdominal pain is absolutely a reason to visit a and e.

My late husband who had a PhD in chemistry wouldn’t allow coke (the drink!)in the house.Always said nobody would drink it if they understood the ingredients and what they can do to you.

Most artificial sweeteners gives me severe stomach pain and/or nausea. It's well known issue for some people. I genuinely don't understand how people can drink it as it tastes so vile!

I can't drink Diet Coke/other diet drinks as it gives me horrendous stomach ache and migraines. I've taken note of my reactions to diet drinks over the years and aspartame is the worst, I'm then a bit better with stevia (Coke Zero) and fine with sucralose (cordial drinks). So I usually go for original coke or cordials now if I fancy a sugary drink.

Pepsi max does this to me. I can only tolerate a small amount. (I have no gall bladder FWIW).

Most likely diverticulitis

Gallstones?

Aside from everyone jousting over whether or not OP should or shouldn't have gone to A&E and also playing "my health problems are worse than YOUR health problems" in this thread...

Just had a look at the UK list of ingredients for the two sodas (right off of Coca-Cola's website itself) -

COKE ZERO (which OP claims to be able to drink just fine):
Carbonated Water
Colour (E150d)
Acid (Phosphoric Acid)
Sweeteners (Aspartame, Acesulfame-K, Enzymatically Produced Steviol Glycosides)
Natural Flavourings
Caffeine Flavouring
Acidity Regulator (Sodium Citrates)

DIET COKE (which OP claims perhaps caused her issues):
Carbonated Water,
Colour (Caramel E150d)
Sweeteners (Aspartame, Acesulfame-K)
Natural Flavourings
Caffeine Flavouring
Acids (Phosphoric Acid, Citric Acid)

Note that Diet Coke does not contain a single ingredient that Coke Zero doesn't also have in it, with the exception of citric acid, and since it's the last ingredient on the list that means it's presumably present in a very low amount. It is nearly of zero possibility that Diet Coke "caused" OP's issue unless it was a "straw that broke the camel's back" type of situation, in which case presumably a drink of OP's normal Coke Zero would also have caused the exact same issue.

Both drinks use aspartame and Acesulfame-K as sweeteners, for those PP who claim that the acesulfame was the issue. It's different in other countries, but presumably OP is in the UK and would have drank the UK version of the soda.

Artificial sweeteners are terrible for me. I avoid them altogether