To tell you about my experience with fizzy drinks?

[Junction6]

At the start of the year I decided to make some changes, one of which was stopping drinking fizzy drinks. This was primarily motivated by them being bad for dental health, but also that I’d read they’re awful for gut biome. I always drank diet versions, so calories weren’t an issue.

I’d also started to recognise something almost akin to addiction - if I didn’t have any for a little while, I’d almost start to crave it, and the craving would go away with the first mouthful. It was the only thing I’d drink, aside from tea and coffee. I rarely drank water.

Anyway, it might be completely unrelated but I’m so much less bloated (unsurprisingly) but also much more regular. After years of swerving between the runs and constipation, and everything in between, I’m going regularly and normally. I just feel generally better.

Has anyone else had a similar experience?

These types of drinks are filled with ingredients, that are harmful to the gut, imo. I know some people who seem to use cans of drinks, as their main source of liquid intake, and are bringing up their children to think nothing of reaching for a can, or bottle of something fizzy, when they are thirsty. These habits are unfortunately just being passed on to the younger generation.

I’ve drank Diet Coke all my life alternating with fizzy water because I don’t like hot drinks.

I was drinking far too much alcohol after a really really shitty few years (made redundant, both parents died, problems with a very strange neighbour stalking me - police couldn’t do anything as he’s clever and there is no proof, then my partner leaving me for a much younger woman) and it crept up to half a bottle of vodka (sometimes more) a night with Diet Coke.

I went into intensive therapy and realised how harmful the drinking was and just had enough last December and stopped, I was drinking every night for years.
I stayed sober over Christmas and new year and I’m incredibly proud of how well I’m doing and plan to keep it up as long as possible.

I had no serious withdrawal from alcohol which was very lucky, the withdrawal from Diet Coke was horrendous.
I had constant headaches, no energy and irritable.

I was recently told in a support group that it’s common to have “sobriety fatigue” that can last for months so I’m sure that’s part of it, I’ve had really bad sugar cravings too but that’s normal too.

I have lost almost 2 stone in 2 months and feel better mentally but I’m still struggling with exhaustion and sleeping 12 hours plus a night with naps on top when I can. I’m just trying to get through each day and reminding myself my body is recovering and resetting itself completely.

I couldn’t keep up with quitting Diet Coke but have decided it’s ok to have the one vice, It was just too much to give up drinking alcohol and Diet Coke together and the headaches stopped straight away, I was less irritable and it helped curb the sugar cravings.
My teeth are perfect and have never had a filling in my 40 years and my dentist said the Diet Coke is better than having several cups of coffee or tea like a lot of people.
I’ve had no issues with constipation as I have a healthy diet with plenty of fibre.

Like a pp I have a soda stream so drink fizzy water most of the time but the additional cans of Diet Coke seem to be doing no harm.
I’m sure I’m better off now I’m not drinking 2 litres a night with vodka!

Do you think it's the fizziness or the ingredients? Do you think not drinking sparking water would have the same effect?

Well done OP.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, artificial sweeteners are known endocrine disruptors which is why I never touch them. They are also implicated in ulcerative colitis/crohns presumably because of the effect on bowel flora so its not surprising you feel better.
There's research about this spanning decades which I first came accross in the early 1990s so the evidence has been there for years.

The sugar tax which resulted in a massive increase in artificial sweeteners over sugar is a disaster for public health IMO.

I drank either 10 cans of diet coke a day or the equivalent - for about 30 years.

I gave up, cold turkey, in July last year.

Can't say I've noticed any health difference at all.

I only gave up because there was a slight chance that the caffeine might be triggering hot flushes....

I don't drink tea or coffee so am now more or less caffeine free. Wish I had felt a difference!

I've given up loads of things over the years, drinking, smoking etc - the only one I felt a benefit from was giving up alcohol.

Now I just live like a nun!

Well obviously. They’re literally just pure UPF in drink form.

I cannot tolerate artificial sweeteners so I rarely drink fizzy drinks as even the 'full fat' ones have some sweetener in too!
If I drink one with sweetener (either accidently or when I think sod it) I have awful headace, stomach cramps and nausea. It happens if I have sugar-free yoghurt or something similar.
I now have soda water with a splash of elderflower cordial which is still just sugar

And maybe it was coincidental but I was very ill around the same time.

You would have been consuming large quantities of artificial sweeteners which are increasingly being proven to cause gut issues