About 4 or 5 months ago I decided to give up drinking regular soda and switch to diet. Considering I pretty much lived on soda for the majority of my life up to this point, this was going to be no easy task. I felt like I needed to do it because I wanted to drop a little weight, and from what I have heard, the ammount of sugar and high fructose corn syrup they manage to pack into a bottle of soda is pretty ridiculous. High fructose corn syrup is horrible for your body. It really helps you pack on the pounds and is terrible for your bones.So any ways, the first week without soda was the worst. I almost felt like I was trying to quit cigarettes. I was irritable and and craving soda constantly. After that first week, I was getting used to drinking diet soda and didn't really feel the need to go back to the regular junk. Every now and then I cave in and get a bottle, but I have definitely cut way down on my soda intake. Since then I have lost around 17 pounds partly because of this. If you need a little motivation to do the same, I read the following fun fact online, By drinking 32 ounces less a day of soda, a person could lose 42 pounds in a year.
As a medical provider (acupuncturist - with one year remaining in school) I advise all my clients to cut back on their soda (regular and diet).
Feeling unwell? - 9 times out of 10 you can see a reduction in what's ailing you if you simply cut out the soda, which is a highly refined beverage, containing almost no natural or "whole" ingredients. Nothing that tasty-sweet is real. Even fruit juices have a bit of tang and sourness to them.
It's really difficult to stop because soda is an addiction. There will be a few weeks of discomfort, but you can always expect to see an improvement once the sugar cravings and headaches subside.