OT: 10-reasons-to-give-up-diet-soda

Well this is my one and only vice. I know it is harmful but I want it.
I am addicted to it. Should I try a 12 step program...
aka: New Yorker 1950

There is no way I could quit using diet soda. That would as impossible for me as to quit smoking, or for that matter to quite drinking alcohol.

I an not possibly quit any of these vices.

In order to quit I would first have to start.
I have refused to drink diet soda since its inception. On the rare occasion someone handed me a diet soda one sip was way too much.
The same rule applies to drinking. My arms are not long enough to hold a glass with an alcoholic beverage. The smell is repulsive.
A couple weeks ago I was out to diner with my wife and daughter to celebrate my wife's birthday. She had a glass of wine. I had to insist she move it to the far side of the table, away from me.

I quit smoking after my first cigarette around the age of 3.

I used to be a diet soda addict. I'm not a huge fan of drinking water with meals. I weaned myself off of sodas with flavored sparkling waters--very easy and inexpensive now to make your own with a Soda Stream. Sparkling water and a squeeze of lemon or lime is nice.

My latest thing is cherry flavored kombucha, a probiotic drink. It's very expensive, though, so I'm in the process of growing my own SCOBY to make my own in a continuous brewing system which costs just pennies to keep going. Sugar is added to the tea, but that's for the Microbes, not the drinker. I'm drinking kombucha instead of wine with dinner and getting a boost of energy instead of sleepy.

I like tinkering with ferments (pickles, sauerkraut, yogurt, kefir), so I'm having fun with my new SCOBY baby.

Janknitz wrote:I used to be a diet soda addict. I'm not a huge fan of drinking water with meals. I weaned myself off of sodas with flavored sparkling waters--very easy and inexpensive now to make your own with a Soda Stream. Sparkling water and a squeeze of lemon or lime is nice.

My latest thing is cherry flavored kombucha, a probiotic drink. It's very expensive, though, so I'm in the process of growing my own SCOBY to make my own in a continuous brewing system which costs just pennies to keep going. Sugar is added to the tea, but that's for the Microbes, not the drinker. I'm drinking kombucha instead of wine with dinner and getting a boost of energy instead of sleepy.

I like tinkering with ferments (pickles, sauerkraut, yogurt, kefir), so I'm having fun with my new SCOBY baby.

I used to make kefir and kombucha tea. I got those wicked little ants in my kitchen and got both ruined. I think I might start this again if I can find a scoby and kefir starter. My husband loved the kefir cheese. Once I made some lye soap and he thought it was cheese. Bless his heart.

When I permanently gave up dieting, that also included a vow to never drink another diet soda again. Unfortunately, that led to my drinking a can of real pepsi a day which led to quick tooth decay. As a result, I rarely drink any soda.

By the way, I am not writing this to brag because my diet definitely needs improvement but at least consuming soda (diet or real) isn't a problem for me.

49er

I never drank diet anything. It tastes bloody awful and leaves this disgusting taste at the back of my mouth. Totally gross.

I never liked Coke either and most pop is revoltingly sweet. I like to order Italian sodas and tell them to use half the syrup otherwise sparkling water (plain) with a twist of lemon or lime is refreshing.

BlackSpinner wrote:I never drank diet anything. It tastes bloody awful and leaves this disgusting taste at the back of my mouth. Totally gross.

I never liked Coke either and most pop is revoltingly sweet. I like to order Italian sodas and tell them to use half the syrup otherwise sparkling water (plain) with a twist of lemon or lime is refreshing.

I love sparking water but interestingly, have not found anyone else who likes it as much as I do.

49er

49er wrote:

BlackSpinner wrote:I never drank diet anything. It tastes bloody awful and leaves this disgusting taste at the back of my mouth. Totally gross.

I never liked Coke either and most pop is revoltingly sweet. I like to order Italian sodas and tell them to use half the syrup otherwise sparkling water (plain) with a twist of lemon or lime is refreshing.

I love sparking water but interestingly, have not found anyone else who likes it as much as I do.

49er

Me, too!

Gave up diet sodas about 5 years ago. My neighbor, who is slim, exercises regularly and eats a very low fat diet, refuses to give them up despite all the bad publicity. When I have cards at my house and I provide the beverages, I don't buy 'diet' anything. No matter what I have to drink, she will only have a glass of water with ice cubes. I don't like to think that I'm a bad host to anyone and maybe I should buy diet pop so she can have something other than water.

Hubby refilled Soda Stream bottles with a pound of broken up dry ice each.
You want to be very careful not to hurt the gasket; and leave it outdoors until all the frost is gone.
Not every one should try this, but it is very, very cheap!

chunkyfrog wrote:Hubby refilled Soda Stream bottles with a pound of broken up dry ice each.
You want to be very careful not to hurt the gasket; and leave it outdoors until all the frost is gone.
Not every one should try this, but it is very, very cheap!

We just got a SodaStream, it's been amazing. Has lasted for weeks now (dozens of liters) on one charge. And even the official refills (which cost way more than just CO2 needs to) are like 1/4 the cost per liter of buying sparkling water. Maybe less.

Stormy, got my kombucha scoby from a bottle of GT Original Kombucha. I looked through the bottles for one with a scoby in it and found one with two thick scoby disks. It's doing really well, but slow in our cool kitchen. Once I get it really perking it will be ok even if slow.

You can ask on your local Freecycle for kefir grains, but I ended up buying on Amazon for $6 including shipping and those grains have been awesome. I can't drink much kefir, but my husband has a big glass every night.

I also put up a batch of beet kvass yesterday, and there's already activity in the jar. It's an acquired taste but I love the earthy flavor.

Janknitz wrote:Stormy, got my kombucha scoby from a bottle of GT Original Kombucha. I looked through the bottles for one with a scoby in it and found one with two thick scoby disks. It's doing really well, but slow in our cool kitchen. Once I get it really perking it will be ok even if slow.

You can ask on your local Freecycle for kefir grains, but I ended up buying on Amazon for $6 including shipping and those grains have been awesome. I can't drink much kefir, but my husband has a big glass every night.

I also put up a batch of beet kvass yesterday, and there's already activity in the jar. It's an acquired taste but I love the earthy flavor.

Thank you for the help. I ordered the kefir for both milk and water from
Amazon. I will get the scoby later.