Soda?

Is there a medical reason for not drinking diet soda after having RNY?    Occasionally I've been having some... I'll drink maybe 8 oz a week... if that.  I hate ... hate.. let me emphasize... HATE water so once in awhile it's nice to actually drink something other than coffee. 

Diet soda is loaded with salt and it actually makes you more thirsty than you are. It has no nutritional value whatsoever , can cause kidney stones, I was told it can cause ulcers(not sure about that) some people with Interstitial Cystitis have severe burning from the aspartame. It leaches the vitamins and minerals from our bones and some studies hint that it can be a cause of MS. Thats just off the top of my head, lol. I feel for you because I used to love it and I HATE water too. Now I drink hot tea and room temp lifewater. Good luck with finding the right drink for you.

Sorry, but if you look at the label on diet soda you will see that it does NOT have any sodium. Because of the physical arrangement of or new anatomy, soda is not in our pouch long enough to cause ulcers (but the acid might bother people with their natural stomachs). There have been just as many studies that show that it does NOT leach anything from your bones as those that are, so that one also goes out the window.

I don't know about the MS thing, but since you say "hint", my guess is that it is one person's opinion and nothing more.

You are correct, however, that it has no nutritional value and can encourage (not cause) kidney stones IN THOSE PREDISPOSED TO THEM (an important distinction). It can also cause some people to want to eat things that they used to eat regularly when they had a soda.

Lora

I didn't know half the stuff the first poster posted but I will say that I DID know the following: 

Soda = carbonation = gas = uncomfortable tummy when trying to drink it.

In short, early out for me soda HURT. I admit to trying it. It wasn't worth the pain. Forget the nutritional reasons for/against! I am now 5 years post-op and every now and again I have a soda. Not often, but then my surgeon never told me to give them up for life. 

BUT having said that...you need to embrace some water based drinks. Dehydration is not fun. I speak from experience. Plus the body needs lots of water to burn fat. So by drinking water (even with Crystal Light or MiO in it) you are helping your process a lot.

See my response above. I did a lot of research on this before deciding to continue drinking soda (much more moderately than I did before surgery), so I have seen some of the studies and actual medical articles, and some of them are simply not true. Just urban myths like soda stretching your pouch.

It is still NOT a healthy choice, of course, but people should make that decision based on accurate info. Some of us (e.g., Leslie (kittenlove) and I) find that having a soda helps keep us from wanting to eat something calorie-laden and even less healthy.

Lora

I quit soda for good before surgery, not going back, not going to tempt fate. My main drinks right now are decaf tea and kool-aid with a bit of truvia in them.

I quit soda too. my surgery is next month. I've heard that soda stretches the pouch, which is a complete myth. I think it's as simple as gas, and not getting back into old habits.

I hate water too. I use crystal light and it is delish

I used to love diet coke, but told myself once I got this surgery I would kick that habit for good (hard to do when you've been drinking it for over 20 years!).  I tried a tiny sip the other day of my husband's cherry coke and it was just ok.  I don't think I'm going to miss soda.  I drink tons of herbal teas, water, propel, and crystal light.  Lots of other options, so much better for you.

I do drink Coke Zero.  I have one a day.  I also drink coffee, tea, but not alcohol (recovering alcoholic).  

That being said-make sure you're getting all the fluid you need in a day before you add soda.  Don't replace your fluids with soda.

I won't repeat myself, so see my responses to two other posters.

I did a lot of research on this matter a couple of years ago and made the decision to continue drinking diet soda. I drink much less than I did 5 years ago, but I drink it more days than not (and, occasionally, have two on one day).

I will warn you that, as good as your intentions might be to drink only 8 ounces a week, that likely won't "hold up" for very long. Almost all of us who started drinking it again after surgery (at whatever point -- some later than others because of variations in pouch discomfort) drink more after a year or so than we started out drinking. Most of us have still been able to moderate how much we drink, but it is still more than we started with.

Lora