Question:
I have been craving Diet Coke....
Is it good for us to drink carbonated beverages or not? My post op regimen says to avoid carbonated beverages for 6 months. I am 2 months post op and really want a Diet Coke. I have been good so far but for some reason, that is what I miss the most. What are your thoughts??? Thanks. — Stephanie W. (posted on January 25, 2005)
January 25, 2005
My dietician at the Center for Weight Loss in Lexington Ky says that
carbonation stretches and epands the stomach, and over time this will be
permanate(sp). Some where I read that people who drink diet soft drinks
tend to be heavier any ways.Good luck on your decision making Michelle
— [Deactivated Member]
January 25, 2005
Hey Steph, I would stay away from it, surgeon also says six months. If you
follow through with your craving I would have a sip of it flat. I've heard
drinking carbaonated pop feels like the sound of coke being poured down the
drain sounds. Hard to explain but you'll feel the bubbles going down all
the way. Try it flat and be safe if your going to. Good luck.
— kristiegarcia
January 25, 2005
I say, take a swallow--I am 5 weeks post op and I was dying for a Dr.
Pepper. I took 2 swallows and it made me feel like shit!!! I do not dump,
but I felt so bloated. I'll admit I have had a few sips here and
there--every time I feel yucky. It broke my craving! Good luck to ya!
Krysti
— Krysti M.
January 25, 2005
If you feel the need to drink it, I would suggest you get a fountain drink
with lots of ice, and stir it to release most of the carbination and weaken
down quite abit. Oh it taste so good I love diet coke but I only drink it
from a fountain with lots of ice and I dont care for it from a can or 20 oz
bottle. and take small sips, and only sip a small amount. Enjoy. Its
always best to do as your doc says. Almost 2 years out and maintaining
:0). Rosemary
— wizz40
January 25, 2005
No! I was a BIG diet coke drinker. The carbonation will expand your
stomach. No drinking with straws either. These two are no's.. no's...
— Linda R.
January 25, 2005
Hi I too am a Patient of the Center for Weight Loss and They say no. That
out of the few patients that they have had that lost there weight and
gained some back where also those who drunk carbonated beverages. So what
do I say well they did say that if something felt stuck or to much mucuas
build up to take a drink it would open the stoma and allow whatever to pass
through. SO I got it in my head I am craving it so why not just once. Well
I can't tolerate anything cold but can't handle the fizz so pour it over
ice right. I noticed after just three days of one a day (Diet Caffiene
free) I could eat more on these days and stopped losing. SO I immediatly
stoped no more for over a month now and besides the fact that it gave me
aweful gas pressure I have now started losing againg and have went back to
just a few bites and full. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone. But I had to
learn for myself. Best Wishes
— Shell G
January 25, 2005
Put some artifical sugar in your diet coke. Then watch the fizz! It will
make the diet drinks much easier on your pouch. I still drink mine this
way.
— Danmark
January 25, 2005
Trust me, the taste of that diet coke will NOT be worth the pain of the gas
you will have after drinking it. I too craved anything carbonated and the
doctor said it is not that it will stretch the pouch so much in the first
few months but that the gas, not having the same "track", so to
speak, to travel on gets trapped and hurts like labor pains.
If it is JUST the taste that you miss, shake out all the bubbles and have a
taste. That FLAT one will make you not crave them anymore. YUK!!! I had the
bad trapped gas ONCE(not from carbonation) and the pain was worse than from
the surgery!!
— CAMFR
January 25, 2005
My surgeon's office said that long-term those that avoid carbonated
beverages do better with this surgery. I know the carbonation is hard on
the pouch, so it's best to avoid it. Also, we can't afford the luxury of
giving into our cravings--that will also get you in trouble too!
— Cathy S.
January 25, 2005
Im over 2 yrs out. Ive been drinking diet sodas since about a month out.
I drink them every now and again. It has never bothered me,, gas, weight
wise or anything, my surgeon or dietician never had a warning against diet
sodas, if your going to drink soda, just make sure its diet,, Ive lost over
160 pounds, It has not affected me negetively at all,, I just think like a
movie, everyone has there own opionions. You have to try it to see what
your opionion is. Good luck, Amy
— Amy Hoffman
January 25, 2005
I miss Diet Cherry Coke sometimes, so when I want it, I buy a 20 oz bottle,
pour a little bit into a cup with ice, stir, and let it flatten. I do this
once of couple of months, just when I have the taste for it. A 20 oz.
bottle lasts an awful long time!
— kultgirl
January 25, 2005
I've been drinking diet pop since month 2 post-op. It's the ONLY thing I
drink. I'm over 3 years post-op and it hasn't hurt my weight loss at all.
I've lost 125 pounds and have maintained it since month 10 post-op.
— Patty H.
January 26, 2005
Hi.There are so many pros and cons about diet sodas. I was very much a diet
CF coke or pepsi drinker. Now when I have to have one, I do, but I usually
take most of the fizz out of it. I have had some without the fizz out and
it just makes me belch. One surgeon told me that it stretches the pouch. My
surgeon told me that it isn't the stretching, but the caffeine and/or the
sugary taste increases your appetite. I think that once you drink it you
will see it isn't as good as it used to be. I have never been a tea
drinker, but I found that good earth original CF and decaf Vanilla tea
together cold, satisfy my need for Colas. I can't drink water with any
degree of success so I drink tea all day. Good luck. JO
— Jo Marie M.
January 26, 2005
As you can see from the previous posts, there is much disagreement as to if
and how carbonated beverages are bad for you (I disagree with almost all of
the reasons cited, btw). But that's not the point, as your question is, is
it "good" to drink carbonated beverages, and the answer is to
that is, unequivocally, "no." What's good about it, meaning,
what nutritional value is there in a diet coke for your body? Let's be
honest, zippo, baybee!. Maybe it's bad, maybe it ain't, but for sure, it's
not "good."<P>You gotta place this early post-op period in
perspective. Right now, you've got two objectives to serve: (1) healing
up from the surgery, during which time you want to get as much healthful
nutrition into your body as your little tiny healing pouch will allow; and
(2) killing your old bad eating habits with the "shock treatment"
that WLS provides, at least, in the beginning. If you drink diet coke now,
*against* your doc's protocol, you blow both objectives. Since it has no
nutritional value, you shouldn't waste valuable pouch space or time with
it, liquid status notwithstanding. *Plus* -- and I'm taking a shot in the
dark here, but I'll bet I'm right -- if you were someone who overate as a
pre-op and then washed it all down with diet coke (example: "I'll
have two double cheeseburgers, two super-sized fries, and" ~~ demure
smile here ~~ a diet coke, please"), then, there's a bad habit
associated with that beverage that you could stand to take a physical and
mental break from, at least for awhile.<P>Seen in another light, if
you can't follow this simple, temporary rule, whaddya think your chances
are in 18 months, or two or five years from now, telling yourself
"no" to overeating, bad food temptations, or lack of exercise,
all of which you will be tempted by, and all of which can lead to stalled
weight loss and regain, regardless of your WLS? Think on it. Your
dedication will never be better than it is right now, and if you can't
handle something this simple and limited for a few months, well then . . .
yikes, y'know? And, I say that as someone who also *really* wanted a diet
coke as a new post-op, spent a lot of time at work in meetings fixedly
staring at other peoples' cans of diet coke just wanting, wanting, wanting,
some, and if *I* could say "no" for a few lousy months, well
then, surely you can too.<P>And now that I'm 2 1/2 years post-op, I
drink one every now 'n then, without ever thinking, "Dang! How I
regret not having had more diet coke in my life! Oh, if only I could get
the 3rd and 4th quarters of 2002 back, by golly, I'd have poured buckets of
the stuff down my gullet if only I had to do it over again!," etc.,
etc., etc. See how silly??<P>After everything you've been through so
far . . . this ain't nothing. You'll get through it.
— Suzy C.
January 26, 2005
i am a pepsi holic let me tell you but it is true i could not tolerate the
pepsi but they told me if i really wanted it really bad to fill a glass
with ice to the top and pour the pepsi in it and let sit for about 15 min
it dosent taste very good that way but thats the ohly way you can drink it
i try it a few times and gave it up and just drank crystal lite for about a
year than i try diet pepsi with lots of ice and it works ok now but that
is the only way i can derink it cannot drink it without ice just dosnt do
it.
take care and good luck
— ROSEMARY A.
January 26, 2005
Carbonated beverages...BAD, BAD, BAD! Well in my opinion they are. I
jumped back on the Diet Pepsi bandwagon at 9 mos post op. I drink about
two 20 oz bottles per day. Thats down from the two 2-liters I used to
drink before surgery. Why do I think they are bad? Well #1. They cause
excessive gas, which is very embarrassing. #2 I tend to crave more foods,
thus eating more when I drink them. (I dont know if this is due to pouch
stretching or just the effect of the sugary liquid) #3. I don't get my
required amount of daily water intake when I choose my diet pepsi. and
finally...I have been on a plateau since I began drinking diet pepsi again.
Now that I stated my opinion, I want to thank you all for forcing me to
re-evaluate my eating and drinking habits. NO MORE DIET PEPSI FOR ME!!!
Good luck and great rewards on your journey!
Michelle 415/268 09/26/03 Lap RNY
— Michelle B.
January 27, 2005
Diet Coke *is* not good for you . . . caffeine, brow liquids contribute to
kidney stones, etc.
But if you're dying for it, try a little . . . sips, slowly, out of a glass
full of ice.
The bubbles will hurt . . . but no, Coke won't stretch the pouch, and
straws are great . . . only thing that keeps me from burping brains out!
(I swallow less air with straw that without.)
But keep the Coke to modest levels . . . I have 1-2 Diet sodas/week,
usually less, mostly Shasta with Splenda, occasiona Diet Coke or Dr. Pepper
(Cherry Vanilla DP, yum!)
I'm 2 years out, down 175 lbs, under goal, and still losing a little.
Good luck with it, but I think you'll find that the gas isn't worth it . .
. I mean stuck bubbles in pouch, painful bloat, etc.
— RWH G.
January 29, 2005
any kind of soda is not good for you, especially after wls, but my doc told
me i could, on occasion have half a diet coke mixed with the same ammount
of water, or let a can sit until almost completly flat. i have either a
diet 7up or diet jones rootbeer (it's made with splenda, and dosen't taste
like diet) on my splurge day. ( i have one meal on sunday where i eat what
i want in moderation as long as it doens't make me sick.) otherwise, i
stick to water, koolaid made with splenda, or waterd down juice.
— mellyhudel
February 2, 2005
I know what you mean. I crave Diet Root Beer off and on and have since
surgery. I am now almost a year out and I will give into the craving but
only a very small glass and only after I let it sit out for awhile to
release some of the carbonation. I haven't had any problems when I do this
but I don't do it often at all. Maybe once every few months. Good luck to
you!
Tiff (Lap RNY 2/17/04; 245 lbs - 149lbs)
— Tiffany B.
Click Here to Return