Well, it's certainly been a busy time. I've been pretty good about what I eat lately, so that's a plus.
Now for the big news: on September 26, 2011, I drank my last Diet Coke. Well, that's not entirely true. I haven't had one since then, but I'm not eliminating the possibility all together. But, Diet Cokes will be extremely limited and only in very small amounts. I know that if I ban it all together, I'll crave it desperately and cave. If I allow it sometimes, I'm less likely to want it.
It's been surprisingly easy. I've had only two sips on two different days, and both times I found the experience... lacking. Certainly not the reaction I've directed at the sweet, bubbly drink in the past.
It started with a tweet from my most favorite of celebrities (though he refers to himself as a cable-lebrity), Alton Brown. A couple of years ago he lost a ton of weight and did a whole episode of his show 'Good Eats' dedicated to how he made it happen. Mr. Brown posted a link to an article about how artificial sweeteners may affect your metabolism. The 'layperson' version of the article can be found here. I have found Mr. Brown to be a level-headed person who is not prone to hyperbole or over-dramatization about things, so I figured I'd read the article.
Ordinarily, I'm not one to vilify artificial sweeteners. Not enough research has been done to show it causes cancer in small to moderate amounts. It increased cancer odds if they fed it to mice by the truckload, so it wasn't the best of research. This study was different. It was the most logical explanation of what artificial sweeteners may be doing to our bodies that I have ever heard. It didn't contain all the frightening buzz words (cancer, etc.) - just a simple, logical conclusion about what it might be doing. The researchers even said upfront that more research was required and that their study was just an initial finding.
But it was enough. I decided that it was time for me and aspartame (and sadly, Diet Coke) to part ways. I drank Crystal Light lemonade the next day, but it wasn't too long when it dawned on me that it had aspartame in it, too. ::sigh:: Several days later I found True Lemon lemonade packets. Low calorie lemonade that used natural ingredients. A tiny bit of sugar and stevia. Stevia is a natural, plant-based sugar that I believe is lower calorie than regular sugar. I still have to do more research, but my initial findings didn't produce anything alarming. True Lemon has now become my weekday lunch beverage of choice. Icy, icy cold, of course.
With this decision I've swiftly eliminated a big beverage choice. I don't drink alcohol (I don't like the taste), I don't like regular sodas, and now I'm not drinking artificial sweeteners. I guess I'll have to find juices and teas that I like now!
On that note, I'm off to bed. I've got to teach/converse with a lovely group of middle schoolers tomorrow morning. And then, the best afternoon ever - Mr. Alton Brown is in STL and I'll be there to hear him and meet him. WHOO HOO! :) :)
