I was addicted to Coke.
You know the feeling, right? The exhilarating thrill running through your veins as the rush makes its way through your body, every fiber of your being alive and electric with the sensational euphoria that it brings? Do you remember the palpable joy, the almost painful pleasure brought about by the ice-cold liquid burning deliciously down your throat?
I do.
It was killing me.
A little more than a year ago, I was drinking an average of four cans of soda a day. Coke Zero, Coke Light, Pepsi Max, name it. I relied on the sugar rush, the aspartame kick, to get me through a stressful day of copywriting, teaching, managing people. I didn’t realize how the chemicals in the soda were slowly rotting my body inside out. Instead of taking in the life-giving benefits of water, or the energizing power of fresh vegetable juices, or the refreshing delights of fruit juices and shakes, I was downing soda in bucketloads. Most sodas contain carbon dioxide, fructose, caffeine, sugar, phosphoric acid and citric acid. You can imagine how my stomach was reacting to all these relatively harsh ingredients. Sure, there was a physical thrill, but not all that glitters is gold. Not all that tastes great is good for you.
I decided to give up soda June 4, 2008, after returning from a staff outing for the church in the Philippines that I work for. It’s been a year since then, and I’ve been soda-free. It feels GOOD. Since then, I’ve also dropped almost 30lbs and am now healthier and happier. :)
