[cathycnm November 13, 2008 at 12:51 pm Post count: 284]

#1075429

Lynn – That is interesting. Certianly coke in place of milk and juice, etc is replacing nutrition with non-nutrition. And coke does have some phosphoras promoting in the body – which decreases calcium absorption – so with osteoporosis, I have to limit this. And it does have caffiene – which can be lead to increased heart rate and constriction of vessels. Those things are (heart) seem to bother me the most about its use in Graves disease. In fact, befor RAI, the only times I had real problems with fast pulse was after just one coke!!! I got zooming at 120 pretty easily. That and it made my sleep issues (insomnia) quite a bit worse if I had it after 1 PM.

That said – all things in moderation and there are caffiene free types. I limit to 1-2 per day and drink up at lunch only.

[LynneB54 November 13, 2008 at 1:10 pm Post count: 32]

#1075430

Hi Cathy,

Thanks for the quick response. Your point about missing out on nutrition when drinking a diet drink is well taken, but for me, it’s a good way to limit calories – and I like the taste! ” title=”Smile” /> I usually drink several per day and haven’t noticed any problems. Do you know of any valid studies that show diet drinks have an adverse effect on health? I know there is lots of anecdotal information, but I’m wondering about some well run studies; I’d think they’d have to be out there. Anyway, I’d sure miss my diet cokes if they’re really harmful!

Lynne

[Ski November 13, 2008 at 1:28 pm Post count: 1569]

#1075431

Hi Lynne,

As far as I know, there are no reputable studies to connect aspartame (NutraSweet) with any kind of diseases, though the suggestions are on the internet LIKE CRAZY. That said, I drank Diet Coke to the exclusion of any other drink for years (yes, I hate to admit it, years) before I was diagnosed with Graves’. It could have been the caffeine, or it could have been aspartame, or it could have been the exclusion of healthy drinks for all that time, but I think it may have served as some type of physical trigger, or perhaps it made me vulnerable.

Now, once you’ve got Graves’ ~ do you stop drinking the Diet Coke, or, if it has done damage, is the damage done already? Hard to say. There are no reputable studies that it causes specific harm, but what good does it do? Now that I don’t drink it any more, I can barely tolerate it, it’s like drinking a can of chemicals. It’s definitely better to be providing your body with some type of nutrient, or if not, just flushing it with plain water. I can’t see much good coming from sucking down a can full of stuff you can’t even pronounce. Just my two cents. ” title=”Very Happy” />

[LynneB54 November 13, 2008 at 2:01 pm Post count: 32]

#1075432

Hi Ski,

Well – drats!! Not the answer I was hoping for! ” title=”Smile” /> You’re right – it porbably doesn’t do much good to drink diet coke, but I’m not much of a water drinker (and I’ve tried!!) You’re right about the chemicals in it, but look at the "food" we buy at the grocery store! It’s it isn’t fresh, it’s loaded with preservatives, etc. Hmmm – I’m going to have to think about this…

One last question re: a diagnosis. Is it possible to have an autoimmune illness without antibodies showing up in the blood? Can they show up later, or are they always there?

Thanks!
Lynnw

[cathycnm November 13, 2008 at 2:34 pm Post count: 284]

#1075433

Lynn- I am retaking pathophysiology for my post masters as we speak and I think we are discovering so many new things about autoantibodies and the immune system at this time, that any answer might be the wrong one in a few weeks, months or years. I also think it depends on the disease you are talking about – some of them, they are finding immune complexes in the tissue that is impacted suggesting auto immunity. I am honestly amazed that just about every illness seems to have some sort of immunity/inflammation from what we are finding. How much of that turns out to be auto immune is anyones guess.

That is general – I don’t know specific for Graves and always having blood antibodies.

[Ski November 13, 2008 at 3:14 pm Post count: 1569]

#1075434

Graves’ antibodies can come and go, and no one understands the reason behind that (yet). If you’ve got all the other symptoms, but a blood test for antibodies comes up negative, you can’t say "Aha, I don’t have it!" It would take more investigating to find out whether it’s truly Graves’ or not. And by the way, an extremely high percentage of hyperthyroidism is caused by Graves’ (I believe it’s near 90%). Sorry ’bout that.

[LynneB54 November 13, 2008 at 3:56 pm Post count: 32]

#1075435

Hi Ski,

Okay – thanks so much. As you’ve read before, I’ve been rather obsessively searching for a definative answer to what was wrong with me. Putting a name to it helps. You’ve supplied the final piece of the puzzle, and I feel much better now. I’ll just trust the diagnosis from my family doc and go forward. Now I just have to figure out what treatment to go with….

Thanks again,
Lynne

[LynneB54 November 13, 2008 at 5:45 pm Post count: 32]

#1019982

Good morning,

My sister is insistent that diet coke (and other diet drinks) cause all kinds of illnesses. She says that she’s heard this on mainstream TV and is really pushing me to give up my diet coke. I respect her opinion on this, but don’t think there is any scientific data to support it.

I’ve given up chocolate and virtually all sugar. I exercise (or did before I got sick…) I eat leafy greens and veggies and lots of fruit. Does the diet coke really need to go too???

Thanks,
Lynne

[skichick732 November 14, 2008 at 1:50 pm Post count: 6]

#1075436

I was diagnosed in May. My husband had been nagging my to quick diet coke and asparatame for months before. He thought that I could have made my body toxic with all of the diet stuff. I thought he was crazy but also thought it wouldn’t hurt. I am on PTU and metaprolol so those drugs are helping. I will say that my severe stomach issues cleared up 1 mnth after stopping diet coke and comes back right away if I sneak one behind hubby’s back. I don’t know if there is a connection – no scientific proof – but I am not sure that now I don’t disagree that maybe dc caused my Graves. good luck

[kallikat November 18, 2008 at 10:04 am Post count: 29]

#1075437

I used to be avid DC drinker…until a good friend showed me an article in a health magazine that really changed my thinking. It said that while DC had no calories, the chemicals in it made you crave sugar, which negates the purpose for drinking it. So I tested the theory. I went back to drinking regular Dr Pepper…and guess what? I didn’t have to have dessert at lunch or M&M’s on my desk anymore. I really didn’t crave sweets all the time. And I lost a few pounds, to boot! So, that’s really all I know about the effect of diet sodas.
Now I just shake my head when I see people drinking a diet coke while gobbling a sugary treat!

[Madame_X November 21, 2008 at 5:15 pm Post count: 128]

#1075438

Diet sodas have been linked to all kinds of maladies, including cracked dental enamel.

I don’t know if it’s the aspartamine or the way they process the soda itself. (and phosphoric acid — also in sodas — is toxic in its pure state — if you inhale even a small amount it can possibly kill you)

[LynneB54 November 25, 2008 at 5:58 pm Post count: 32]

#1075439

Thanks to all who wrote about diet cokes. It’s interesting to read the comments – and I agree; there is nothing in diet coke that is actually good for you. I’ve done some reading but haven’t found any scientific studies to support that it’s really harmful. There’s lots of stuff on the internet, but it’s not all true. The difficult thing, I think, is to separate fact from fiction. My brother in law sent me an email about six months ago about how bad diet coke is and it sounded very plausible (and pretty scary!!) As I do with most things that come to me by email, I checked it out on snopes.com, and it turned out to be false. So I went back to snopes and typed in "dangers of diet coke" and found that the allegations don’t seem to be able to be validated.

So – what to do? I know some of you have made the (undoubtedly wise) decision to quit drinking the stuff and I respect that. For me – the jury is still out. I’m trying to drink less, but can’t see giving it up entirely.

The whole issue of food additives and chemicals is really pretty scary. Basically, I think if it comes in a box, can, or package – it probably isn’t good for you. I mean – look at the ingredients on a cereal box; what is that stuff?? I also wonder about the hormones that are added to milk that they won’t tell us about; now I just buy Silk or organic milk. And the salt solution that’s added to frozen meat as a "flavor enhancer" is a neurotoxin. I live in a small town, and I don’t have access to a Whole Foods unless I go to Houston, Dallas, etc. and that’s not realistic. Truly – it’s very hard to make good, informed choices on what to eat or drink. I guess we all just do the best we can.

Hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving!
Lynne

[cathycnm November 25, 2008 at 7:34 pm Post count: 284]

#1075440

Lynn – I actually fell in love with coconut milk when my endo had me on the low iodine diet for a month during/after treatment and scans. There are lots of alternatives. One word of caution is to be sure you are getting enough calcium – they have recently raised some of the calcium recommendations. So – just use supplements if your diet does not contain these. (BTW – did you know there is more iodine in a glass of cow’s milk than in the standard RAI dose?) Cathy

[LynneB54 November 26, 2008 at 12:27 pm Post count: 32]

#1075441

Hi Cathy,

Coconut milk!! Yum! I love coconut!! I’ll bet it’s wonderful – but is it high in calories? Thanks for the suggestion about calcium – I’ll be more aware of that. I take a calcuim with D supplement (have for years) and I love cheese and yogurt. I also drink OJ with calcium. It’s funny – when my kids were home we all drink lots of milk, but as they’ve grown up and moved on I don’t drink nearly as much. Wonder why…. Anyway – I’ll try and have at least a glass a day. I was not aware of the iodine content of milk vs RAI. Interesting!

One last question (at least for today). I’m getting over a nasty cold, and my daughter is encouraging me to get a flu shot. Since I haven’t started on a treatment yet (other than a beta blocker) is that a good idea now? Don’t know that it makes a difference, but I really don’t want to do anything to stimulate my immune system anymore than it already is right now. My doctor didn’t mention it one way or the other; I’m just curious what others have done.

Take care,
Lynne

[mamabear November 26, 2008 at 12:58 pm Post count: 484]

#1075442

Well are you sure the nasty cold you had wasn’t really the flu. I WOULD speak to your Endocrinologist about it. say that you wanted to know since you just had a cold if you should get the shot.

Personally I am in remission and I have 4 kids so getting sick is always something ya know I’m gunna get ” title=”Wink” /> . We all wound up with the flu this past March and I was lucky not to go out of remission(flu/cold triggers my graves) so this winter I am getting flu shot.

You need to speak with dr. and ask him what he thinks. He is your best source for this and knows your history or at least has your test results in front of him.

have a wonderful thanksgiving!!!

[Author]

Posts