Soda isn’t great for us. That’s not breaking news. Sugars and artificial flavors lack quality nutrition. So, many people reach for diet soda. But that’s not so healthy either. Recent research found that even just one can of diet soda can contribute to liver disease. Regular soda, too.
Yet, many Americans are addicted to fizzy drinks. And for those who wish to stop, cutting soda cold-turkey might not be a good idea — as some USA TODAY journalists recently learned when we tried it.
“People are struggling to stop even though they really want to,” explains Ashley Gearhardt, professor of psychology at the University of Michigan. “You go through withdrawal."
That’s because soda appeals to our brain’s instinctual desire for sugars and fats that help us survive — and our bodies adapt to increasingly high exposure to these ingredients over time, raising tolerance and making quitting painful, Gearhardt explains. You may get headaches, irritability and anxiety, she says.
“You have to think about it as if you were quitting smoking,” Gearhardt says. “You need to know what are your cues? What are your triggers? What emotions set you off? Certain times of day? Certain people? … Then you can come up with plans for a replacement.”
