I love my coke zero. Maybe need to make a change

I buy a 1 litre coke zero then reuse it for a water bottle for a few months until it gets lost or cracks form or something. I laugh at people buying those ridiculous aluminum and unbreakable plastic water bottles. They're just making a statement. My bottle costs me $.10 if I lose it, not $20.

I'm pretty sure Coke Zero has it too.

Sure lucky760, I'll do Splenda, since some varieties of Coke Zero have Splenda in them.

First off it is important to note that the majority of the anti-sweetener "science" has been done by one man: Dr. Joseph Mercola. Now, watch out here, because his name is deceptive. You see, Mercola is an osteopathic physician. Osteopathy is a form of pseudoscience that believes that all pathology can be solved by manipulation of the bones and muscles. There is little science to back up these claims because they are clearly insane and worthy of ridicule. So, much like his doctorate, the claims he makes against sweeteners are pseudoscientific. A number of his beliefs are: that AIDS is not cause by HIV but by psychological stress; that immunizations and prescription drugs shouldn't be prescribed but people should instead buy his dietary supplements; that vaccinations are bad for you and your children (a belief which is the cause of recent outbreaks of whooping cough, measles and mumps); and that microwaves are dangerous machines that irradiate their products (they do, but not with the kind of radiation he is thinking of). Since he made a movie called Sweet Mistery: A Poisoned World, he has been at the forefront of anti-sweetener rhetoric. If you watch the movie, note how hilariously bad it is at actual science; the majority of the "evidence" is people claiming side effects after having ingested something with a sweetener in it (anecdotes are worth nothing in science except perhaps as a reason for researching further). So, you have a movement against something seen as "artificial" by a man who is not a doctor, not a scientist and is clearly lacking in the basics of logic.

Now, Splenda. Created by Johnson and Johnson and a British company in the seventies, it's primary sweetener ingredient is sucralose. The rest of it is dextrose, which as I have said above, is really just d-glucose and is safe for consumption in even very large quantities. So really, we are asking about sucralose. Sucralose is vastly sweeter than sucrose (usually around ~650 times) and thus only a very small amount is needed in whatever it is you are trying to sweeten. The current amount that is considered unsafe for intake (the starting point where adverse effects are felt) is around 1.5g/kg of body weight. So for the average male of 180lbs, they would need to ingest 130g of sucralose to feel any adverse effects. This is compared to the mg of sucralose that you will actually be getting every day. The estimated daily intake of someone who actually consumes sucralose is around 1.1mg/kg, which leaves a massive gap. Similarly to aspartame, if you tried to ingest that much sucralose, you would be incapable due to the overwhelming sweetness of the stuff.

There is some evidence that sucralose may affect people in high doses, but once again, this is similar to the issues with aspartame, where the likelihood of you getting those doses is extremely unlikely.

The chemistry of sucralose is actually way too complicated to go into, but suffice it to say that unlike aspartame, sucralose is not broken down in the body at all and is simply excreted through the kidney just like any other non-reactive agent. The reason that it tastes sweet is because it has the same shape as sucrose except that some of the hydroxy groups are replaced with chlorine atoms. This allows it to fit in the neurotransmitters in the tongue and mouth that send you the sensation of sweetness without also giving you all of those calories. Once it passes into the bloodstream it is dumped out by the kidneys without passing through the liver at all.

In sum, if sweeteners were bad for you, they wouldn't be allowed in your food. Science is not against you, it is the only thing working for everyone at the same time. The reason sugar has gotten around this is because we have always had it. If you want to be healthier, don't drink pop, drink water or milk (unless you are lactose intolerant, then just drink water). Don't drink coconut milk, or gatorade, or vitamin water. Assume that when a company comes out with something like "fat free" it really reads "now loaded with sugar so it doesn't taste like fucking cardboard." Assume that when a company says something is "natural" it is no more natural than the oils you put in your car. IF you want to live and eat healthy, stay on the outside of the supermarket, avoiding the aisles. All of the processed food is in the aisles, not on the outsides and the companies know that you don't want to miss anything. Make your food, don't let someone else do it. And never, ever buy popped popcorn, anywhere, the mark-up on that shit is insane.

No. Aspartame is not bad for you. Sugar, however is absolutely bad for you. The purpose of this video is to show people how much aspartame is in Coke Zero vs the amount of sugar in Coke. Sugar, the number one cause of obesity, heart disease and other health issues, is far less sweet so you need a much larger amount to get the same level of sweetness as aspartame. The tiny amount of black stuff left over at the end of the Coke Zero pan is the aspartame. You need milligrams of aspartame compared to 30 grams of sugar.

All of the studies that have "shown" damaging effects of aspartame have given RATS not milligrams of aspartame, but GRAMS. This would be equivalent to a human being shoveling a pile of aspartame powder into their mouth, something that no one could even do because it would be too sweet to ingest.

Aspartame is a very simple chemical that when it enters the human body breaks down into three things, phenylalanine, methanol and aspartic acid. Once again, the amounts that these things break down into is smaller than you would get from eating comparable "natural products." You would get more methanol eating a few grapes or an apple. Aspartic acid is an amino acid that is good for you and you would once again find more of it in an oyster than in Coke Zero. And finally phenylalanine is the only thing that is of any danger to anyone. And even then, it is only dangerous to those who have phenylketonuria, a sensitivity to phenyl-groups that you would know if you have. Otherwise it is a hormone that only affects infants and is present in breast milk, one of the healthiest substances on earth for a human.

Sure, aspartame is one of the most complained about items by consumers at the FDA. But does that mean the science is wrong? No. It simply means that someone gets a headache and they blame it on the diet soda they just drank instead of the fact that they are dehydrated. Or someone has a dizzy spell because they got up too fast and they blame it on the diet soda they just drank. Aspartame has been investigated by every Federal Consumer Product group around the world and none of them have found a sufficient link to any health danger in order to take it off of the shelves. If you believe that this is a conspiracy, you are wrong. The bigger conspiracy is the rampant disregard for the danger of sugar in processed foods.

If you are curious about the dangers of sugar that are backed by solid nutritional and molecular biology, you should watch "Sugar: The Bitter Truth" on Youtube, or the movie Fed Up.

Some people have sensitivity to Aspartame. I used to get headaches when I was younger from drinking Diet Coke, and it was a co-worker that suggested Aspartame could be the cause. I stopped drinking Diet Coke and the frequent headaches went away.

I drink Coke Zero now, but not as much as I used to, and it doesn't bother me. Coke is still the only thing I will drink rum with.

The taste is subjective, but the sweeteners are in no way "far worse than sugar".

Coke Zero uses aspartame, and in and of itself, there's nothing wrong with aspartame. There are a bunch of bullshit conspiracy theories around it, but none of them have any solid science behind them.

That said, I don't drink any kind of soft drink anymore. If I'm thirsty, I drink water.

Soft drinks are just empty calories and frankly, if I want a tasty drink, I'll have beer, whiskey or wine. More enjoyable and at least that way I know what I'm drinking is bad for me

Yes, but Coke Zero tastes disgusting and what they use for sweeteners is far worse for you than sugar!

"Is this just math you do as a Republican to make yourself feel better or is this real". After I cleaned up the Coke Zero coming out of my nose I had to check the corner of the screen to verify that, yes, that is Fox News.

Sorry I was mistaken - the ice-Coke machine was in Ximending (teens fashion area), but the museum was close to Taipei Train Station.

Here is a google map of where the ice-Coke machine was (not sure if it's still there).

That "old Taipei" museum was here. Unfortunately they are now closed.

In reply to this comment by RhesusMonk:
Even though it's been three years since I was there (my GOD has it been that long?), I would be thrilled to see where this museum is located. My fiance and I spent one the best years of our lives living in JingMei. I took the LSAT at ShiDa Science. I miss TaiBei more than most grandmothers miss their grandkids.
In reply to this comment by spawnflagger:
In Taipei, there is a small underground museum that has old-style Taiwan (old buildings, pictures, cars, from the 1950s and before). There was even a 1950's style diner where they used the old manual machines to make shave-ice. The ice-coke machine was above ground nearby there. I have no idea if it's still there or not.

I can try to create a Google Map pushpin if you are interested.


In reply to this comment by RhesusMonk:
Where in Taiwan?
In reply to this comment by spawnflagger:
I had this in Taiwan a few years ago (was only available at 1 machine, I guess was a test/demo unit). It doesn't taste exactly the same - somewhere between coke and coke zero. The ice doesn't last too long when it's >35C outside; the "fizz" (carbonation) seems to run out faster than regular bottled coke; and it costs more.

So yeah, a neat novelty item, but won't replace regular Pop/Soda vending machines.

Even though it's been three years since I was there (my GOD has it been that long?), I would be thrilled to see where this museum is located. My fiance and I spent one the best years of our lives living in JingMei. I took the LSAT at ShiDa Science. I miss TaiBei more than most grandmothers miss their grandkids.
In reply to this comment by spawnflagger:
In Taipei, there is a small underground museum that has old-style Taiwan (old buildings, pictures, cars, from the 1950s and before). There was even a 1950's style diner where they used the old manual machines to make shave-ice. The ice-coke machine was above ground nearby there. I have no idea if it's still there or not.

I can try to create a Google Map pushpin if you are interested.


In reply to this comment by RhesusMonk:
Where in Taiwan?
In reply to this comment by spawnflagger:
I had this in Taiwan a few years ago (was only available at 1 machine, I guess was a test/demo unit). It doesn't taste exactly the same - somewhere between coke and coke zero. The ice doesn't last too long when it's >35C outside; the "fizz" (carbonation) seems to run out faster than regular bottled coke; and it costs more.

So yeah, a neat novelty item, but won't replace regular Pop/Soda vending machines.

In Taipei, there is a small underground museum that has old-style Taiwan (old buildings, pictures, cars, from the 1950s and before). There was even a 1950's style diner where they used the old manual machines to make shave-ice. The ice-coke machine was above ground nearby there. I have no idea if it's still there or not.

I can try to create a Google Map pushpin if you are interested.


In reply to this comment by RhesusMonk:
Where in Taiwan?
In reply to this comment by spawnflagger:
I had this in Taiwan a few years ago (was only available at 1 machine, I guess was a test/demo unit). It doesn't taste exactly the same - somewhere between coke and coke zero. The ice doesn't last too long when it's >35C outside; the "fizz" (carbonation) seems to run out faster than regular bottled coke; and it costs more.

So yeah, a neat novelty item, but won't replace regular Pop/Soda vending machines.

Where in Taiwan?
In reply to this comment by spawnflagger:
I had this in Taiwan a few years ago (was only available at 1 machine, I guess was a test/demo unit). It doesn't taste exactly the same - somewhere between coke and coke zero. The ice doesn't last too long when it's >35C outside; the "fizz" (carbonation) seems to run out faster than regular bottled coke; and it costs more.

So yeah, a neat novelty item, but won't replace regular Pop/Soda vending machines.

I had this in Taiwan a few years ago (was only available at 1 machine, I guess was a test/demo unit). It doesn't taste exactly the same - somewhere between coke and coke zero. The ice doesn't last too long when it's >35C outside; the "fizz" (carbonation) seems to run out faster than regular bottled coke; and it costs more.

So yeah, a neat novelty item, but won't replace regular Pop/Soda vending machines.

>> ^BicycleRepairMan:

Coke zero tastes nothing like coke, but its not terrible. This commercial was tho..

Seriously? This is one of the 15 worst videos you've seen on VideoSift???