# Three Coke Zero's per day. Excessive? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 18, 2012, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/three-coke-zeros-per-day-excessive/609954 "2012-01-18T23:35:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![rostfrei](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7bcc69/32.png) [@rostfrei](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rostfrei)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2012, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/three-coke-zeros-per-day-excessive/609954/1 "2012-01-18T23:35:53Z")
For the past 15 years or so, I’ve gone thru two 8 packs of Coke Zero per week sometimes less, sometimes more, but most of the time, it’s 2.5 to 3 per day. They are the small plastic 12 ounce bottles, in my defense. My co-worker told me today that drinking that much soda per day is very unhealthy. Seriously? It’s not the ONLY thing I drink. I drink lots of milk, water, etc during the day too. I could see if Coke Zero were the only thing I drank. And I could being unhealthy if it were non-diet Coke. Opinions? ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2012, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/three-coke-zeros-per-day-excessive/609954/2 "2012-01-19T00:02:33Z")
The only health risk that I believe in from soda is that the CO2 can combine with calcium in your body so that the calcium is not available to help keep your bones strong. This might be of concern if you are a woman at risk for osteoporosis. 36 ounces of Coke Zero has 105 mg of caffeine, according to the Mayo clinic site; an 8-oz cup of coffee can have as much as 200 mg, so that should not be a problem. The artificial sweetener is not a problem, and if anyone tries to tell you otherwise, ask them to provide a reference to some reliable research (not something they “heard” or “read on the internet”). I have yet to see any research that supports any of the claims against either aspartame (unless you have phenylketonuria) or sucralose. Note: I am not employed by the soft drink industry. But I do drink a fair amount myself (probably over 50 ounces a day, not all caffeinated). Roddy ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2012, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/three-coke-zeros-per-day-excessive/609954/3 "2012-01-19T00:13:38Z")
The sweetener may not be better than sugar soda. Or it may be worse. Or it may be better. Like Roderick, I am skeptical. Maybe you gain weight with diet varieties. It’s said you might tend eat more after, but I don’t know. Sodas can be bad for your teeth due to acidity, even though there is no sugar. That is probably the biggest concern that most people. I would say cut down, but what do I know? I usually drink 1 diet or Zero/One/Max per day, sometimes two. ---
**Author:** ![MysteryFellow63427](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e4f/32.png) [@MysteryFellow63427](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MysteryFellow63427)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2012, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/three-coke-zeros-per-day-excessive/609954/4 "2012-01-19T00:27:54Z")
Diet soda (and other soda) is very acidic. It can slowly rot away the enamel on your teeth, resulting in cavities. Ask me how I know how ☹ Three is probably not too excessive, but it’s getting there. I would really avoid going any higher than that, and limiting yourself to one or two would be even better. If you drink one, drink it somewhat quickly. If you finish a soda in 15 minutes, your teeth are less affected than if you slowly sip it over the course of an hour. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2012, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/three-coke-zeros-per-day-excessive/609954/5 "2012-01-19T01:30:16Z")
How could you have been drinking Coke Zero for 15 years if it was only introduced in 2005? ---
**Author:** ![Surreal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eada6e/32.png) [@Surreal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Surreal)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2012, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/three-coke-zeros-per-day-excessive/609954/6 "2012-01-19T01:32:07Z")
In rodent studies aspartame has been shown to convert into formaldehyde (a known carcinogen), accumulate in the tissue, and cause malignancies. ---
**Author:** ![Surreal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eada6e/32.png) [@Surreal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Surreal)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2012, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/three-coke-zeros-per-day-excessive/609954/7 "2012-01-19T01:54:21Z")
Also note that Coke contains phosphoric acid which has been linked to osteoporosis, kidney stones, and (more recently) chronic kidney disease: > **[Colas, but not other carbonated beverages, are associated with low bone...](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17023723/)** > > Intake of cola, but not of other carbonated soft drinks, is associated with low BMD in women. Additional research is needed to confirm these findings. > **[Carbonated Beverages and Chronic Kidney Disease : Epidemiology](https://journals.lww.com/epidem/Fulltext/2007/07000/Carbonated_Beverages_and_Chronic_Kidney_Disease.17.aspx)** > > We examined the relationship between carbonated beverages (including cola) and chronic kidney disease, using data from 465 patients with newly diagnosed chronic kidney disease and 467 community controls recruited in North Carolina between 1980 and... ---
**Author:** ![slm2955](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c6cbf5/32.png) [@slm2955](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slm2955)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2012, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/three-coke-zeros-per-day-excessive/609954/8 "2012-01-19T03:21:18Z")
Soda isn’t good for you anyways, nevermind the zero calorie kind. ---
**Author:** ![Taomist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/53a042/32.png) [@Taomist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Taomist)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2012, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/three-coke-zeros-per-day-excessive/609954/9 "2012-01-19T03:35:06Z")
Been drinking, nearly exclusively, at least a gallon a day of diet cola, for approaching 30 years now. Water has always given me heartburn, which I finally found a good, non-prescription counter for, but I still can’t stand drinking it. I load my VeryLargeDrink cup with ice, to the top, and pour in diet cola. I’ll let you know when the kidney stones kick in, but so far I’ve not had a problem, nor have I ever been dehydrated. My teeth, however, are an absolute horror show. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![PandaBear77](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@PandaBear77](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PandaBear77)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2012, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/three-coke-zeros-per-day-excessive/609954/10 "2012-01-19T04:10:36Z")
I don’t think it’s excessive. IANAD. ---
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2012, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/three-coke-zeros-per-day-excessive/609954/11 "2012-01-19T13:21:39Z")
> [@Surreal](#): > > In rodent studies aspartame has been shown to convert into formaldehyde (a known carcinogen), accumulate in the tissue, and cause malignancies. AFAIK, only at doses that far exceed anything any human has ever consumed. So, cite? ---
**Author:** ![brittekland](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/aeb1de/32.png) [@brittekland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brittekland)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2012, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/three-coke-zeros-per-day-excessive/609954/12 "2012-01-19T13:30:00Z")
Didn’t I just hear diet beverages causes multiple times more weight gainage? ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2012, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/three-coke-zeros-per-day-excessive/609954/13 "2012-01-19T13:47:23Z")
> [@brittekland](#): > > Didn’t I just hear diet beverages causes multiple times more weight gainage? There are some studies that indicate that people who drink diet soda do gain weight, but the causation hasn’t been established, AFAIK. There could be many factors. I lost 60 lbs in 6 months while drinking diet soda and other Aspertame sweetened drinks. ---
**Author:** ![Rhythmdvl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/85f322/32.png) [@Rhythmdvl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhythmdvl)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2012, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/three-coke-zeros-per-day-excessive/609954/14 "2012-01-19T14:01:34Z")
[aside]I find it interesting that the calls for “cite” are based on a premise that a chemical agent is okay (short and long term) by default. I don’t shun additives, but I don’t think that the absence of studies proving causation–particularly to complicated biological phenomena where causation to a single or small set of elements would be difficult to establish–means that the default answer is “they’re safe until you prove otherwise.” While I think the FDA is a crucial part of the information chain, I don’t have that kind of faith in its freedom from industry pressure or omniscience. Again, though I like granola this isn’t an anti-additive screed nor is it going down the kooky “only natural (?) products are safe” route. Absolutely not. It’s merely saying that I find it odd that on a board dedicated to rational analysis the default presumption that a marketed product causes no ill effects because no study has found them often justifies the out-of-hand dismissal of concerns. Do not over-read this. [/aside] ---
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2012, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/three-coke-zeros-per-day-excessive/609954/15 "2012-01-19T14:48:11Z")
> [@Rhythmdvl](#): > > [aside]I find it interesting that the calls for “cite” are based on a premise that a chemical agent is okay (short and long term) by default. I don’t shun additives, but I don’t think that the absence of studies proving causation–particularly to complicated biological phenomena where causation to a single or small set of elements would be difficult to establish–means that the default answer is “they’re safe until you prove otherwise.” While I think the FDA is a crucial part of the information chain, I don’t have that kind of faith in its freedom from industry pressure or omniscience. > > Again, though I like granola this isn’t an anti-additive screed nor is it going down the kooky “only natural (?) products are safe” route. Absolutely not. It’s merely saying that I find it odd that on a board dedicated to rational analysis the default presumption that a marketed product causes no ill effects because no study has found them often justifies the out-of-hand dismissal of concerns. > > Do not over-read this. > > [/aside] You find it odd that someone saying “X causes cancer” is met with people asking for evidence? Why would assuming that something causes cancer ever be the default? ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2012, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/three-coke-zeros-per-day-excessive/609954/16 "2012-01-19T14:54:06Z")
> [@neuroman](#): > > Diet soda (and other soda) is very acidic. It can slowly rot away the enamel on your teeth, resulting in cavities. Ask me how I know how ☹ > > Three is probably not too excessive, but it’s getting there. I would really avoid going any higher than that, and limiting yourself to one or two would be even better. If you drink one, drink it somewhat quickly. If you finish a soda in 15 minutes, your teeth are less affected than if you slowly sip it over the course of an hour. Drinking with a straw can also help prevent some of the dental damage. Only some of it, though. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Surreal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eada6e/32.png) [@Surreal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Surreal)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2012, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/three-coke-zeros-per-day-excessive/609954/17 "2012-01-19T14:54:51Z")
> [@Snarky\_Kong](#): > > AFAIK, only at doses that far exceed anything any human has ever consumed. So, cite? Not so. The FDA has set the Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI) for aspartame at 50 milligrams per kilogram (mg/kg) per day of body weight ([http://www.cancer.org/Cancer/CancerCauses/OtherCarcinogens/AtHome/aspartame](http://www.cancer.org/Cancer/CancerCauses/OtherCarcinogens/AtHome/aspartame)) but rodent studies have found just 20 mg/kg/day to be unsafe: > **[Formaldehyde derived from dietary aspartame binds to tissue components in vivo...](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9714421/)** > > Adult male rats were given an oral dose of 10 mg/kg aspartame 14C-labelled in the methanol carbon. At timed intervals of up to 6 hours, the radioactivity in plasma and several organs was investigated. Most of the radioactivity found (\>98% in... > [@](#): > > Adult male rats were given an oral dose of 10 mg/kg aspartame 14C-labelled in the methanol carbon. At timed intervals of up to 6 hours, the radioactivity in plasma and several organs was investigated. Most of the radioactivity found (\>98% in plasma, \>75% in liver) was bound to protein. Label present in liver, plasma and kidney was in the range of 1-2% of total radioactivity administered per g or mL, changing little with time. Other organs (brown and white adipose tissues, muscle, brain, cornea and retina) contained levels of label in the range of 1/12 to 1/10th of that of liver. In all, the rat retained, 6 hours after administration about 5% of the label, half of it in the liver. The specific radioactivity of tissue protein, RNA and DNA was quite uniform. The protein label was concentrated in amino acids, different from methionine, and largely coincident with the result of protein exposure to labelled formaldehyde. DNA radioactivity was essentially in a single different adduct base, different from the normal bases present in DNA. The nature of the tissue label accumulated was, thus, a direct consequence of formaldehyde binding to tissue structures. The administration of labelled aspartame to a group of cirrhotic rats resulted in comparable label retention by tissue components, which suggests that liver function (or its defect) has little effect on formaldehyde formation from aspartame and binding to biological components. **The chronic treatment of a series of rats with 200 mg/kg of non-labelled aspartame during 10 days resulted in the accumulation of even more label when given the radioactive bolus, suggesting that the amount of formaldehyde adducts coming from aspartame in tissue proteins and nucleic acids may be cumulative. It is concluded that aspartame consumption may constitute a hazard because of its contribution to the formation of formaldehyde adducts.** ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2012, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/three-coke-zeros-per-day-excessive/609954/18 "2012-01-19T14:56:26Z")
> [@Rhythmdvl](#): > > It’s merely saying that I find it odd that on a board dedicated to rational analysis the default presumption that a marketed product causes no ill effects because no study has found them often justifies the out-of-hand dismissal of concerns. That’s not what is happening here. No one is dismissing concerns out-of-hand; people are just looking for a data-supported basis for that concern. ---
**Author:** ![mnemosyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c4cdca/32.png) [@mnemosyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mnemosyne)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2012, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/three-coke-zeros-per-day-excessive/609954/19 "2012-01-19T15:14:22Z")
> [@Surreal](#): > > In rodent studies aspartame has been shown to convert into formaldehyde (a known carcinogen), accumulate in the tissue, and cause malignancies. And free radical superoxides, hydrogen peroxide and hydroxyl radicals are formed during normal cellular respiration. Should we avoid breathing? _The dose makes the poison_ - it’s possible to die from drinking too much water, too, but no one is suggesting we all stop drinking water. Sorry, that’s a little snarky, but as **Snarky\_Kong** says, data like this typically involves concentrations that far exceed normal consumption/metabolism before the risk becomes significant to any level. By the time a lot of research results hit the mainstream media, it’s been diluted and distorted to imply much more significant results than what the research actually showed. I’m not about to go off on a research study to determine what we know about aspartame, but I caution you that blanket statements like this should be avoided when discussing scientific fact. ETA: I see you’ve posted a cite - interesting. Thank you. I still would have preferred that to be your initial approach to the discussion, because a lot of people like to throw out “facts” and there’s a lot of misinformation out there 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![mnemosyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c4cdca/32.png) [@mnemosyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mnemosyne)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2012, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/three-coke-zeros-per-day-excessive/609954/20 "2012-01-19T15:25:19Z")
…and having read your cite, the FDA recommended guideline for aspartame is 50mg/kg, and **200 mg/kg** causes damage to rats…again, that’s a much higher concentration than normal dosing. Assuming a 65kg human (adult), the FDA guideline allows _3250mg_ of aspartame per day. A can of Coke Zero has 58mg of aspartame per 240 mL (so about 80 mg per can). You hit the FDA limit after consuming about **40 cans** of Coke Zero per day. Now, that isn’t to say that there might not be a risk, but you gotta admit, 3\<\<40 cans. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/three-coke-zeros-per-day-excessive/609954.md?page=2)