Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Caffeine Reaction?

Done!  My second "Week Without Pop" is in the books, and I'm 99% sure I'm giving up my Coke Zero habit.  It seems I've developed a reaction to it: chest wall pain.

Before you tell me to call 9-1-1 & get into an ambulance - know this:

- I've suspected all along that it is gas or something (you're welcome for that visual!)
- I had all of my numbers checked by the Nebraska Heart Institute at the end of 2010, and they said I was the "picture of health" when it came to my heart
- No heart attack history in my family - just high blood pressure/cholesterol issues on one side
- I live with a hypochondriac heart attack "expert" who wants to rush me to the hospital for paper cuts, and even HE says that my symptoms don't match a heart attack.

I am not a doctor.  My hypochondric husband is not a doctor.  This blog is not medical advice.  I take chest pain very seriously, and if I've learned anything from working with the American Heart Association & going through the BetterU program, you should too!  In fact, this is a good reminder to go get my numbers checked again.

OK - disclaimers said, here's what happened:

Everytime I drank a diet pop, I'd start having chest pain.  Exercise didn't affect it, and it normally happened while I was sitting down.  It seemed to correlate STRONGLY to pop.  So, I gave it up for a week.  Symtoms vanished.  This morning, for the first time in over a week, I had a pop.  Like clockwork, the pain is back.  I think my Coke-Zero-with-breakfast tradition is over.

Sidenote:  We got a soda machine (basically a carbonator) for our wedding, and since my Week Without Pop had ended, I made some fizzy Crystal Light "pop" yesterday.  No symptoms.  I think it could be a reaction to caffeine or another additive.



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