These youngsters who are used to soda can no longer drink water

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“It is impossible for me to drink water.” In a video posted on TikTok, 18-year-old Chloe looks overwhelmed with anxiety. The girl claims that in the last five years she has only drunk in extreme emergencies. Or five small glasses of water…

Whether still or carbonated, water (non-)tastes so bad that one is unable to drink it without feeling nauseous. The sensation is so unbearable for him that sugary alternatives like soda always take precedence in his way of hydrating himself even in the most extreme circumstances. Feeling a little thirsty after hiking? He takes a bottle of Coca-Cola. Medication to take? He will leave with a can of Oasis. And when the soda supply is empty, Chloe prefers to stay dehydrated while waiting for new ones to arrive in the fridge.

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Among the many comments responding to Chloe’s video, there is mockery, questioning the girl’s words, but also hundreds of young adults and teenagers who identify with her.

“I put the water aside”

Most are young women who report the same problem. This is especially the case for 20-year-old Sabrina, who says she feels no biological need to drink water. More specifically, his hydration needs were gradually supplied by sugary drinks, in this case soda like Coca-Cola or fruit juice.

“I think I unconsciously put water aside when I got used to eating other options”, she explains. However, this way of hydrating is not without results and often, the first results are visible directly on the body. Very quickly, pimples appeared on her skin, which she is now struggling to get rid of. She also noted problems with urinary infections, which she believed were due to consuming too little water.

In the eyes of a nutritionist, a single fact sums up the problem: the body is about 70% water. In fact, if we cut “fuel”, the whole machine soon goes bad. Depriving yourself of water affects the entire body, from bone structure to skin, including teeth and kidneys. Along with Chloe and Sabrina, other young women confirm that just one drink is enough to cause stomach aches, nausea, tremors and sharp pains in specific targeted areas, for example around the ribs.

The champion of all substitutes, Coca-Cola, is dangerous not only because of its high sugar content, but also because of another ingredient: phosphoric acid. Our body maintains a balance between calcium and phosphorus for good bones. As its name suggests, phosphoric acid is loaded with phosphorus, and by extension disturbs the balance and weakens bone formation. The very high acidity of soda is also destructive to other parts of the body, especially the teeth. Coca-Cola sold in France has a pH of about 2.5, which damages dental enamel. In comparison, the pH of the stomach is about 2.

Then, and not surprisingly, the enormous amounts of sugar in these sodas contribute to weight gain. A small 33 cl can of Coca-Cola contains the equivalent of seven sugar cubes. The fact that such quantities are contained in liquid form is often misleading in the eyes of the consumer, for whom the dosage seems more abstract than in other confectionery products. The 19-year-old cobbler, who has come out of the situation in the past year, says his old drinking habits put him at risk of weight gain and diabetes.

Finally, and quite paradoxically, Coca-Cola is dehydrating. Due to the caffeine it contains, it has a diuretic effect. Like drinking coffee, drinking Coca-Cola involves more trips to the restroom. In short, these are all serious health consequences that would convince anyone to toss their soda in the trash.

Irresistible cravings for sugar

Worse still, this addiction to sugary drinks feels like a prison. To describe the pain she feels while hydrating with water, Chloe also compares: “To me, drinking a glass of water is like drinking a liter of coke in one go for someone who is not used to it. One will feel bloated, it is the same as water for me.”

According to nutritionists, this behavior is undoubtedly sugar addiction. She also believes that these types of patients, even if they are rare, should not be considered as isolated cases and that they tend to increase in recent years. She notes that the most common sugar addictions are those that started earliest in childhood.

In her video, Chloe takes her case as an example, adding that her addiction began when she moved in with her father, where restrictions were less. The teenager drank soda then. Without realizing it, she gradually became dependent and is now struggling to recover from the addiction.

The key to regaining a taste for water psychologically is often to change your perspective.

But it’s not just individual routes that play a role. Socio-economic environment also has weight, according to nutritionists. From her own experience, she was able to observe that while practicing her profession in different neighborhoods, the problem was more or less recurring. A study by the Observatory of Inequalities seems to go in the direction of the nutritionist’s hypothesis: a 2022 report shows that disadvantaged social backgrounds are more exposed to the risk of obesity.

Nutritionists observe that often, parents from lower socio-professional classes want to do the right thing by giving gifts within their budget. For them, it’s a question of giving their baby something other than water to make them happy.

In fact, the key to getting a taste of water psychologically is often to change your perspective. Ever since she was in elementary school, 23-year-old Manon has had a hard time hydrating herself with water: “I don’t count in glasses but in sips”, she explains. Well aware of the dangers of her habits, she decides to change her perspective when she sees water “As a Source of Healing”. Even if the road ahead to true reconciliation remains long, she forces herself to drink the water, considering it for what it is: an important antidote.

Mochi, for its part, has managed to reclaim the taste of water thanks to so-called retro-olfactory bottles, marketed by start-up Air Up, which has increased its commercial operations with influencers in recent years. These bottles have an odor that mimics the taste of certain sugary drinks, causing consumers to be put off by the tasteless water.

For her part, the nutritionist assures that among young people who consult her, weight loss is often the most convincing argument. The desire for healthy skin is also often highly valued among patients. She notices that often, after stopping soda, her clients see their “More kilos evaporate” In a very short period of time.

You still have to have the courage to take the plunge. While the problems associated with excessive soda consumption are relatively well known, the psychological dimension makes the wall impenetrable for many. The thought of getting a blood test, or going to the dentist, knowing full well the comments made by health professionals, can lead some people like Chloe to avoid these appointments, paralyzed with anxiety. While most of the comments under her video are posted by young women, the nutritionist suggests that young men should not be excluded from this public health problem.