Cheat day

Zero (1)

Thursday.

It’s been over a week since I returned from Busan, and I’ve completely settled back into my routine.

The broadcasting schedule has normalized, and today I plan to do a cooking segment and Baekban Talk with Baek Woo-jin.

But my stomach keeps hurting.

Today marks the third time I’ve been to the bathroom.

└Pooper
└Where does it hurt?
└You’re going to the bathroom a lot.

“Pooper? Seriously, you’re talking nonsense. Don’t you poop?”

I felt drained and took a sip of Diet Coke.

“Ah. But seriously, my body feels weird today. I’ve been having diarrhea since this morning.”

└I’m eating right now.

└Now I want curry.

└Go to the hospital.

└Stop drinking Coke.

└For real, why are you drinking Coke when you have diarrhea? Drink water.

└Isn’t it because you keep drinking cold drinks? You’ve been having Diet Coke every time during broadcasts lately.

└Isn’t it bad for your blood sugar?

“You guys don’t know. Diet Coke has nothing to do with blood sugar. You can drink it all you want.”

As I was speaking, my stomach churned again.

“Yay!”

Just then, Baek Woo-jin arrived.

“I’m going to the bathroom, so you say hi to everyone.”

“Okay.”

After watching Baek Woo-jin sit down, I headed to the bathroom.

I really wondered if something was wrong with me; I was sweating and felt dizzy.

After struggling for a while, I returned to the office, but Muk-jin wasn’t around.

“Hyung, are you having diarrhea?”

Baek Woo-jin asked.

“Yeah. It’s been like this all day.”

“Is it bad?”

“Yeah. I don’t think I can do a long broadcast today.”

As I reached for the Coke, Baek Woo-jin snatched it away.

“……What’s this?”

“Why are you drinking Coke when you have diarrhea?”

“I’m thirsty. Hurry up and give it to me. I’m feeling weak.”

“This might be the reason.”

I didn’t understand what he meant.

“What are you talking about? Don’t you know Diet Coke has nothing to do with health?”

“How much have you drunk today?”

“I drank one and a half liters of that and this.”

Baek Woo-jin frowned.

“You’ve almost finished this one too. Do you drink like this normally?”

“Yeah.”

It varies from day to day, but I think I drink about three liters total, usually having two 1.5-liter bottles.

Since I couldn’t drink Java Chip Frappuccino after developing diabetes, the stress has been immense, so I was thankful to have Diet Coke.

“That’s why your stomach hurts, man.”

Baek Woo-jin slapped my back.

“Really? I looked up Diet Coke, and it really doesn’t affect anything.”

“We can’t do this. Let’s make the cooking segment about zero-calorie drinks today.”

He held onto the Coke and wouldn’t let go.

“The reason zero-calorie drinks can taste sweet is because of the sweeteners. They taste sweet but have almost no calories and aren’t absorbed by the body.”

“Almost none?”

“Yeah. There’s almost none, but it’s not completely zero.”

“Ah, I know. The law allows drinks to be labeled as zero if they have fewer than 4 kcal per 100 ml.”

“Right. But it’s not a complete zero. Since we have Diet Coke, we can check the ingredient list while we talk.”

Baek Woo-jin recited the ingredients listed on the Diet Coke label.

“Purified water, carbon dioxide, caramel coloring IV, phosphoric acid, sucralose, sodium citrate, natural flavors, acesulfame potassium, caffeine. We can go through each of these and see if they’re okay, right?”

“Sure.”

“First is purified water. It’s just water. There’s nothing bad for your health in that. Next is carbon dioxide. It’s carbonation. You drink sparkling water to be healthy, right? Yeah, this is also no problem.”

So, water and carbonation are fine.

“Next is caramel coloring, but we need to be cautious with this. Caramel coloring is divided into types I, II, III, and IV, but types III and IV, which is used in cola, are the problematic ones.”

“Really?”

I was surprised.

I had thought Diet Coke was harmless to health, but he was saying otherwise.

“When producing caramel coloring IV, ammonia is added, which can create a potentially carcinogenic substance called 4-methylimidazole. Since it’s classified by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, it should be taken seriously.”

“What? So we shouldn’t eat it.”

“Well, they regulate the production of caramel coloring to ensure that the potentially carcinogenic substances don’t exceed certain limits, so the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety considers it safe.”

“Wait. You said it contains carcinogens. Why does the Ministry think it’s okay?”

“The daily acceptable intake for caramel coloring set by the WTO is 200 mg per kilogram. So, it means you would have to eat about 100 bowls of jjajangmyeon in a day.”

“Ah.”

└LOL
└Before dying from caramel coloring, I’d probably burst from eating too much, LOL.
└It might not be good for the body, but to reach that level, you’d have to eat a ridiculous amount.

“So it’s okay then.”

“Right. But we don’t just consume caramel coloring. We eat dozens of additives each day, so if you consume too much, it can definitely be harmful.”

“Eating moderately is fine, but too much can be an issue.”

“Exactly. Next is phosphoric acid. Phosphoric acid can be explained together with sodium citrate. Both are preservatives and acidity regulators.”

“Preservatives?”

“The perception of preservatives is generally negative, but consuming them isn’t a major issue.”

“Are there any minor issues?”

“Yeah. Diarrhea.”

I was shocked.

“Was it because of this?”

“Just listen. Like caramel coloring, this can also cause diarrhea and raise blood pressure, but since it’s such a small amount, you won’t really notice anything from having a drink or two. It’s not easy to get diarrhea just from drinking Diet Coke.”

└Our Chan-young manages to do that despite it being difficult.

└Drinking 3 liters a day, is it really a problem? LOL

└Stop drinking so much, LOL.

└It’s surprising. I thought Diet Coke had no health issues.

“Is it because I’m drinking too much?”

“Yeah. In fact, sodium citrate and phosphoric acid, as well as sweeteners, can cause diarrhea.”

“No way. But you said it was okay. Have I been deceived all this time?”

“Furthermore, phosphoric acid interferes with calcium absorption, which can lead to issues with bones and teeth, and can also cause problems with muscle contraction, signal transmission in the body, and other physiological processes due to calcium deficiency.”

“Wow.”

“When calcium levels are low, signal transmission is disrupted, leading to irritability and increased susceptibility to stress. You could also develop gastrointestinal disorders.”

I was stunned, feeling at a loss.

“So, all I need to do is take calcium?”

“No. Excess calcium can also be a problem. If calcium levels are too high, it can lead to blood clotting, resulting in diseases like stroke, angina, myocardial infarction, or kidney stones. So instead of relying on supplements, it’s better to get calcium from food and take vitamin D to aid in calcium absorption.”

└So, in the end, doesn’t that mean drinking a lot of Diet Coke isn’t good for your health?

└Yeah, it’s not right to think it’s okay without consideration.

└But they say you shouldn’t drink excessively.

└What have you heard? It means it’s okay as long as you don’t overdo it.

└But there’s someone right in front of us who drinks a ton!

└LOLOLOLOLOLOL

“Everyone knows about caffeine. Lastly, there’s acesulfame potassium and sucralose. These are sweeteners, right? This is the most important part.”

“Are you saying this raises blood sugar? No way. I’ve been checking my blood sugar while drinking it.”

“It doesn’t raise blood sugar. Some viewers here might think sweeteners are bad, but there are various papers on it. They say it can lead to depression, diabetes, and skin inflammation.”

“If there are papers, is it really not good?”

“All of those are created by biased organizations.”

I tilted my head.

“These are papers that were intentionally manipulated to attack diet beverage companies. They don’t control variables or use dosages that are several hundred times above the standard.”

“What? Why spread such obvious lies?”

“Because some people believe them.”

It’s true that many people still have the perception that artificial sweeteners are bad.

Thinking about the MSG controversy makes it easy to understand.

“But ultimately, these are poor-quality, incorrect papers that places like the FDA don’t recognize, so you can ignore them. The FDA recognizes the side effects of artificial sweeteners as indigestion, diarrhea, and abdominal pain.”

“What?!”

“Just hear me out. While they can cause issues, an adult weighing 60 kg would need to consume 0.9 g per day to have a problem. What’s your current weight?”

“95 kg.”

“Then you would need to consume 1.35 g of artificial sweeteners per day to experience side effects, which translates to about 9 liters of Diet Coke.”

“I don’t drink that much.”

“That varies from person to person. Don’t you use sweeteners at all when you eat?”

“…I do.”

When I need sweetness besides Diet Coke, I use artificial sweeteners.

“Yeah. And depending on each person’s body condition, there can be individual differences. Even for the same person, it might change slightly from yesterday to tomorrow. Your diarrhea is probably due to the Diet Coke.”

Feeling frustrated at the thought that I can’t even drink Diet Coke freely, Muk-bok came into the broadcast room with a paper bag. She placed a diarrhea medication in front of me and then went to open the refrigerator.

“Thank you.”

I felt touched that the only person thinking about me was Muk-bok.

As I leaned forward to express my gratitude, I noticed her throwing all the Diet Coke into the sink.

“What?”

└LOLOL

└The PD is so refreshing!

└Right? Just throw it all away!

└Give it to me!

└LOL, if it’s bad for your health, why do you keep drinking it?

“Hey, wait a minute, PD!”

I stood up to try to stop Muk-bok, but she looked at me while tossing the Diet Coke.

Her gaze was intimidating.

Sitting quietly back in my seat, Baek Woo-jin summarized what he had explained so far.

“So, drinking it occasionally isn’t a problem. Claims that it causes diabetes or disrupts blood sugar control are all lies. But if you ask whether it’s unhealthy, it could be. If you drink it like this guy does, as a substitute for water, it can be a problem. It can cause diarrhea. That’s how we can summarize it.”

“……”

“By the way, there are times when you suddenly get a stomachache while riding the subway. You could have an accident due to diarrhea.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Diarrhea can strike anyone suddenly. Fortunately, if you can get to a bathroom, it’s not a problem, but there are tragic situations when that doesn’t happen. In those cases, if you live in Daejeon or Daegu, don’t panic—just ask the station staff for spare clothes. They have emergency clothing cabinets where you can borrow clothes.”

“How do you know stuff like that?”

“……”

“I mean, you really know everything.”

“……I didn’t want to know.”

“Ugh.”

At Baek Woo-jin’s sad voice, I, the viewers, and even Muk-bok, who was throwing away the Diet Coke, fell silent.