As if weight loss wasn’t hard enough!! You try so hard and yet someone always tries to kill your buzz and put a damper on your mood. So anyone who has visited my blog in the last few weeks will know I’m on weight watchers (and happened to have had a successful week last week! yay!) and have the goal of losing weight. Which is the norm for weight watchers members.
I have been on track now for four weeks, with a few hiccups, but generally doing well.
You may have also noted my new addiction to diet coke. I have been drinking bottles and cans of it daily. Now according to weight watchers you can drink as much diet soft drink as you want, it’s point free! Which thrilled and fed my addiction.

Then today, I go shopping to the supermarket with my sister, we are standing in the aisle staring at all the weight watchers products trying to pick a sweetener for my coffee. An old(er) lady walks up as I’m holding one of the many sweetener options and says, “you shouldn’t use that it contains phenylalanine, you’re better off using real sugar”.
“What?”
Yes, I have heard of this phenylalanine stuff and I’ve heard it can give you cancer, just like everything else in the world that doesn’t prevent cancer.
My sister pipes up, “yeah it’s in diet coke and other diet products too”.
Oh thanks Mads! Who’s team are you on?
The women then goes on with her stories about how there’s been a big issue with this phenylalanine stuff on the news lately and I just need to learn to drink coffee with no sugar or sweetener. Hmm.. I have no idea how successful that will be!

So now I’m a tad confused. I vaguely remember my weight watchers leader having a discussion about this and saying it was all OK.

So I thought I’d wikipedia it to see what it says. It was all a load of gobbledy goop except this bit:

Phenylalanine uses the same active transport channel as tryptophan to cross the blood-brain barrier, and, in large quantities, interferes with the production of serotonin.

In the central nervous system, serotonin is believed to play an important role as a neurotransmitter, in the regulation of anger, aggression, body temperature, mood, sleep, vomiting, sexuality, and appetite.

Nowhere does it mention cancer? Of course I know I shouldn’t completely rely on wikipedia but this is all I could really find.
If someone knows more, please enlighten me. I have decided to cut back on my diet coke though as I was drinking excessive amounts.
Today I managed to drink 1.5ltrs of water! Much healthier. I did mow the lawn in the sweltering heat, so that explains my thirst.

I did manage to find one exciting thing at the supermarket that has made my week! Little tubs of Cookies & Cream ice cream. YUM! It’s only 1.5 points a tub! And considering I get 21 points a day it’s not bad at all. It’s so good too!!
And before you ask, I checked, no phenylalanine present. Cancer free ice cream!