- Englishman Tom Bowey (42) was so addicted to Dr. Pepper that he had to turn to hypnosis to break his habit
- He said he stopped drinking water altogether — only sugary soda — and estimates he was spending more than $300 a month on canned sodas
- Bowey said he was inspired to give up soda to set a good example for his children
The man was so addicted to Dr. Pepper that he stopped drinking water — and estimates he was spending more than $300 a month on his fizzy cravings.
Tom Bowey, who comes from the English town of Marlow, said that his friends called him “Dr. Pepper Man” because of the habit — and said he was drinking 5 liters of soda a day at one point.
The warehouse manager, now 42, says his habit started simply: with just one can a day.
Stock image of Dr. Pepper bottle.
Luke Sharrett/Bloomberg via Getty
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“It started with one [drink] with lunch, and then me and my coworkers started buying each other drinks during the day,” he told Kennedy News and Media via The Daily Mail.
“They would bring them from the cafe near work. There was also a vending machine so I could just stop by and get them whenever I wanted. Before I knew it, that was all I was drinking, and then I stopped drinking water altogether.”
He shared that he always made sure he always had a supply of fizz ready, explaining: “I used to buy multi-packs of 24 cans so I always had them and I had at least five cans in the fridge at all times.”
As the US Centers for Disease Control points out, “Frequent drinking of sugar-sweetened beverages is associated with weight gain, obesity, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, kidney disease, non-alcoholic liver disease, tooth decay and tooth decay, and gout, a type of arthritis. Limiting the intake of sugary drinks can help individuals maintain a healthy weight and have healthy eating patterns.”
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Bowey told the paper he noticed he had put on weight and had dental problems, saying: “For a while my teeth weren’t too bad, but then I went to the dentist and he said the level of acid erosion was about what you would expect from a 70 -year-old.”
“I also felt really bloated the whole time, you gain a lot of weight when you only drink sugar.”
Tom Bowey before – and after – giving up Dr. Pepper.
Kennedy News and Media
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Bowey said he would drink his first can of soda “as soon as I woke up, and I would always carry a can with me on the drive to work.” From there, he filled cans of soda throughout the day — until bedtime — and estimates he’s spent nearly $40,000 on the drink over the past ten years.
It took a session of hypnotherapy to help Bowey kick the habit, he says, and he believes that “as long as you go into the session with a positive feeling and determination that you want it to work, it really does work.”
Bowey, who said he has lost weight since quitting soda, said he decided to seek help for his soda addiction after his older daughter kept asking for soda. “If I’m sitting there drinking it all day, at some point they’re going to say, ‘If you can drink them all the time, why can’t we?’ ”
He now drinks water or weak gourd – a British drink made from water and fruit juice or other flavorings – and says, “I drink so much water now that I feel so much better.”
“I don’t look at sodas,” he said. “I’m not even remotely tempted.”
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Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education