coffee or soda?

I still drink a cup of coffee in the morning.
Research shows that it only takes 1-2 tablespoons of milk to counteract the effect of coffee on calcium.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12204390/#:~:text=The%20negative%20effect%20of%20caffeine,less%20than%20optimal%20calcium%20intakes

I drink a cup of coffee at 4:30am every day. I did have a Dexa scan on the 11th. I still have osteopenia. Not osteoporosis. My medical oncologist has me getting my 1st Zometa infusion.

@jjpoodlespress I take one or two cups of black coffee (no sugar or cream/milk) - mostly just one cup, and instant coffee at that - and I don’t feel that affects my bone health. If you can avoid sugar and cream in your coffee it may be more beneficial to you.

Soda, on the other hand, has been known to leach calcium from your bones, but again, the occasional soda drink may be okay. I have read that diet soda is even worse for you, whether you drink it regularly or occasionally.

Sugar is bad, but artificial sweeteners are worse in the long run. Personally, I find artificial sweeteners more sicky-sweet than the same amount of sugar!

@jjpoodlespress I love, love the photo your sweet poodle.

A Mayo nutritionist told me that if I follow my nutrition/diet plan 80-90% of the time that this is good. To me this means I can have an occasional soda but not on a daily basis. I live for coffee. And dark chocolate. So I do have coffee every morning with milk. So far my endocrinologist or the nutritionist have not advised against my morning coffee or the occasional dark chocolate. I have learned that I can enjoy the beverages and foods I enjoy so long as I do not overindulge.

Have you talked with your doctor about your diet?

Tea would be much better for all-around health. Green or black.

My latest hack is to add a white tea bag along with my preferred tea (chamomile, earl grey, constant comment, black tea) when making hot or cold tea. White tea has a little less flavor than green tea but has the highest antioxidants of any tea. It is very low in caffeine. I order Imozai organic white tea from Amazon.

I plan on making white tea and using it in recipes that call for water, maybe even cook pasta in it? I don’t think it would change the flavor. The Green Mediterranean diet, which seems to be even healthier than the regular Mediterranean diet, calls for 4 or more cups of green tea. I struggle with that much - maybe I can get similar benefit from using white tea in cooking.

That is a great idea. Thanks for the tip. I use decaf tea. I struggle with caffeine.