Bad Old Mountain Dew
I loved Mountain Dew when I was a kid. Sometimes I would drink nearly a whole 2-liter in a day’s time. It was my favorite drink. But when I was 16, that changed.
I had mono, and I started breaking out in hives. I had never really been allergic to anything (except a reaction I had to too much vitamin C as a kid), so I figured it must just be a weird mono thing. But then I noticed that shortly after I drank Mountain Dew, the hives got worse. The doctor put me on steroids to clear up the hives, and I gave up Mountain Dew for years.
At some point, I started drinking a Mountain Dew every now and then, and it didn’t hurt me. I didn’t get back into the habit of drinking it regularly until I started a night shift job. Then I started drinking a 20-ounce or two each night to help me stay awake since I didn’t like coffee. All was well until one night when I woke up itching like crazy. I got up and looked in the mirror, and I was completely covered in hives from neck to knees. Yikes!
So I once again quit drinking Mountain Dew. I don’t think I even took another sip of it until a month or two ago, when I was thirsty and Hubby had one. That sip didn’t hurt me, so I took another one a couple of weeks later under similar circumstances. Then last night I took a sip of a Mountain Dew Throwback that he brought home. This morning, I woke up with spots of hives on my belly and back.
So I got online and started searching for ingredients I could possibly be allergic to. The only thing I found that was noted for allergic reactions was yellow #5. And that doesn’t make much sense, because on the occasions when I had severe reactions to Mountain Dew, drinking cola would also cause an increase in symptoms. So it seems like it would be something that most sodas have in them but Mountain Dew has more of. I’ll have to investigate further.
At any rate, I think I’m done with Mountain Dew for good, particularly after reading this. According to that article, Mountain Dew can cause everything from bromide toxicity to obesity that will scarcely respond to the most effective diet pills. Not good.
I love the taste of Mountain Dew, but I guess it will just be a sweet memory from now on. Because being all broken out in hives is no fun, and the less noticeable effects don’t sound too appealing either.
