Would you give up soda? Well, a group of Diet Coke- and Coca-Cola-obsessed USA TODAY journalists decided to try.

Sugary drinks, like soda, have negative impacts on the body. Those who drink sugary sodas or drinks can risk weight gain, obesity, type 2 diabetes, heart disease and more, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It could also cause gout, a type of arthritis and cavities.

Given the health concerns that come with drinking soda regularly, we tried to quit cold turkey. We faced caffeine withdrawal, headaches, sugar cravings and were surprised by the results. Here's what happened.

'The lack of sugar and caffeine hit me like a ton of bricks'

I have been drinking Coca-Cola for as long as I can remember. I've tried to quit multiple times, but I always wind up back in the same place after a few months.

So when a group of us decided to quit, I was excited to try.

At first, giving up soda was grueling. It was so bad that I had to ask my mom to take all the soda out of my house and keep it with her.

The lack of sugar and caffeine hit me like a ton of bricks. To cope, I had a few watermelon-flavored Red Bulls the first week of this challenge when the soda cravings became too intense. Iced coffee and freshly steeped green tea also became staples in my day-to-day routine.

I stopped craving soda after the first week, and I could go days without drinking an energy drink. But I had sugar cravings, so I munched on Halloween candy throughout the day.

And one of the days, I'm sorry to say, I cheated. I ate lunch at a Cuban restaurant in Miami, and ordered my favorite soda of all time, Materva, a Cuban yerba mate soda.

Otherwise, I held strong. Since I quit, I'm getting better sleep, and I feel more energetic. I'm less bloated and my clothes fit me better. Another positive is that I'm drinking more water.

There were a few days when I had a terrible caffeine headache, and it felt challenging to focus on my work. But Tylenol, coffee, tea and some candy helped alleviate the adverse side effects. I plan to stick with my new no-soda mandate... for now. -- Julia Gomez

'I was hooked'

As a kid growing up in the 1970s and '80s, my mom allowed us a soda only on special occasions – a birthday or a big family barbecue. And it was always RC Cola or Fresca, if it was on sale.

When I left college, I discovered the dining hall’s fountain soda machine that dispensed unlimited Diet Coke. I was hooked. I never learned to love coffee, so Diet Coke got me through 8 a.m. classes and late-night study sessions.

Later, when all the other journalists contributed to the office coffee fund, I brought in my case of Diet Coke. I would have one in the morning and another in the afternoon. It couldn’t be that bad, I told myself, it didn’t have any sugar in it.

I drink a Diet Coke every day. Just one can that I rarely finish, but it is my morning routine, and I rely on the caffeine. However, I noticed that if it was a particularly tough day, I might have three half empty cans lined up on my desk.

So when our wellness editor suggested this challenge, I braced for what I thought would be a difficult week, or month. I rarely drink alcohol, so it’s also my order at a restaurant. I took the Diet Coke out of my refrigerator and placed it in the basement to avoid temptation. I joined our soda-free work support group chat.

The first morning, I went to Starbucks and got a drink that was more sugar than coffee, thinking it would replace the caffeine. I surprised myself that I didn’t seem to miss Diet Coke that much. I wound up drinking a mocha or a Caramel Macchiato each day. I worried the sugar was just as bad as whatever is Diet Coke.

The next week, I started making green tea in the morning, and it satisfied my caffeine need. And just as important, a morning ritual.

At the week two mark, my daughter and I went out for Mexican food. Something about chips and salsa made me want a Diet Coke. So I broke down and ordered one. It tasted crisp and cold. I worried this would start my slide back into the daily habit.

But I realized after dinner that I didn’t even finish it. The next day, I returned to putting the kettle on for tea in the morning. The Diet Coke fast was a good reset and taught me that I do many things out of habit rather than choice.

I haven’t brought the Diet Coke back up from the basement, but I’m not ready to throw it out, either! -- Laura Trujillo

I thought I wasn't addicted to caffeine but...

Growing up, all the Coca-Cola in the house was for my dad; the sugary drink was off-limits for my siblings and me, per our mom’s orders.

Despite my numerous attempts to acclimate my taste buds to the bitterness of coffee, I couldn’t bring myself to like the drink, and figured, why get addicted to caffeine anyway? But in my early 20s, my palate expanded; that is, I went from ordering gin and tonics at the bar to rum and Diet Cokes for an energy boost. Since then, I’ve been a die-hard diet soda drinker, drinking a 12-ounce can at least four times a week. I’ve found that small doses of caffeine (46 mg per can) also helped with migraines and period pain.

I started the “no Diet Coke” challenge on Sept. 27. I was sick and the thought of anything but water or Gatorade Zero made my stomach churn, but since recovering, I’ve been itching for a Diet Coke.

What’s been the most upsetting about how much I’ve craved it is the sleepiness I feel without it — the one thing I tried to avoid was a caffeine addiction. I finally broke on Oct. 22, and I've been drinking a Diet Coke every other day since. I'm trying to be more mindful of my intake, but it tastes just as good as I remember it. -- Alyssa Goldberg

Divorcing Diet Coke

I was Pavlov-ed into drinking Diet Coke. I had been a regular Coke drinker my whole life and used it as a quick fix for my regularly occurring headaches. A couple of years ago, my little sister turned me onto Diet side. She swore that it tasted better. I ordered one out of curiosity and never looked back.

My college apartment was always stocked with cans ready to grab at the slightest inconvenience (a "fridge cigarette," TikTok calls it). About a year ago I started to realize how truly bad consistent soda consumption was for me, and I slowly transitioned into being a casual – no longer chronic – "DC" consumer.

So when I went cold turkey for this project, I didn't think it would be much of a problem.

To cope, I switched from soda to soda waters when I went out and was intentional about bringing water bottles if I hung out with friends, sometimes mixing in electrolyte packages to mix up the flavor. Prebiotic sodas also came in clutch.

I'm just past a month of no true sugary-sodas and I can say I don't miss the taste as much as I thought I would. Beyond the nasty, sporadic headache that I was already prone to – and could possibly have been exacerbated by quitting the soda – this month hasn't been too bad. I'm now making it a competition to see how far I can go without it. Month two, here we go. -- Sam Woodward

Headaches and trying to break habits

I grew up in a household where a spare fridge sat in our garage piled high with cans of soda. As a middle schooler, I got hooked on Cherry Coke. And as I got older, soda and I developed an on-and-off relationship. I’ve quit before for years at a time, but recently, I’d gotten back into Coca Cola. I’d convinced myself those adorable mini cans had to be OK. (They’re so little!) But no, even a small amount of soda isn’t great for your health, according to a new study.

As a mom of two young kids, I was in the habit of using soda for an energy boost. And the week we started this endeavor, I had a few late nights in a row followed by early mornings. I was going strong until about 11 a.m. on Day 3. “I almost cracked today,” I confessed to our group chat of soda quitters, “but I’m holding steady.”

I also get migraines and have never liked tea or coffee, so I sip soda when I feel a headache coming on. There were a couple times during this experiment I found myself reaching for the Excedrin – though perhaps I should have tried tea first. I drank a lot of ice water, too.

Overall, I was tired and dealt with headaches, but the pride I felt from quitting made me want to keep going. I have no desire to go back to drinking it daily. -- Leora Arnowitz

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: We quit Diet Coke, soda cold turkey. Here's what happened.

Reporting by Julia Gomez, Alyssa Goldberg, Sam Woodward, Laura Trujillo and Leora Arnowitz, USA TODAY / USA TODAY

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