Can I drink low calorie, diet drinks, coffee, tea or alcohol?
There are no low calorie drinks allowed on the programme, it is possible to whiten tea and coffee using small amounts of vanilla flavoured powder from the daily quota. Leaf herb teas (mint, nettle, etc) can add variety, but avoid fruit and flower teas as they contain carbohydrate which can cause fluid retention and induce a plateau in some dieters. Those who cannot live without tea and coffee with milk can still lose weight with the other programmes available from VLCD. You cannot drink alcohol as it contains seven calories per gram and is of no other significant nutritional value. Consumption of large quantities of coffee is not recommended. If you feel you must drink them, the decaffeinated forms are preferred. Caffeine acts as a stimulant to the body systems and sometimes provides an irritant effect. Herbal teas offer a pleasant alternative. Will I feel hungry? Some hunger is experienced during the first one or two days but on the third day it usually disappears completely. This is
