Dr. Cranquis' Mumbled Gripes

I'm an American physician who works in an Urgent Care clinic. I see lots of stupid or funny things that people do with-and-to their health. I cope by mumbling under my breath (and then posting about it on this pseudonymous blog). Thought you might be interested.

(Disclaimer: Questions related to medical topics will be answered to the best of Dr. Cranquis' (and Google's) knowledge, but the internet-delivered wisdom on this blog CAN NOT AND SHOULD NOT SUBSTITUTE for your Real-Life Doctor's personal attention + examination, and your own common sense too! If you think you're having a medical emergency, hang up and go email 911. The author of this blog takes no responsibility for any medical, relationship, scholastic, financial, or other decisions you may make based on information found in this blog.)

And since people seem to be a bit confused about this: any "real-sounding" patients names are just horrible puns, and not HIPAA violations.

Blogs I Follow

7 Bad Things linked to Diet Soda →

I once replied to a question about “Why do you say not to drink diet soda if you’re trying to lose weight”, with this reply: “It’s not that diet soda is EVIL, it’s just not the BEST.” But after reading this research-summary article on diet soda, I may have to amend that statement. Diet Soda is not the BEST thing for you to drink, and it just might be the WORST, too.

In summary, research is showing diet soda to be heavily linked to:

Decreased kidney function (from the diet sweeteners themselves, perhaps?!)
Increased risk for metabolic syndrome (which means increased risk for heart disease)
Obesity (by disrupting how your body regulates calorie intake)
Getting drunk faster (when mixed with alcohol, by allowing liquor to enter the bloodstream faster)
Damaged DNA/mitochondria (from the benzoate preservatives)
Rotting teeth (just like the regular sody-pops!)
Exposure to BPA (from the soda cans, which increases risk for many things including reproductive disorders)