U.K. Teen Diagnosed with Coca-Cola Addiction

We’ve all heard it before: “I’m addicted,” or, “I couldn’t live without this.’” But in the case of 18-year-old Zoe Cross, she really is addicted — to Coca-Cola. The U.K. teen was admitted to the hospital recently for her habit of drinking gallons of the sugary soft drink each day.

“I admit I’m addicted to Coke,” said Cross in an interview with The Sun. “Not the drug, the drink.”

The habit started when she was 14 and quickly spiraled out of control after she started a job at a local Subway restaurant, where employees have free range for drinking soft drinks offered by the company. While at work. she collapsed on two separate occasions, the most recent incident landing her in the hospital for five days. It’s thought that the most recent incident occurred due to a reported E. Coli infection from drinking it straight from an unwashed can.

At the height of her Coke binges, the 5’ 4’’ teen admitted to drinking 24 cans per day — nearly 3,360 calories per day. Doctors told the teen that her body couldn’t continue to handle the high sugar intake, and she could eventually die if she continued to drink so much Coke.

For now, Cross is on the road to recovery. She hopes to kick the habit, but says it’s not easy.

“Coming off Coke has been hard because I get terrible headaches when I don’t drink it,” Cross said to The Sun. “But I’m hoping I’ll pull through.”

We all have our favorite food, but are there any foods that you could see yourself “addicted” to?

Sean Flynn is a Junior Writer for The Daily Meal. Follow him on Twitter @BuffaloFlynn
 

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