Lisa Black is discovering a body she never knew she could have. Ribs are appearing and the 32-year-old's double chin has vanished. It's an exciting time for the Gold Coast mother of one, who blames an addiction to soft drink for her weight problems and diabetes.

'I used to drink up to 18 cans of cola a day,' Lisa admits. 'I'd open my eyes in the morning and reach for a can, and if
I couldn't get one I'd get the shakes and mood swings. I could drink four or five in a row, and in the end I became a joke, even to myself.' Lisa can't remember having her first can of soft drink. There was always plenty in the fridge. Her mum drank buckets of it, and her grandma still drinks diet cola.

Now Lisa has gradually weaned herself off soft drinks and attended women's weight-loss clinic Healthy Inspirations. Five months later she's lost 20kg and is now 103kg. It's not an uncommon story. It's the single biggest roadblock singer Casey Donovan has in her brilliant ongoing effort to have a healthy lifestyle. Before I started training her, she'd drink a bottle of soft drink every day. This is equivalent to tipping 150 teaspoons of sugar down your throat each week.

Casey has cut right back to a bottle or two a week, which is a great start, but it's still too much for really effective weight loss. As part of our own house rules, our daughter Paloma never has soft drink pass her lips.

A recent National Nutrition Survey found that 26 per cent of two to three-year-olds had consumed soft drink in the 24 hours prior to being questioned. However, other drinks pose problems too.

Soft drink popularity is waning in favour of sports and energy drinks, but Blue Powerade, for instance, has nine teaspoons of sugar per bottle, which is almost as bad as cola with around 10 teaspoons a can.

Swap This	kJ	Sugar	For This	kJ	Sugar
Lemon-Lime Gatorade 600ml	630	9 tsps	Pura Hi Lo milk 200ml	398	2.5 tsps
Pepsi 375ml	713	10.4 tsps	Lipton Light Ice Tea 500ml	35	0.12 tsps
Red Bull 250ml	480	7 tsps	Black tea 220ml	9	0 tsps
Just Juice Apple 200ml	360	5 tsps	Water 200ml	0	0 tsps

1 tsp = 4g

What to do:

Wean gradually. Halve your daily soft drink or cordial intake, then reduce that gradually each week. You can also water down cordial, or use diet versions.

Aim to drink only water or tea, and one to two serves of low-fat milk daily. Make water tastier by freezing it with orange slices or frozen strawberries.

Beware of hidden hazards. Don't think you're in the clear because you're not a fizzy drink fan. Nutritionist Glenn Cardwell warns that a multitude of drinks are either bad for the teeth or bad for the waistline. 'A glass of orange or apple juice is just as acidic as a glass of cola' he says. 'You can clean a 20 cent piece in a glass of cola overnight, but you can also clean it in a glass of juice, or a glass of expensive red wine!'

Ban soft drinks in the house. It's easier to say no once at the supermarket than 10 times at home. Make juice an occasional treat - opt for fruit instead.

If you give your child money for lunch, find out where it's going, and try to prepare your own healthy drinks and lunches

Can you live without soft drink and switch to water?