Inquiry re: Mountain Dew
 

My husband is a serious Mountain Dew drinker (he gets massive headaches without it), and I'd like to know if it's readily available in Shannon, Killarney, Waterford, Dublin & Galway. I'm not implying that Ireland's in the Dark Ages- I'm just unfamiliar with what's offered- Kinda like a Yank trying to figure out where to find slow-cooked grits :) I gleaned from some outdated threads that products differ from country to country, and an absence of Mountain Dew= wife trying to wean her husband in three weeks' time. We're taking an escorted tour, so there'll be less chances to "stop and buy some." If you can direct me to an updated thread or give some insight, I'd appreciate it.

Have no recollection if Mountain Dew is readily available in Ireland or not (I don't drink soft drinks) but, in its absence, I would tend to think some other source of sugar and caffeine would help allay the headaches, as these are the primary (only?) "active" ingredients in the beverage.

Have a Coke and a Mars bar instead.

I've never seen MD outside the US, but I've also never looked for it so I'm not saying it doesn't exist. However, I do know it contains caffeine, so perhaps that's why he gets headaches without it. I get terrible headaches if I miss my morning coffee. There are plenty of caffeinated drinks in Ireland, so I hope that helps.

I've seen other Pepsi products but can't say for sure that I've seen Mountain Dew. Maybe I just overlooked it on store shelves, but I sure don't recall it.

Mountain Dew is not readily available in Europe. I did see a local supermarket stock it briefly but discovered on trying it that it was not the same formula as in the US - the caffeine had been omitted.

If he drinks a serious amount of it usually it may be that he has a caffeine dependency and you can reduce any withdrawal symptoms by dosing him up on more coffee than usual?

Thanks for the quick replies. In response: Alas, my husband eschews coffee, and he won't drink any other Pepsi product. He'll drink plain-old Coke on occassion, though. Hmmm. Well, this ought to be interesting! lol
I'm sure we'll find something to tide him over, but I thought I'd ask in advance. :)

Hello, my name is Amy, and I'm a recovering caffeine addict.

I was getting massive headaches if I missed a day of coffee, so back in December I quit cold turkey--no caffeinated beverages. It took me about two weeks to adjust--and I've been feeling a whole lot better overall since. It might work for him!

I'm pretty sure I've seen Mountain Dew sold in Ireland, but it's certainly not popular here. It could well be that it didn't see well and so they stopped marketing it in this country. Having tasted it a couple of times, I can see why! :)

If you are asking for "mountain dew", be careful you don't get served whiskey instead!!

I was addicted to Pepsi at work. Then I'd go on vacation and not have soft drinks. After a day or two I'd have terrible headaches that lasted a couple of days--then I'd be fine for the rest of the vacation. I finally gave up all caffinated beverages cold turkey--took me about 2-3 weeks of unpleasantness. Now no more headaches, and I don't miss the caffine at all.

I recall from my undergraduate days back in the dark ages a highly caffeinated product called No-Doz that allowed one to stay up all night to study. May be worth a search. I'm not sure I'd enjoy being the travel companion of someone in withdrawal :-<

mountain dew is nothing but caffeine -
fill him up all day with coffee only difference is the taste.

if mountain dew is not available and he won't drink coffee then He'll probably have to live with the headaches -- try going to your doctor they may have something that would help

Mountain Dew has massive amount of caffeine - like 3 times as much as coke or cifee. The headaches are due to caffeine deprivation - and will go away in about 4/5 days. If he wants to avoid that I beleive it's possible to get tablets containing caffeine - although not sure how many he needs to take. Check with you local pharmacy - and take them along with Coke or Pepsi to avoid the headaches.

The other option is to look at Red Bull - or one of the other "energy drinks" - if they have those in Ireland. They also contain massive amounts of caffeine and sugar.

The only other option is to go cold turkey here - and reduce his need for caffeine.

My understanding is that Mountain Dew in Canada has no caffeine. So it's quite possibly the same in Europe.

Perhaps this is a good way for your husband to wean himself off of some of his caffein intake. If he starts now, by the time he gets there, he might not be affected by the lack of Mt Dew.
This is just one of those things that some people have to go through when traveling out of their area, they don't always have the brand names that you are used to.
Watch out that he does not find a drink in Ireland that he loves and they won't have it in the US :)

Like Club Lemon!!!

I have no idea about Mountain Dew in Ireland, since I've never been there, but I can assure you I haven't seen it anywhere in Europe, and I've seen quite some places and have also been to supermarkets all over.
If it's a sugar and caffeine and other energy boost things you are looking for, the most popular brand all over is Red Bull and now the Coca-Cola company quite recently introduced a competitor for that, which is called Burn. There are plenty of look-a-like energy drinks available too.

It might be helpful to know that the reason caffeine keeps one awake is that it is a <i>poison</i>, and wakefulness is how the body fights it. The headaches are symptomatic of the body's conditioned response to a threat that is no longer present.

It is better to not be addicted to a poison in the first place.

Besides drinking any other caffinated drinks while there also pack Excedrin. It contains aspirin and also caffiene. That is why it tends to work well. I no longer take in any caffiene, (except when I eat chocolate), for 3 years now. I sleep better and feel better. But I understand the dependence I used to work night shift. Good Luck the headache lasts a few days and can be a killer if he decides to quit.

When my brother was running in biathalons, he drank gallons of Mt Dew. He had to stop after a while, it was ridiculous how much he drank.
Now he is addicted to Sweet tea~

I, myself, am working on an addiction to Pinot Noir :D

Maybe it's time to consider rehab. &rArr;

Hi Scarlett..
&quot;Watch out that he does not find a drink in Ireland that he loves and they won't have it in the U.S.&quot;
Oh, how true! Hubby became addicted to an Irish orange drink that he found on the shelves in the grocery stores that you were supposed to dilute 3 to 1, and he was drinking it straight!(can't believe I've forgotten the name). Back in Seattle, the only place I finally found it was in an Irish shop at 4 times the price. It wasn't long until he gave it up--until our next Ireland trip! Ah, the memories...Helen

Step 1 in our program is the most difficult.
Repeat after me: &quot;My name is (insert name here) and I do the Dew.&quot;

Helen, that is funny!
I never imagined Mt Dew being so popular, of course, I only drink Coke when I drink any soft drink so what do I know~
Imagine, a facility for those in rehab for addiction to Mt Dew..what do they do all day? LOL
The Yankee and I just fall in love with food in Europe or wine..which so far, as not gone as far as addiction.

My DH is also a big Mtn. Dew addict. He found that if he drank a Sprite and took a No-Doz, he got the same kick. After the first day or so, he gave up the No-Doz and was fine. Of course, we were drinking a entire pot of tea at breakfast so that helped as well.

What is the orange drink that is so popular in Ireland? Was it Orange-ade? I loved that! Not that I ever felt bad on the morning after a night in the pub, :) but it isn't as sweet as most soft drinks here. It was just right!

Diane

Hi Diane..The orange drink was My-Wadi.(I think that's how it was spelled). It was really funny because I finally read the label and said to Husband--Do you realize you are supposed to DILUTE this stuff? We still laugh about it...Helen

Diane: I wonder if you mean CLUB Orange? Other choices, beside Mywadi :) are Britvic and Fanta.

Pooka: have you consulted your local Vitamin shop? They may have some caffein substitute or something that might help your husband through his withdrawal.

OR, take a suitcase full of Mt Dew and that way you can feel fine about taking a suitcase full of shoes!
LOL
this just came to me when I read O'Reillys response, don't know why~:D

&gt;:-) Scarlett!

You DO remind me of an incident some years ago. I asked one of my sisters what she wanted me to bring her from Canada (to Dublin). She requested Maple Syrup (available in Dublin, but expensive and poor quality compared to what is available in Canada) and ROOT BEER for the kids! Apparently, when they were growing up in Malaysia, the four of them became hooked on the stuff and it was not available in Dublin. So, in addition to packing my wardrobe and 15 pairs of shoes :) I had to bring back a suitcase full of syrup and root beer.

Also, my family here in Toronto are hooked on CLUB Orange and Cadbury's chocolate (heaven only knows why) so the same suitcase made the return journey filled with plastic bottles of Club Orange and boxes of Cadbury's Flakes, Whole Nut, Turkish Delight and other assorted delicacies! I felt like an ancient trader on the 'Silk Route&quot;.

Regards Ger

Mountain Dew has nothing on good ole drip-brewed coffee.

http://wilstar.com/caffeine.htm

Please note that's 55 milligrams of caffeine in 12oz of Mountain Dew compare to 115 mg on up for *8* oz of drip-brewed.

Since the hubby doesn't like coffee. How about tea? The caffeine content is fairly similar.

BTW: do they still make Jolt Cola?

If you want a quick and easy caffeine hit either go for Red Bull or go to a Pharmacy and ask for Pro Plus caffeine tablets.

Mountain Dew is disgusting. It makes people (kids) fat, hyper, diabetic and addicted. It should be banned worldwide. Remember when nobody would drink it because it looked and tasted like deer piss? But then Pepsi introduced those Gen Xer extreme sports ads &quot;DO the DEW&quot; Euuuuwwwww!

O'Reilly, hate to think that it may be a Torontonian thing. We too (Brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews, cousins etc.) can't get enought of British chocolate and sweet stuff and all things Cadbury - especially the chocolate mint, Wispa and Fruit and Nut. Cousins just returned on the weekend bearing a dozen Battenburg cakes for everyone !

I once dropped a six pack of bottles of Mountain Dew down my grandparents cellar stairs when I was about eight and when the bottles broke and mountain dew spilled all over the celar walls and floor it removed all the paint! Find a new caffeine source.

i know there is a food store chain in england called &quot;tesco&quot;, which should have a website.. maybe they are in ireland and you can find out if they stock it, and where.

many websites in england end in &quot;co.uk&quot; instead of .com.
good luck.

What an excellent time to detox from harmful doses of caffeine and sugar!

If he's getting &quot;massive headaches&quot;, well that's just his poor body asking for help. If you love him, get him off that stuff!

Why, oh why, do so many Fodorites feel the need to preach so often (good time to detox, etc.)?

I cannot answer the Mountain Dew question, but would suggest looking for other caffinated drinks, Coke as probably the most universal option. For instance, there is/was a caffinated water made in Germany maybe I was warned of last trip (because it appeared normal bottled H20 but with caffine added!).

Seems the combo of caffine in pill form (no-doze or some of the headache cures with aspirin also load you up with caffine) with 7up or Sprite would be a fair substitute and most easily available within the confines of a tour group.

Tell your husband there are worse vices. I crave Dr. Pepper in the morning, and it's hard to find overseas. I knew I was addicted when I had to force myself not to buy a can for &euro;4 after three weeks going without.

Yes, yes, yes- Club Orange! In only 7 days, I can once again indulge my Club Orange habit! Pooka, what have you and DH decided to do about his Mtn. Dew addiction?

Thanks to all who gave advice, and shared some experiences. I've had no luck finding out if there is or isn't US standard Mt. Dew in Ireland (though you wouldn't think so by the number of posts here, LOL!), so... My husband declares that he will see about dragging a 12-pack over, and claims he will be fine after it's gone (i.e., he'll find something else to guzzle). Eeeep! I'll bring a wee list of suggested remedies (barring no caffeine),&amp; hope for the best. Many thanks to all who've stopped to put in a word :)