We all like a fizzy drink every now and then, but imagine spending £3,000 a year on the stuff. Well, that was the reality for a mum who was addicted to Irn-Bru and knocked back 20 cans every single day for 25 years.
Carole Lamond, 57, was living in Glasgow as a child when she first tried the infamous orange fizzy drink, before moving to London.
When she moved back home to Scotland 25 years ago, she soon picked up the habit once more and it wasn't long before the HR manager was addicted and drinking multiple cans a day to get her fix.
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Things worsened for Carole over lockdown when she started working from home during the pandemic. Left unchecked without the watchful eyes of colleagues, she was soon knocking back a huge 20 cans every day. Now reliant on a huge amount of sugar and caffeine, Carole simply couldn't function without her beloved Irn-Bru.
Carole estimates that she drank nearly 15,000 cans of the stuff throughout the two years of lockdown, spending roughly £60 a week.
To do the maths, that's a massive 94,000g of sugar and a scarily high 450,000mg of caffeine. That definitely puts your daily coffee habit to shame.
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Carole said: "We could have bought several family holidays for the money I was spending. My recycling bin was overflowing each week with cans of Irn-Bru.
As well as hiding cans around the house, she went one step further, revealing: "I would even take secret trips to the dump to dispose of the empty cans. I was like a drug addict trying to conceal my problem. I was literally chain drinking it."
I was cracking a can at 8am in the morning, drinking them all day and having one before bed."
Unsurprisingly, drinking such enormous quantities of sugar and caffeine soon started to harm Carole's health.
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Doctors feared the worst thanks to her symptoms, initially thinking she had suffered a stroke. Carole also had CT scans to see if she had a brain tumour.
Her trip to hospital gave Carole a shock: "It was the wake up call I needed really. I knew the amount of Irn-Bru I was drinking had something to do with it.
"I'd had spells of dizziness and fainting and they couldn't find anything wrong although they suspected a stroke at first.
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"I even had scans for a brain tumour which is pretty scary but I knew that drinking all this Irn-Bru was to blame."
Despite her addiction, Carole was very particular about her Irn-Bru, saying that only one particular type would do: "It had to be cans rather than bottles, it was everything from the sound of the can cracking opening to the feel of the aluminium and bubbles. It was bizarre looking back.
"I'm only 5ft and weigh seven stone, so I must have looked a right sight with a boot full of Irn-Bru.
"So it never became about a weight issue, the rest of my diet and exercise has always been fine, but it soon became a health issue."
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The mum-of-one turned to hypnosis to help, working with London-based therapist and hypnotist David Kilmurry.
Remarkably, she says it only took one full hypnotherapy session and a follow-up meeting four weeks ago.
Carole swears she has not touched the drink since: "I was really sceptical at first as I never really believed in hypnotherapy but I was willing to give anything a try and incredibly it worked for me.
"Now I just don't want to go anywhere near Irn-Bru, even the smell puts me off and makes me feel sick. I can't thank David enough."
Hypnotist Mr Kilmurry said: "Since having her last drink three weeks ago Carole suffered severe migraines and had two days in bed and the first day off work in four years due to the sugar withdrawal.
"Carole used to pour Irn-Bru into a mug to get her sugar addiction appeased if she was in public.
"Sugar addiction leads to diabetes, cancers and heart disease and is one of the biggest causes of death in the western world.
"I treated Carole with some very strong aversion therapy which creates a disgusting taste just at the thought of drinking Irn-Bru or chocolate to conclude our hypnotism sessions.
"I'm delighted she has finally kicked this awful addiction."
Featured Image Credit: SWNSTopics: Food And Drink, UK News