“A coke and smile” has been a long uttered phrase in the American lingo. From the likes of super family oriented comedian Bill Cosby to foul-mouthed Eddie Murphy this particular expression has been something we have all heard in some form at some point. But have you ever wondered why Coke comes with that effervescent and notorious smile? Although the manufacturers removed the namesake cocaine from the ingredients list almost one hundred years ago, a regular Coke gets you high. That’s right, even without the cocaine Coke continues to get you high as a kite with different ingredients.

Here is a breakdown of what your body experiences shortly after you drink that gooey goodness in a fizzy can … but a cautionary note before hand – Coke itself isn’t the enemy here. It’s the dynamic combination of a massive sugar dose combined with caffeine, and phosphoric acid, which are found in almost all sodas.

10 minutes: 10 teaspoons of sugar hit your system. (which is 100% of your recommended daily allowance.) The reason you don’t immediately vomit from the overwhelming sweetness is due to the phosphoric acid, which cuts the flavor, allowing you to keep it down.

20 minutes: Your blood sugar spikes, causing an insulin burst. Your liver responds to this by turning any sugar it can get its hands on into fat. (And there’s plenty of that at this particular moment.)

40 minutes: Caffeine absorption is complete. Your pupils dilate; your blood pressure rises; as a response, your liver dumps more sugar into your bloodstream. The adenosine receptors in your brain are now blocked, preventing drowsiness.

45 minutes: Your body ups your dopamine production, stimulating the pleasure centers of your brain. This is physically the same way heroin works, by the way.

60 minutes: The phosphoric acid binds calcium, magnesium, and zinc in your lower intestine, providing a further boost in metabolism. This is compounded by high doses of sugar and artificial sweeteners also increasing the urinary excretion of calcium.

The caffeine’s diuretic properties come into play. (It makes you have to pee.) It is now assured that you’ll evacuate the bonded calcium, magnesium, and zinc that was headed to your bones as well as sodium, electrolytes, and water.

As the rave inside you dies down, you’ll start to have a sugar crash. You may become irritable and/or sluggish. You’ve also now, literally, pissed away all the water that was in the Coke. But not before infusing it with valuable nutrients your body could have used for things like hydrating your system, or building strong bones and teeth.

120 minutes: This will all be followed by a caffeine crash in the next few hours. (As little as two if you’re a smoker.)

Want to know what happens after that? We’re scared, but if you are willing to test your system check out what happens to your body after you drink a coke every day for months on end and send us the results!

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