Wellness

[lovemy5boys]

I switched to Perrier and other types of sparkling or seltzer water. I didn't care for the sweetness, but I like the fizz mostly, so I actually prefer these to soda.

[QueenDanceALot]

I like Celestial Seasonings Red Zinger tea on ice.

No kind of sweeteners (real or artificial). No caffeine.

Just tea.

[LooPY]

I absolutely love flavored seltzers. They have no sodium or calories, and just enough (natural) flavor and carbonation to make them a tasty alternative to plain water, while not as sweet as sodas, whose artificial sweeteners can actually make you hungrier! My favorite seltzer brands are Polar and Adirondack. Try some--they might just do the trick for you!

[SewHappy2]

Thank you everyone! There are some really good ideas and thanks for the support! This is the most recent article I read that really made me decide to try and change. I have a couple of health issues and need to watch my carbs and also fat. I just thought, what the heck, maybe I should just make over my whole diet while I am at it. It's hard, though. I feel like I have given up everything that I loved...

http://wallstcheatsheet.com/life/4-ways-diet-soda-wrecks-your-health.html/?a=viewall

[ccassaday]

I really don't care that Crystal light has the artificial sweeteners. I don't drink that much of it. I hate diet soda. I usually have one eight ounce can of regular soda,with my lunch. I used to have a mountain dew attached to me at all times.

[terrier3]

I am loving the taste of plain cold water.

I used to have TWO 24 oz. Det Cokes a day...yet I couldn't lose an ounce!

I started losing weight when I gave up the Diet Coke. O tried one recently, only had about half and burped for the rest of the day!

My son says it's poison...and I'm beginning to think he's right.

[millieshops]

Water with a squirt of fresh lemon. I went from way too much diet cola (never counted, but lots) to maybe a glass a month using water with lemon or seltzer with lemon if I wanted some fizz.

[drizzellla]

I cut down on soda earlier this year AFTER I discovered 4C liquid water enhancer. There are a number of flavors that I like. In fact I liked them so much I ordered several cases of my favorite flavors directly from 4C.

[JeanLouiseFinch]

On 10/9/2014 gazelle77 said:

I add flavored stevia drops to any water I drink. Stevita brand makes I think the best on the market.

I also decided to drink no caffeine herb tea.. I make enough for two days.. usually Chamomile and some other calming herb and sweeten it with stevia. I drink it both hot and cold.

I have not had any diet pop now for going on two years.... I use to drink over a six pack a day of the canned diet rite cola!

gazelle77 - Thanks so much for recommending the Stevita brand! I am pretty much pop-free these days and enjoy a lot of Tazo tea - can drink it by the pitcher and use Stevia extract to sweeten it. I've been looking high and low for flavor drops and all I've found either have Aspartame or Sucralose (Equal or Splenda). Neither of those are good for you and I was at a loss of where to turn to get something with Stevia alone. I found the Stevita drops on Vitacost and am ready to order. Is there somewhere else I should consider ordering from?

[Caitlinh429]

In all honesty if you are going to be drinking soda, you're better off drinking regular soda than the diet. yes regular soda has a ton of calories, but it's the ingredients in diet soda that'll do more damage than anything else. But let's face it, soda is soda is soda, and either choice is not healthy. It's better to cut it out completely than drink one vs the other.

There are so many articles on soda and it's side effects. Weight gain, fat buildup around your liver and skeletal muscles leading to diabetes, higher cholesterol, unnecessary cosmetic caramel coloring that is a threat to cause cancer, excessive phosphoric acids that can lead to heart/kidney problems (also muscle loss and osteoporosis), accelerate the aging process, cavities and tooth decay, BVO or brominated vegetable oil added to some sodas can lead to memory loss (also nerve disorders, behavioral disorders, infertility, and lesions on heart muscles over time), BPA in aluminum cans, etc etc. I'm not going to get direct links and statements for all of the above, instead do a google search on side effects of soda, and you'll get plenty of more information on it.

And a rule of thumb, some sugar alternatives can "trick your brain" (in a sense) and actually raise your bodies glucose levels leading to weight gain, this includes aspartame.

I was never "addicted" to soda, only having it on occasion. But I made the decision to cut it out completely 5 years ago. I mainly now drink water (sometimes tea, milk and juices). I've talked to many physicians, doctors and trainers who have all said that you should drink a minimum of half of your body weight in oz's of water a day. So a 140lb person should drink 70oz of water, more if you are physically active and working out. I've been doing this for a year now and have seen an incredible difference in my overall health, skin and weight (especially my muscle mass vs body fat %).

I'd also recommend just cutting cold turkey and making your own infusions with water. Pick any kind of fruit, add it to the water and make a big pitcher of it and leave in your fridge. There's water bottles specifically made for infusion but in all reality you don't need them. Google water infusions, there's tons of yummy and healthy recipes out there. Like others have stated if you need the bubbles go for seltzer over club soda. I'm sure you'll soon notice a big difference in your health as well once you cut out the soda.