Think I'm addicted to soda...alternatives, anyone?

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Replies

  • ElJefeChief
    ElJefeChief Posts: 651 Member
    edited July 2015
    I typically drink three to four 20 ounce cups of coffee per day, and I have a soft drink habit myself - I usually do a 1/2 liter of Soda Stream Crystal Light lemonade on most days.

    I can stop anytime I want. Really.
  • slomo22
    slomo22 Posts: 125 Member
    I really like "sparkling Ice". It's really refreshing flavored carbonated water, 0 calories. Or I have orange juice when I craving a something sweet. I'm not addicted to Soda so they may not fill your caffeine craving. Drink coffee!
  • ravenstar25
    ravenstar25 Posts: 126 Member
    The only thing that finally got me off soda was homebrewed iced tea. It has some caffeine. but significantly less than soda; it still tastes good (I absolutely loathe drinking nothing but water, don't care what anyone tells me), and is lower in sodium. You can choose to drink it unsweetened or with artificial sweetener to keep it zero cal.
  • nora_gettingfitnow
    nora_gettingfitnow Posts: 108 Member
    I had a problem with that too, I now drink sparkling water and add a cordial to it like summer fruits or miwadi orange. Its just as tasty, alot healthier and I get that refreshing fizzy feeling that I used to get when I would drink a cold can of soda. Best of luck with it :wink:
  • DiddleOnTheRun
    DiddleOnTheRun Posts: 45 Member
    I have started brewing Green Tea and sweetning it with Organic Stevia.
    If you aren't familiar with Stevia , it is a natural sweetner, derived from the Stevia plant, and BONUS! Doesn't have that yucky aftertaste
  • hanansj
    hanansj Posts: 6 Member
    I use vintage soda water mixed with a 100% fruit juice to make a soda. As for the caffeine you can drink tea instead and slowly wean yourself off that. I don't allow any type of soda in the house and my daughter makes her favorite grapple soda by mixing soda water with 100% apple juice and 100% grape juice. I just love the vintage pomegranate with a lot of ice. No sugar, no artificial sweetener and it is delicious.
  • alicat1974
    alicat1974 Posts: 12 Member
    Try a Soda Stream machine. We were lucky enough to find one at a thrift store for $8, but even full price for one of them is still only the cost of a month's worth of soda for my family. They've got tons of syrups so you can pick and choose your own flavors and intensity of taste. The non-diet stuff is an aspartame and sugar mix which is still super low in calories. My kids use those. I just drink it bubbly with a few slices of cucumber and lemon and find it very refreshing. Also, there's so much less waste involved as you reuse your bottles.
  • FluffaWumpkins
    FluffaWumpkins Posts: 6 Member
    edited July 2015
    My job actually gave me a soda stream for Christmas...I feel so stupid to have not used it yet
  • Orphia
    Orphia Posts: 7,097 Member
    Sparkling mineral water has been my favourite non-alcoholic beverage since I gave up soft drink when I started counting calories.
  • chandelierbee
    chandelierbee Posts: 95 Member
    I'm curious to hear other people's opinion on the matter. I, for one, have a huge problem with drinking soda. I badly crave it and sometimes when I have a headache, all it takes is a bottle of soda to make it go away. A friend of mine recommended seltzer/soda water as an alternative and I do like it. However, I've gotten a lot of mixed reviews about it. Some people say it's bad for you and should be avoided at all cost and then I have people who say it's a healthy and great way to stay hydrated (I'm trying to increase my water intake...really hate drinking water).

    I really really really love soda and probably drink about 2-3 bottles a day. I know it's a unhealthy habit that's hindering my weight loss, so I'm open to learning how to break this habit. So let me know what you think and if you're one who believes seltzer is a bad options, can you recommend something as an alternative.

    My bf has the same issue except he's trying to gain weight. My family was addicted to coke, so much my bf would buy them whenever they went on sale, just to put it in drawers. My diabetic grandma is addicted to "COKE!" And so is my brother. Everyone else in the family could care less but I was a coke addict and I stopped drinking bc It was bad for my teeth and my teeth were yellow-ing and it erodes your tooth enamel away and I tended to drink it bc my grandpa used to buy it for me all the time. Just think.... Soda in general, all that sugar erodes your teeth but nothing's worse than coke. It's used as drain-o for crying out loud
  • Orphia
    Orphia Posts: 7,097 Member
    Soda in general, all that sugar erodes your teeth but nothing's worse than coke. It's used as drain-o for crying out loud

    Wrong. We did an experiment at work recently. We put a tarnished coin in Coke. There was no change to the coin despite it soaking in Coke for over a week.
  • angelica_lisa
    angelica_lisa Posts: 23 Member
    I like drinking flavored seltzer water, and herbal tea. I never really liked colas because they contain phosphoric acid and have a stronger taste than the lemon-lime varieties. I also on occasion like to drink Live Kombucha soda - it tastes just like a soda but healthier for you.

    If it is indeed a caffeine addiction, then switching to caffeinated tea would be a good alternative.
  • stephchadz
    stephchadz Posts: 143 Member
    My mom had a similar problem and she was able to kick the habit cold turkey for about a year. She drinks soda again now, but before she just stopped drinking it, cold turkey. She did get headaches for the first few days but she says they weren't that bad, and once you're past them it gets a lot easier. Good luck!
  • Dex37
    Dex37 Posts: 55 Member
    I kicked a 1-2 energy drink a day habit the end of May. I just stopped by drinking lots of water, at least 2L daily and ate every 3hrs. When I was drinking the energy drinks, if I didn't have one by 2pm I would feel drained and would start to get a migraine. Now I might drink a cup of coffee once or twice a week when I need a boost for the gym.
  • Timelordlady85
    Timelordlady85 Posts: 797 Member
    cut it down slowly and replace with an extra glass of water, then slowly work towards more water and teas then sodas. or you could try adding lemon and fruit slices to your water and tea to flavor it too.
  • gabrielle_largent
    gabrielle_largent Posts: 1 Member
    There is also zevia. It's a zero calorie soda with no sugar and no artificial sweeteners but does have stevia as a sweetener. I like the Orange, root beer, and ginger ale flavor a the best but there is 15 flavors.
  • mbaker566
    mbaker566 Posts: 11,233 Member
    I used to drink about 6-8 cans of soda a day. I just switched to ICEE water its so good I dont even miss soda now. its carbonated, no sugar, no carbs, just water http://www.sparklingice.com/

    yes! love these. the apple one is great when I want a hard cider but don't actually want the alcohol. taste like ciderboys cider. wonderful stuff. and the blackberry one is heaven
  • mbboy2065
    mbboy2065 Posts: 4 Member
    I agree with the "taper off" approach. I loved my mt. dew. That stuff was it good, and high in sugar. I slowly tapered off and drank water with some orange flavoring in it. eventually I was down to just water with the mio orange flavoring. Now I get a headache IF I have some. Probably from all that sugar.
  • kat_princess12
    kat_princess12 Posts: 109 Member
    I used flavored sparkling water to break myself of the soda habit. No sweeteners, no sodium, no caffeine. I've suffered no negative effects from it - in fact it's really helped keep me hydrated. And, possibly due to the decreased caffeine intake, I suffer fewer headaches than I did when drinking soda.