Best Alternatives to Soda

• What to Have Instead of Soda Drink? 

• Takeaway

• Frequently Asked Questions

• References

The world's obsession with soda knows no limits, but not everyone on earth sipping it for their health in the first place.

Drinking soda can be very detrimental to your health. Drinking soda can be well associated with a higher risk of stroke, heart disease, different types of cancer like colorectal cancer, and all other causes of death. This drinking habit is also linked to obesity. Drinking soda can also trigger your sweet cravings by dulling out your sensitivity towards sweet tastes, which sparks a vicious cycle of drinking and eating foods with added sugar.

There is no nutritional benefit of having soda due to the absence of nutrients of value.  A can of soda contains approximately 36.8 gm of sugar. 

All of this sugar content has very health-damaging effects. A study found out that swapping out sugary drinks a day for other unsweetened tea, coffee, or water may help to reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes by a much greater extent by as much as approx  25 per cent.

So let's see some other better choices for Soda

There are many other refreshing beverages available with much nutritional value that you can have instead of soda. Replacing your soda with processed coffee and tea and other high-sugar-content fruit juices, which usually contain harmful added sugar, isn’t going to help you with your health.

So swapping out your soda for the drinks that are much low in sugar, such as unsweetened iced tea and coffee, can effectively reduce your sugar intake while also adding many beneficial antio-xidants to your diet.  Unsweetened soy milk is one of the best options for having multiple nutrients like vitamins and minerals like calcium

What to Have Instead of Soda Drink? 

Need some inspiration? Get your life settled with these healthier and low-calorie thirst quencher drinks that along with providing nutrients will also satisfy your taste buds.

Chill Your Water With Refreshing Flavours

There is much-flavoured water everywhere, but many of them contain sugar or other artificial sweeteners. A healthier choice would be natural flavouring. You can add some slices of your favourite veggies, fruits and other herbs — you can try oranges, lemons, watermelon, mint, or cucumber with the ice-cold water for a refreshing drink. Another great option can be some chopped-up fruits in a tray, adding some water, and then freezing. Now you can place these colourful and tasty fruit cubes in your beverage for some instant colour and flavour. 

Go With Hot or Iced Natural Green Tea

Past research on green tea revealed that it may help you to reduce the risk of heart disease, cancer, obesity, liver disease, and another type 2 diabetes. In addition to this, the researchers note that green tea is naturally quite high in antio-xidants which are available in many varieties. 

Fresh Fruits Juices 

There are many fresh fruit juices one can have to get a healthy boost in the morning. Grape juice and pomegranate juice are good sources of antio-xidants that can help you protect your blood vessels and brain. A study found that pomegranate juice can help improve memory problems in older adults.

Grape juice may help you protect your heart, according to several studies conducted. The perks of different flavonoids which are disease-fighting compounds present in grape juice could be seen to be present in just 1 cup of Concord grape juice.

Regardless of the juice that you have, you don’t want to over-consume with this beverage. It's a very common misconception that juice is very good for humans because it's directly made from fruit. Also, it does have some nutritional benefits that soda lacks to provide but on the other hand, it can also be high in calories and added sugar. 

Fresh Vegetables Juice Instead Of  Chopping

Vegetable juice provides you with a quick and low-calorie way to get several benefits of veggies, without the fibre. It also contains quite less natural sugar than fruit juices.  For example, according to the studies conducted,1 cup of orange juice usually contains  25 grams of sugar, while 1 cup of tomato juice has 7 g of sugar. But on the other hand vegetable juice can be rich in sodium as 1 cup of tomato juice has 630 mg of sodium, which is about 28% of your daily value so you can opt for a low-sodium option whenever possible.

If You Can't Pair it With Dairy, Opt for Soy Milk

1 cup of nonfat milk provides you with  320 mg of calcium which is about  25% of your daily value, and about  2.7 mcg of vitamin D, which is about 13 % of your daily value, according to the research. But for those people who are lactose intolerant, soy milk can be a good option for their plant-based protein boost. It is available in different flavours, including vanilla and almond. Also, intake of soy protein may lower your bad cholesterol, as well as your blood pressure.  Also, choose soy milk that has been fortified with major nutrients like vitamin D and calcium especially when you're having it as a substitute for dairy.

Other plant-based milk are coconut, almond, coconut, rice, or even oat — are potential and healthy dairy alternatives out of which soy is the best.

To Fill Up Your Caffeine Quench, Have Coffee

A number of studies suggest that drinking up coffee in moderation can be a very healthy option for your diet. If it is unsweetened coffee, either black or with a little bit of low-fat or nonfat milk, or even plant-based milk like soy or almond would be the healthiest option you could go for.  Coffee drinkers usually have a lower risk of prostate cancer, heart disease, endometrial cancer etc. Also, coffee's caffeine can provide you with more mental alertness and great physical performance but remember to reap all these benefits you should not overdo it as too much caffeine can leave you with anxiety. That's why many nutritionists suggest just having a couple of coffee cups in a day. It’s generally considered safe to have 400 mg of caffeine each day is safe to have in a day according to studies. Pregnant women and those who are trying to become pregnant may want to avoid it. Coffee consumption is also related to an increased risk of fractures in women, so if you’re prone to having fractures you should steer clear of coffee, according to a 2017 research. 

Refresh With a Glass of Coconut Water

Unsweetened coconut water is a good and natural source of vitamins and minerals, and has the additional benefit of being low in sugar. Plus, coconut water contains electrolytes (minerals that maintain fluid balance), like potassium, magnesium, and sodium, which are often reduced during long or strenuous exercise. 

But don’t confuse coconut water with coconut milk. Typically, coconut water is for hydration, while coconut milk is utilised in cooking. Coconut water comes directly from the coconut fruit itself and is nearly 94% water. Meanwhile, coconut milk is made by grating the coconut flesh and is only 50% water — the rest consists of fat and protein. 

Takeaway

Drinking too many sugar-sweetened beverages like soda can have various negative impacts on your health like increased chances of heart disease,  tooth decay, low bone density and other metabolic disorders such as type 2 diabetes.

Increased consumption of sugary soda also happens to be a potent risk factor for obesity and weight gain.

So if you want to lose weight or want to gain muscles or avoid having a chronic disease, and want to live longer, prioritise limiting your soda intake.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What are the harmful effects of cold drinks?

Drinking highly sugar-sweetened beverages — such as soda — can have numerous adverse effects on your health which can range from increased chances of tooth decay to a higher risk of heart disease and metabolic disorders such as type 2 diabetes.

2. Which drink is best for the heart?

Heart-healthy drinks (other than water)

• Sparkling water.
• Unflavoured milk.
• Plant-based milk with added calcium, like almond, soy, oat, and rice milk.
• Tea.
• Coffee.
• Fruit or vegetable juice.

References

1. Effects of caffeine on neuromuscular fatigue and performance during high-intensity cycling exercise in moderate hypoxia

2. Prospective associations and population impact of sweet beverage intake and type 2 diabetes, and effects of substitutions with alternative beverages