S/O Splenda: What do you drink?

[Cindyz]

I prefer diet Snapple iced tea because it tastes good and has no calories. The problem was that it's too expensive so I switched to Crystal Light iced tea flavors. I drink this all day long. It's the only thing I drink.

 

In the past couple of weeks I have read horrible articles about artificial sweeteners and the thread here about the terrible side effects of artificial sweeteners has pushed me over the edge and I no longer want to drink drinks containing them. My hair is thinning, I've had heart palpitations and a lot of headaches lately which could all be caused by the amount of artificial sweeteners I am consuming.

 

So now I don't know what to drink! Obviously water is a good choice, but what else?

[Mergath]

I used to drink diet Pepsi all day long, but stopped a couple of months back (and have felt much, much better since). Now we mostly drink water and organic 2% milk, though that's mostly for dd. I have the occasional can of regular Pepsi (my husband insists on having it in the house :001_rolleyes: so every once in awhile I'll sneak a can, lol). I drink a couple cups of coffee in the morning, and at night I sometimes have a cup of Sleepytime Extra tea. During the summer, I often make a pitcher of iced tea, using my bags of black tea and real sugar (none of that nasty powdered mix for me, thanks).

[JudoMom]

I drink 2-3 cups of coffee a day. I don't drink it black, though, so each cup is about 80 calories. If I enjoyed it black, I'd probably drink way more than 2-3 cups.

 

Other than that I drink water. Lots of water.

 

I did just figure out I like peppermint tea, so I sometimes have a cup of that in the evening if I want something hot.

[gardening momma]

I drink unsweet tea (can't stand sweet tea) and an occasional cola (not diet). Probably no help, sorry. ;)

[Crimson Wife]

Water, unsweetened fruit-flavored tea (hot in winter, iced in summer), and the occasional small glass of organic lemonade or root beer as a treat.

[mcconnellboys]

Tea has lots of great benefits! If you drink decaf, that's even better. There are tons of varieties and it doesn't take long to get used to drinking it unsweetened, with perhaps just some lemon, lime, or a squeeze or orange, etc. (No calories, save for the miniscule amount in the fruit juice you add....)

 

http://www.nursingdegree.net/blog/18/33-health-benefits-of-drinking-tea/

 

http://www.ivillage.com/top-10-health-benefits-drinking-tea/4-a-108301

 

You don't have to drink tea hot - most varieties are just as good iced!

[gardening momma]

Tea has lots of great benefits! If you drink decaf, that's even better. There are tons of varieties and it doesn't take long to get used to drinking it unsweetened, with perhaps just some lemon, lime, or a squeeze or orange, etc. (No calories, save for the miniscule amount in the fruit juice you add....)

 

You don't have to drink tea hot - most varieties are just as good iced!

I love black tea with no fruitiness or spice added, but you can find many varieties of it. We have a large international grocery store here where I like exploring the many varieties. If you ever get to Colorado, you can go on a tour of the Celestial Seasonings tea plant in [boulder] (I think that's where it is). Very interesting, and the mint room is great.

[The Girls' Mom]

unsweetened tea in the morning, water the rest of the day.

[Storm Bay]

Water, herb tea. Things I like to drink but no longer can are: milk, juice (too much sugar because I'm allergic to yeast), root beer (but something like Virgil's, not the fake stuff).

[Crissy]

I try to mostly drink plain water during the day, but sometimes I want something different.

On those occasions I like flavored sparkling water. My favorite is Perrier Grapefruit, but almost as good and quite a bit less expensive is La Croix Grapefruit.

[mom4him]

I prefer diet Snapple iced tea because it tastes good and has no calories. The problem was that it's too expensive so I switched to Crystal Light iced tea flavors. I drink this all day long. It's the only thing I drink.

 

In the past couple of weeks I have read horrible articles about artificial sweeteners and the thread here about the terrible side effects of artificial sweeteners has pushed me over the edge and I no longer want to drink drinks containing them. My hair is thinning, I've had heart palpitations and a lot of headaches lately which could all be caused by the amount of artificial sweeteners I am consuming.

 

So now I don't know what to drink! Obviously water is a good choice, but what else?

If you like tea you can make a big jar of tea, while it is still warm/hot put a bit of honey in it. Once it is mixed it stays mixed, tastes yummy and much better for you than artificial sweeteners.

[In the Rain]

I tried various teas and found several that I like with no sweeteners added. I also drink a lot of water.

[LizzyBee]

I drink 2-3 cups of coffee with milk but no sugar every day. Other than that, I drink water with lime. I didn't think I could give up sweet tea, but I didn't even miss it after a week without having any.

[eternalknot]

Pretty much all I drink is water. I didn't grow up drinking juices or sodas, so I don't have a taste for them now. I hate black tea, so I've never liked iced tea.

 

I do have a cup or two of tea most days. In cooler seasons I'll have hot water with a slice of lemon or cinnamon stick towards the evening hours.

 

My husband loves soda. He's been trying to kick the habit. He reduced his intake, and also switched to Zevia (which he says helped a bit because the taste is sort of off and he doesn't want to drink as much as he'd want to of the 'real thing'). It's sweetened with stevia.

 

Speaking of stevia, he also buys the flavored drops. He's added grape and orange flavors to club soda for an inferior but acceptable "fix" when he needs the bubblies. I don't use stevia, and I don't let him give it to the kids because I haven't looked into it. It's an herb, and supposedly not toxic like the substitute sugars. He is a habitual dieter, and relies on stevia when he can't have real sugar.

[Unicorn.]

I drink cold coffee w/ milk, no sugar. Water, and occasionally a soda (w/ real sugar, not hfcs). Tea I drink w/ no sugar. If I want a sweetened drink, I use real sugar, not anything w/ hfcs or ANY artificial sweeteners. I would rather have the calories, than use the chemicals, or splenda.

[Lolly]

Water, water everywhere. I also drink unsweetened tea, but it tends to keep me up at night if I do. If I feel like splurging, I'll have a Sprite.

[AuntieM]

I drink unsweetened iced tea. Having grown up in the south, this probably would not have been my choice! However, many years ago I developed a severe kidney infection and in recovering I was encouraged to give up all sodas. Of course I didn't completely, but it became more rare to have a Pepsi.

 

Then I got gestational diabetes with my fourth child. I went cold turkey to unsweetened tea. After she was born I just kept drinking it unsweetened. It is usually just unfancy black tea, but sometimes I add a green, mint or other herbal tea bag to the brew.

 

I do still have an occasional sugared drink, but mostly they just taste waaaaay too sweet to enjoy. My OB sent me to a nutritional counselor and I learned a lot about artificial sweetners. Enough so that I really don't want to use them, or ever let my kids have any.

[Parrothead]

Here we drink tea, lemonade, juice, milk, soda, water, coffee (for dh). We use real sugar (as real as I can get it, not bleached) in most of our drinks. The water is plain, the soda is as is and the dh puts agave nectar in his coffee.

[kokotg]

sparkling water, constantly. I buy the Kroger brand, which is around $2/12 pack, and drink like 3 or 4 of them a day. Sometimes I put packets of True Lemon or Lime (little packs of concentrated lemon or lime powder--no sweetener), but usually I just drink it plain.

[regentrude]

Water, tea, sparkling water. We got a carbonator, so we can add Co2 to the filtered tap water and do no longer have to buy (and discard/recycle) plastic bottles. the kids drink milk, too. Occasionally fruit juice watered down with carbonated water makes a nice healthy soda.

[Britomart]

Black coffee in the morning, then water till mid-afternoon, when I have a quart of iced tea. Then water the rest of the day (sometimes iced with lime, usually plain).

 

We make the iced tea in big mason jars (tea bag in the bottom, add almost boiling water, let it cool, then take the tea bag out), then stick them in the fridge. I label the lids with a dry-erase marker so we know what kind it is and when it was made, so we can use them in order. A big jar of ice-cold Irish breakfast mid-afternoon is just perfect. :)

[Storm Bay]

Water, tea, sparkling water. We got a carbonator, so we can add Co2 to the filtered tap water and do no longer have to buy (and discard/recycle) plastic bottles. the kids drink milk, too. Occasionally fruit juice watered down with carbonated water makes a nice healthy soda.

 

I just saw a carbonator, but it came with soda syrup that we would never use. Did you find one without the soda syrup? Sadly, my carbonated beverage days are over due to Acid Reflux, but my dc like it.

[jld]

Water. On the weekends we might buy some juice for the kids, and maybe every other month I will buy soda pop for everyone for a treat, say with pizza.

 

I haven't had any alcohol for two years. It wasn't on purpose. We moved to India two years ago, and it just doesn't seem as present here (maybe I just move in the wrong circles, lol). I meant to buy some when I was back in America, but it just didn't happen. I guess I've lost the habit.

 

Also, when we were in America the last couple months, I bought rice milk for the kids to have with their cereal, and the baby even drank it plain. If I buy cow's milk, it is for a recipe, not to drink.

[Dawn in OH]

I have one cup of coffee in the morning, sweetened with one teaspoon of sugar.

 

After that I drink water all day. I may have a second cup of coffee after dinner or a cup of hot tea. Most of my teas I take unsweetened.

 

If we want iced tea, I make a homemade pitcher of tea with minimal sugar.

[HappyCrazyMama]

Water, coffee with half & half & organic maple syrup or sugar (about 3-4 cups a day), raw goat milk (maybe 1 cup a day). I don't usually drink juice, maybe a cup every couple of weeks and soda is on a rare occasion. Sometimes I'll have a cup of tea in the afternoon, usually unsweetened.

[Pretty in Pink]

I drink water and milk, sometimes a small glass of orange juice.

[regentrude]

I just saw a carbonator, but it came with soda syrup that we would never use. Did you find one without the soda syrup? Sadly, my carbonated beverage days are over due to Acid Reflux, but my dc like it.

you do not have to put the soda syrup in the water. We got ours with a set of syrops, but get the additional CO2 cylinders without.

[EKS]

I drink club soda--the stuff from Safeway--as a treat. Otherwise, it's water.

[LauraGB]

I drink 2 cups of coffee in the morning (with milk), water through out the day (sometimes I add lemon, sometimes not), wine with dinner, and either water or tea in the evening. Been doing this for about 20 years...:).

 

I don't like soda or juices much; they always make my stomach feel icky. I can occasionally do the small 4oz glass of fresh squeezed orange juice, but it's rare that I actually want it (so I feel like if I do want it, it must be necessary for some reason, and I indulge).

[missmoe]

Water--plain

Water with lemon or lime or orange slices

Water with cucumbers

Veggie juice

Herb tea

Homemade lemonaide or limeaide

[Cinder]

Dh recently cut Splenda from his diet--he's prediabetic and used to enjoy Coke Zero as a treat. He now limits himself to coffee with half and half, unsweetened tea, flavored seltzer, and various herbal teas. And water, of course.

 

Cinder

[Twigs]

Another vote for True Lemon!

 

http://www.truelemon.com/free-sample.html?Itemid=226

[Lizzie in Ma]

:D

[HollyDay]

Herbal teas are nice. I like Gingerbread this time of year. But, iced strawberry or raspberry are very good. I add a splash (about a Tablespoon) of juice to a tall glass of iced water. Club soda with a splash of juice and a tablespoon of honey is good.

[Tammyla]

Lots of teas (mine are zero calorie for the most part) or with a little sugar or honey, water, milk, juices, very rarely a root-beer.

 

I gave up the artificial sweeteners a few years ago for many reasons.

 

btw, sugar is pretty low calorie in many drinks. Mine average 15-30 calories when sweetened.

Edited November 15, 2010 by Tammyla

[Veritaserum]

I drink water almost exclusively. Occasionally I will drink milk or orange juice. I drink herbal tea when I have a sore throat or hot chocolate if I've been out in the cold. Soda is something I only drink at a party or maybe at the movies. I never, ever eat or drink anything with artificial sweeteners.

[Storm Bay]

you do not have to put the soda syrup in the water. We got ours with a set of syrops, but get the additional CO2 cylinders without.

Thanks:D.

[Laurie in Life]

I drink water and unsweetened decaf or herbal tea. Occasionally, I'll have a cup of coffee but I try to avoid the caffeine for a variety of reasons.

[Hannah C.]

I drink water, chai tea lattes from the coffee shop on my college campus, and various juices. I rarely drink soda at home, and now I rarely drink it away from home because it gives me headaches. I despise the taste of Splenda. The only time I use it is if I order or am given unsweetened iced tea -- because sugar does *not* dissolve in cold drinks! It works fine then, but any commercial diet drinks have an aftertaste I dislike.

 

I haven't been drinking milk very often, but I have a bowl of cereal every morning, so it's in there as well.

[Sahamamama]

No Splenda. No Nutrasweet. No soda (pop?). My husband freaks out if I just touch something with Splenda in it. "Aaahhhhh, your brain will get fried!" :lol:

 

Besides my husband's coffee addiction... :toetap05:

 

We drink watered-down fruit juice (half/half), water, herbal teas, more water (LOL), and carbonated water (flavored with real fruit juice). Sometimes we squeeze a lemon into a glass of ..... ta da! Water.

 

Water wins out in our house.

 

Have you heard of Stevia? Just Google it. HTH.

 

My favorite at night is Sleepy Time Extra (with Valerian -- cause Valerian makes it EXTRA!). It knocks me out. Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

 

Great for gas (did you want to know this?) is that old Egyptian cure -- mint tea. You could also try chamomile/mint tea, with honey, for a nice sore throat treatment. For energy in the morning, skip the caffeine and try a nice fruity-spice tea -- Cinnamon Spice or Winter Orange.

 

Can you tell I like herbal teas? :)

Edited November 16, 2010 by Sahamamama

[babysparkler]

All I drink is skim milk all day... with an occasional sip of water (yuck) when I think to make myself. Occasionally I will go chocolate, but 99% of the time just plain skim milk.

[Cindyz]

Thank you all for the wonderful ideas for new drinks! I tried out my iced tea maker last night and it's working out great! I'm also so surprised to learn that so many of you are so healthy and drinking lots of water. I'm jumping on that bandwagon! :auto: