Very low sugar / sugar free drinks

Celticwarrior

At present I drink alot of Coca - Cola, and without wanting to go into it and how bad it is for me, I accept I need to cut it down dramatically, in particular my sugar intake.

However, what cold drinks (I don't like tea or coffee!) are there that are low in sugar / sugar free that I can drink instead during the day?

I don't like water really, the only time I have is that Glaceau Vitamin Water in the US and that's loaded with sugar i'd say.

Is coke zero (no sugar) an acceptable replacement?
Are miwadi & robinsons etc still high in sugar even if I go for the No added sugar option?
Are there any other nice drinks I can look at that have a low sugar content with the exception of water and milk?

EileenG

Ice tea? Sparkling water?

In theory, No sugar added drinks should be fine, but a very large study in America found that middle-aged people who drank one or more diet sodas a day had a 35% higher chance of metabolic syndrome, so even the NAS drinks have problems.

What about water with a squeeze of lemon juice?

Tar.Aldarion

I fyou want to drink healthy I wouldn't drink any of that crap. Although fruit has sugar in it I would say drink some smoothies, they are delicious and nutritious. You can also make your own recipes for what you want to take into your body. Do you like no water, have you tried boiling and filtering? Tap water is disgusting, I wouldn't drink it either. Maybe get some sort ot healthy juice type thing from a health store and add it to water?

cozmik

I always drink tap water because bottled water can be pretty expensive and also less environmentally friendly....

Jennifer Gitlitz, the research director for the Container Recycling Institute, calls plastic bottles "the most environmentally egregious way to distribute water." Moreover, the empty bottles usually end up in landfills or as litter: Only one in seven single-serving water bottles is recycled.

Government officials want to change citizens' drinking habits as well. New York launched a $700,000 marketing campaign urging residents to opt for tap water over bottled water. "Cool. Healthy. Clean. Zero sugar. Zero calories," an ad declared. "NYC Water. Get your fill."

blind taste tests show consumers often can't tell the difference between bottled water and municipal water, and will even select tap water as tasting better than the bottled variety.

Most bottled water is consumed where tap water is fine. A plastic bottle of "designer water" has become a lifestyle accessory - conferring status as much as quenching thirst.

The cumulative effect of shipping water thousands of miles -- from Fiji to New York, for example -- is significant, and unnecessary. "Nearly a quarter of all bottled water crosses national borders to reach consumers," says Emily Arnold, a researcher at the Earth Policy Institute.

http://www.container-recycling.org/mediafold/newsarticles/plastic/2007/11-7-NE-TapWaterIsTheClear.htm

Tar.Aldarion

Those people have no taste buds then, the difference is huge between all waters. If somebody doesn't like tap water and does not want to use the extra pastic they should boil and filter the water and leave it in the fridge, tastes great then.

EileenG

Tara Le d'Arion wrote: »

I fyou want to drink healthy I wouldn't drink any of that crap. Although fruit has sugar in it I would say drink some smoothies, they are delicious and nutritious.

Whatever you make from fresh whole food is bound to be better than mas produced junk. The only thing I'd say about smoothies is to treat them as a snack meal, not a drink. If you are thirsty, drink water in some form. Smoothies should be considered like soup or something, wet food.

cozmik

Celticwarrior wrote: »

I accept I need to cut it down dramatically, in particular my sugar intake.

Well smoothies have very high levels of sugar so I would suggest you avoid them. Water really is the best option.

Tar.Aldarion

I wouldn't drink them a lot if you are overweight but he may need a stepping stone to eating/drinking healthier. They are better than what he drinks now, and much better for you. Ideally drink water.

You can easly overdo the fruit with smoothies, I'd rather eat it as salad.

Tar.Aldarion

Meh, it's upto ~15% of your rda of sugar in a smoothie(ones I make anyway), not that much imo.

I gave up because they made me too gassy and I felt like a sheep that fallen over on its back.

Tar.Aldarion

I suppose that's a good reason. I'd change ingredients until you did not feel like a sheep.

Celticwarrior

EileenG wrote: »

Ice tea? Sparkling water?

In theory, No sugar added drinks should be fine, but a very large study in America found that middle-aged people who drank one or more diet sodas a day had a 35% higher chance of metabolic syndrome, so even the NAS drinks have problems.

What about water with a squeeze of lemon juice?

Don't like Tea or sparkling water!

I don't understand about the NAS, if i take ones that have very low amounts of sugar in it surely it'd be ok?

I like the water with lemon idea! Should I get a fresh lemon or is that squirty lemon juice ok?

Celticwarrior

Tara Le d'Arion wrote: »

I fyou want to drink healthy I wouldn't drink any of that crap. Although fruit has sugar in it I would say drink some smoothies, they are delicious and nutritious. You can also make your own recipes for what you want to take into your body. Do you like no water, have you tried boiling and filtering? Tap water is disgusting, I wouldn't drink it either. Maybe get some sort ot healthy juice type thing from a health store and add it to water?

I agree, tap water is rank! I'm not disputing the health benefits of the smoothies, but i'm just looking for a drink that I can have all the time that has low amounts of sugar. I'm just concerned that unless i moderate the amount of Coke I drink (It's alot), in particular the volume of sugar consumed, that I will give myself problems in the not too distant future!

dr.bollocko

The other issue with drinks like coke zero or diet brands is that a lot of them use aspartane. I read up a bit about aspartane or aspartanine or whatever it is called and it seems that it is probably as bad as sugar for you in the long run.
What?
I'm into health now.
/goes for a fag.

rubadub

Celticwarrior wrote: »

I like the water with lemon idea! Should I get a fresh lemon or is that squirty lemon juice ok?

Either, you get bottles cheap enough. In winter I have honey & lemon with hot water. You are just adding flavour to make it more palatable. I use tiny amounts of dilutable drinks in water and can then down several pints at once.

Are miwadi & robinsons etc still high in sugar even if I go for the No added sugar option?

The info is all there on the packets, most fruit juice is around 11% sugar. You can make your own dilutable drinks too, most are fruit juice, sweetner/sugar and citric acid. Citiric acid can be got in aisian shops, used for sweet n sour dishes.

EileenG

Moonbaby wrote: »

I gave up because they made me too gassy and I felt like a sheep that fallen over on its back.

I'm not going to be able to get that image out of my mind now....

dubman25

Tara Le d'Arion wrote: »

I fyou want to drink healthy I wouldn't drink any of that crap. Although fruit has sugar in it I would say drink some smoothies, they are delicious and nutritious. You can also make your own recipes for what you want to take into your body. Do you like no water, have you tried boiling and filtering? Tap water is disgusting, I wouldn't drink it either. Maybe get some sort ot healthy juice type thing from a health store and add it to water?

no no no do not drink smoothies.If you want fruit eat it as its much better for you and thats a fact.
you could try diet cidona,diet orange,diet coke,ribena with no added sugar and so on but remember try not to drink to much of either as cant be good for you...but i dont listen anyway;)

Tar.Aldarion

So fruit cut up with a blade is not as good as fruit cut up with teeth? I see...

dubman25

Tara Le d'Arion wrote: »

So fruit cut up with a blade is not as good as fruit cut up with teeth? I see...

fruit eaten versus a fruit smoothie are completly different!think about it!
its a fact and hate to correct you!

Tar.Aldarion

lmao

cozmik

Tara Le d'Arion wrote: »

lmao

What's so funny? Do you regularly eat fifteen pieces of fruit in one sitting?

Tar.Aldarion

What are you talking about?

What is funny is somebody saying that when I put my berries in a machine to cut them, they are now worse for me that if I had put them in my mouth.

jam_mac_jam

Tara Le d'Arion wrote: »

What are you talking about?

What is funny is somebody saying that when I put my berries in a machine to cut them, they are now worse for me that if I had put them in my mouth.

of course they are, the closer a food is to what it was originally then the healther it is for you.

Tar.Aldarion

Clearly, processed foods killed my baby.

dubman25

the more natural they are the better they are simple!

g'em

Tara Le d'Arion wrote: »

Clearly, processed foods killed my baby.

O.o


When you make my life harder it makes me sad. Please don't make me sad >.<

jam_mac_jam

Tara Le d'Arion wrote: »

Clearly, processed foods killed my baby.

eh, ok. Did you drop a lot of it on its head?

Tar.Aldarion

g'em wrote: »

O.o


When you make my life harder it makes me sad. Please don't make me sad >.<

I could sadly say to you, please don't make me harder.
~_~

jam_mac_jam, please explain why you think it is better for fruits to mix in your mouth and stomach than in a class and your stomach.

jam_mac_jam

Tara Le d'Arion wrote: »

I could sadly say to you, please don't make me harder.
~_~

jam_mac_jam, please explain why you think it is better for fruits to mix in your mouth and stomach than in a class and your stomach.

lower Gi, higher fibre, more filling and takes you longer to eat so more likely to be more satisfying, you also tend to eat more peel of fruit like apples or plums if you eat whole.

Tar.Aldarion

Same GI, they are mixed together anyway. Same fibre. Exactly the same amount and content of food, how is it more filling?

Explain why you think these things change to what you say they change to?