Oh, the holidays. Filled with friends, fun, and all of the calories. You know you are going to have a third helping of pie, so it might be wise to try to cut calories somewhere else. The easiest place to do that would be with your drinks.
If you usually drink soda, you know how bad it is for you. Between the calories and the sugar, you can feel your teeth growing fur drinking it. But they taste so good.
Yet you don’t want to fill up on pop when there are so many delicious treats to try during the holidays. So what about a healthier version? Let’s look at some healthy sodas to try this holiday season.
The Healthy Versions
Bubly Sparkling Water
Bubly has no calories and no sweeteners. This all-natural sparkling water from Pepsi has no added artificial flavors either. It comes in a ton of different flavors, like orange, apple, and strawberry, so you should be able to find one that you can mix with your holiday drinks.
Zevia
This zero calorie soda was actually developed by some parents who didn’t like the idea of their kids drinking soda. Zevia was the first pop to use stevia as the sweetener. Since it’s still soda, it does have caffeine. There are 14 flavors of Zevia to try, like cream soda or cherry cola.
OLIPOP Vintage Cola
If you are looking for a real pop, but healthy, this one is for you. OLIPOP has 35 calories per can, so it’s not that bad. It also only has 2 grams of sugar per can too. This pop uses stevia as the sweetener. The fun thing about this one is that it has 9 grams of prebiotic fiber that will help out with your digestive health.
So the gut issues soda drinkers have won’t be an issue with this one. OLIPOP comes in a handful of flavors like classic soda and root beer.
Polar Seltzer-ade
This one has zero calories and 0 grams of sugar. There are also no sweeteners. If you like supporting smaller businesses, then show your support of Polar Seltzer-ade. This family-owned company’s beverages come in sweet berry flavors like cherry and blueberry.
LaCroix
You can’t talk about healthy soda alternatives without mentioning LaCroix. This one has blown up in recent years. They have over 20 flavors and new ones always seem to be popping up. The unique flavors like peach-pear or pamplemousse will be fun to try.
These have 0 sweeteners and 0 calories. You can find them in almost any store, so it’s not going to be hard to bring this one to your holiday party.
The Originals
Not all real soda is terrible for you. There are a few that aren’t as bad as the others if you prefer the real deal.
Sierra Mist and Sprite
If you have to stick with the real stuff, go for the clear stuff. Sierra Mist has only 140 calories per can. Sprite is surprisingly good since it doesn’t have any artificial coloring. Sprite is also caffeine free, so you won’t have that after soda crash.
Other clear sodas that would be good to stick to are 7Up and Seagram’s Ginger Ale. Really, stick with the clear pops. They will have the fewest calories and because they are clear, the fewest artificial flavors.
Other Drinks to Try
If you are trying to get rid of all soda altogether from your diet, you can switch to some lighter options. Tea, lemonade, smoothies, coconut water, and iced coffee are all drinks you can sub a pop for to try to cut back. Just replace one a day, or one a week depending on your drinking habit, and see if you can’t get yourself weaned off that way.
The important thing is that you are paying more attention to your mouth’s health, to your stomach’s health, and to your diet. Trying a healthy soda to balance out all of the cookies you will eat this holiday is a start.
I cut out soda over 13 years ago and I can’t even have a sip without feeling bloated. You can do it, your body will get used to it, and you will find something else that’s healthier for you! Then that 9th Christmas cookie won't feel so bad.
