Liquid Diet

This past weekend there was a lot to celebrate—and what better way to foster festivity than with something bubbly. For me, that meant copious amounts of prosecco. (Before you judge, I was not the only ECGer partaking!)

However, for all the sparkling wine I consumed, that was the extent of my “liquid carb” intake. Despite growing up in a household where the only beverage I ever saw my father drink (the occasional apple juice and buttermilk excepted) was Pepsi. Morning. Noon. Night. All day, every day. He was not overweight and generally enjoyed good health. Nurture might have dictated that I would do the same, but thankfully, his adoration of Pepsi didn’t spill over to me. Though I don’t hate sodas, after giving up caffeine on my doctor’s recommendation a decade ago, I hardly ever touch soda, even the non-caffeinated drinks like root beer, Sprite, or even Strawberry Jarritos. I don’t much care for juice either, and don’t even get me started on milk. On the flip side, I am compulsive water drinker, so much so that my husband has unofficially diagnosed me with psychogenic polydipsia.

Anyway, other ECGers have mentioned that it’s sugary drinks that really add up to problems with their weight. But it’s too easy to extol the evils of soda, diet soda, and other sugary drinks. If you live in NYC, those disgusting subway ads showing globules of fat bubbling over the familiar soda bottles might be enough. Or maybe you’ve seen those stomach-turning stories about “Mountain Dew Mouth” [Warning: do not Google this topic if you’re squeamish.] And certainly, there’s not a lot of argument for sodas being “healthy.” Like with all things, it’s about moderation.

Though it’s long, I particularly liked this article from WebMD that takes a look at all the research and presents both sides of the soda is good vs. evil.

And as you know, I’ll never tell anyone to deny themselves anything outright, so I do say, enjoy your soda, but try to keep it within normal limits and remember to hydrate with water—or maybe get yourself a Soda Stream!