How to Quit Drinking Soda

Once upon a time, the carbonation in soda gave me terrible migraines. I had to stop drinking it all together, and I didn’t touch the stuff for about ten years.

Then one day I was really tired and totally out of options. I couldn’t go to sleep, I couldn’t go get coffee — there was only me, a vending machine, and a selection of sodas. I drank one, felt a little more alert, and to my joy, I did not get a migraine.

A few days later, I had a jones for another soda. I repeated the experiment and alas, no migraine. That’s all it took to get hooked back on the sugary stuff, and I’ve been chugging it like water ever since. After about two years spent making up for lost time, drinking between two and five cans of diet coke per day, I started to notice a few things.

• My body was screaming for water. Yes, the ‘soda dehydrates you’ thing is a myth, but that doesn’t mean you can drink it to the exclusion of all else.
• I was getting a stubborn spare tire around my middle.
• My teeth were looking terrible with plaque build-up.
• Soda is linked to gout, which I already have an increased risk for thanks to my thyroid condition.
• The acid in diet soda can wreak havoc on your skin and I’ve noticed a difference in the oiliness and unevenness of my complexion.

So, it was time for a change! However, one does not simply stop drinking 2-5 diet sodas per day.

The reasons why it’s difficult to kick a soda habit are varied, but factors can include caffeine addiction, sugar addiction, situational cravings and the fact that artificial sweeteners play tricks on the brain’s reward system, over-promising and under-delivering and keeping you coming back for more (Source).

So what’s a soda addict to do?

One simple solution is to replace one craving with another, healthier option. It’s rough switching from ridiculously sugary drinks to plain old boring water, so spice it up instead. I buy lemons and oranges in bulk now about once a month and cut them into slices then freeze them. Every morning, I pop about six slices into my water bottle and just keep refilling it with water throughout the day. The benefits are threefold:

They’re visually appealing which, let’s face it, is important when replacing a bad habit — you have to want the replacement item in order to avoid temptation.

They act as ice cubes for the first part of the day, making my water ice cold, and then delicious as they thaw and flavor the water.

Lemons and oranges can do everything from aiding digestion to boosting your immune system to clearing your skin and helping you lose weight.

Best of all, it costs under $10 for an entire month of healthy drinks. Compare that with $25 or more for a month full of sugar and artificial ingredients.

Don’t start with a cold-turkey plan unless you want to suffer through some nasty caffeine withdrawal symptoms. Instead, just drink one glass of naturally flavored water a day, then two, then three, until you no longer reach for soda. Don’t worry about missing it, either — once you’ve stopped drinking it, I can promise all that artificial sugar will taste absolutely overwhelming if you ever try it again.

Just don’t let one sip become one can, or two, because it doesn’t take much to re-acclimate your tongue to the sugary stuff.