What drinks are necessary?

[crosses]

What drinks do you think are necessary for a family? DH is hooked on soft drinks and I'd really like to kick him of the habit. I guess it's better that we buy them and he takes them to work instead of buying them there, but it still is an expense that I wish we didn't have. Anyone have ideas how I can help nudge him away from drinking soft drinks?

[34saving]

Always serve them with ice. (Same glass = less soda = less caffeine = less dependence on caffeine = less desire for soda . . . or maybe not since I'm not sure what he is drinking, but it helps with me )

[jacquelynrose]

I would LOVE to kick the habit. One time I went over this one persons house and in their garage they had over 20 cases of soda and I thought how bad that was and how I hope me drinking Sugar, Carbonated water I won't turn out like that.

Plus I also saw this website that was anti-soft drink and it said alot of things that made sense to me, but in the end I am still drinking soft drinks.

Also while living in Mexico their Coke tastes soooo good! But then I got sick from drinking it and had to be on this medication for a couple of weeks and then I went back to drinking soda.

This website comes close to the one I looked at long ago.
http://www.alternet.org/story/17592

Jacquelyn

[DivaJen]

What drinks are necessary? Water.

How to nudge him away from sodas? Hmmm...tough one, if he dosn't want to be nudged.

[PrincessPerky]

Yeah, DH took 7 years to go from pop ALL day to aboutone 16oz a day. I used a gradual, try not to mention it more than once a month, and tried to stick with money slash health reasons. Also when I noticed an improvement I would say 'we are doing really good' since I was in it too.

Then he went back home to pgh for visiting family went back to his old ways, got sick, three months in a row. Finally we figured out the cause and he has been much better on vacation, he drinks water and juice, and iced tea.

Recently I tried to talk him into giving up the caffene in the tea, he said he drank it for the caffene. Well he stopped for three days and of course had a migrane (stopped due to a cold) he now admits he is addicted to the caffene, and he may decide to quit. Or he may not. Maybe in anothe 7 years .

[SeeAPenny]

I used to purchase generic pop maybe once in a blue moon, now I never even do that anymore. When we want a special, fizzy drink -- I buy a can of frozen juice concentrate (100% juice) and a bottle of fizzy, flavored seltzer water/club soda (like Shweppes, La Croix, or a generic brand, etc. Extra yay if I can catch it on sale). The flavoring adds no sugar to the seltzer water -- just a hint of fruit taste (which enhances our drink). We make the juice a bit on the strong side, then top it off with the selzter water for a fizzy, fruity, pop-like beverage....

Otherwise, I will purchase frozen juice concentrate from time to time (when the price is right) for general family consumption (reading the labels carefully to make sure it's 100% juice, and not mostly corn syrup). DH and I both like decaf herbal tea of all kinds and drink it everyday, and this past winter even the kids got into making herbal peppermint tea for themselves from dried mint I purchased bulk. My 8 y.o. DD discovered a little trick of making her own lemonade by the glass, from bottled lemon juice (the cheap store brand), water and sugar -- she thinks that's really neat and will do that every so often. Overall though, I do try to encourage plain ol' water whenever possible (keeping a container chilled in the fridge for use anytime).....

[Tree0164]

Jen.... you took the words right out of my mouth.

I saw this on Dave Ramsey's frugal boards.... I guess this is a way you can really count down on the expense.
We get generic tagless tea bags - 100 bags for a dollar. It will make about 33 gallons of iced tea. Fifty cents a month on drinks for DH while he's at work isn't bad at all! He used to spend about three dollars a day getting Mt. Dews from the machine.

I boil a pot of water and a teakettle of water. When the water is boiling, I put 3 bags in the pot and let it boil for a few minutes, rather than turning it off right away. Then I pour the tea into a pitcher and put water from the kettle on the bags and let it go again. I repeat the process until I have a gallon of tea, andthe tea bags go into the compost. No need to add extra water to the tea. I add half a cup of sugar, pour it into his bottles (empty, rinsed-out soda bottles) and put them in the refrigerator. He takes up to three a day. I only have to make tea every few days.

[skipper]

I too am trying to give up soda try mixing half sprite with fruit juice it taste really good and you only get about half the cafiene.

[dagobah_19]

My family and I like fruit flavored sparkling beverages. They kind of taste like soda, but have no calories and no caffeine. It's basically carbonated water and some flavoring.

[amomof4]

I know this is an old post, but thought this might help him kick habit. Switch to decaf. It's mostly the caf. that keeps you addicted. Sugar too, but it's not as strong. If he refuses to quit drinking flavored drinks, see if he'll switch to tea. After the switch, go to decaf tea.

[momma4]

I am a bad Pepsi holic LOL. so can't really help you but I can recommend not buying it for the house and when/if it gets in the house hide it. I normally go threw a 12pk in less than a day but I got it to make it threw 3 just buy putting it under my plastic bag stash. "our of sight out of mind" I also noticed if I put cold water, tea, koolaide in a pitcher in the fridge nobody even notices that there is no soda. We also have juicy juice in the fridge too cold.

[zakity]

We keep water bottles in the fridge for the kids so they can get a cold drink and don't have to dirty a bunch of glasses. I run them through the dishwasher about once a week (or more if they are sick). We keep milk around and, once in a blue moon, they get juice (100%, of course).

Hubby and I have a soda pop habit that we are still trying to break. I tend to not keep it around the house unless it is on sale. Hubby drinks iced tea and I drink hot tea. I drink alot of herbal teas.

When I was trying to break myself of my caffiene habit, I cut things down slowly. I would mix my caffienated tea with herbal tea.

[BillsGirl]

when I married my hubby he was addicted to pepsi!! would drink so much it's crazy so I nagged and nagged until he switched to diet pepsi (i used threats of his diabetic mother and told he'de be diabetic if he didn't switch) and now I am trying to make him go to the transition of a cup of coffee as opposed to the diet soda he read and article about aspertame and kicked the diet soda in about a week and now it's coffee and water and maybe and occasional diet soda but he barely drinks it now, I am really proud of him!! I use to be a soda buff myself but now it's coffee in the morning and water the rest of the day, Maybe some apple juice here and there but not very often!

[momma4]

Originally Posted by BillsGirl

when I married my hubby he was addicted to pepsi!! would drink so much it's crazy so I nagged and nagged until he switched to diet pepsi (i used threats of his diabetic mother and told he'de be diabetic if he didn't switch) and now I am trying to make him go to the transition of a cup of coffee as opposed to the diet soda he read and article about aspertame and kicked the diet soda in about a week and now it's coffee and water and maybe and occasional diet soda but he barely drinks it now, I am really proud of him!! I use to be a soda buff myself but now it's coffee in the morning and water the rest of the day, Maybe some apple juice here and there but not very often!

I wish I could switch to diet but the nutrasweet(sp?) makes me really sick I have troubles with most manmade sugars

[BillsGirl]

he was the same way, he use to cringe at the thought of the word, but he got use to it and now prefers it, I hate diet myself but I do like diet coke with lemon takes away the nasty taste and makes it drinkable, maybe you could try that?? I haven't tried this sutff with the lime yet but it might be the same?

[momma4]

Originally Posted by BillsGirl

he was the same way, he use to cringe at the thought of the word, but he got use to it and now prefers it, I hate diet myself but I do like diet coke with lemon takes away the nasty taste and makes it drinkable, maybe you could try that?? I haven't tried this sutff with the lime yet but it might be the same?

I have tried lime n coke and lime n pepsi both taste like margarettas LOL

[BillsGirl]

lol, only the more for me to down then, but wait there would be no buzz for me huh? so it'de be pointless

[momma4]

lol

[funnyvalentine]

We make lots of ice tea and mix it with generic seltzer when we feel a "fizz alert" coming on. I also save our leftover coffee and freeze it in cubes so when we get into the summer and drink ice coffee, we have a way to make it "iced" without making it really diluted.

They say that any habit can be changed in 21 days, so if you or your family can get through 21 days without soda, you might be free!

[acezz4e_tish]

root beer and sprite have no caffine. i dont believe orange sodas do either. coke and pepsis offer that also, but those cost more.lol Water is the most valuable of all, both cost and health wise. Just see if u can get him to trade out one soda for one water to start with. add a chunk of fruit to it even. walmart has those flavored waters pretty cheap too. 2 for a dollar, my family loves all of them, but thier fave is tropical. When i was going to school in detroit, i took a six pack of evian with me daily. it was expensive! but well worth it. if someone takes more then one, get them to trade one out. my dave, takes one soda with him to work, rest of his shift he drinks water. he builds barges and its very hot work, and he welds too, so the water is more refreshing to him then anything else.