29 July 2011

Drink Up!

Soda sucks; sucks the life out of you; makes you suck ‘cause it destroys your teeth.  Soda is the root cause of lifestyle diseases such as obesity, diabetes, heart ailments and sleep disorders.  Many people drink soda.  It’s sweet; it quenches thirst; boosts alertness; and it’s cheap.  Soda contains carbonated water; citric acid; sugars; high fructose corn syrup; caffeine; coloring agents; starch; and preservatives.  Americans consume more soda annually than any other Country members at a cost of over $70 billion per year.  Soda has no nutritional value whatsoever!  Soda is good for cleaning toilets and car batteries; killing garden pests; removing grease stains; and loosening rusty nuts/bolts. 
We all consume things that aren’t so good for us.  Most of us do so every now and again.  There are some who believe that they cannot get through the day without one, two, four or five sodas.   Some drink a 2-liter bottle during the workday.  I cannot imagine.  “Back away from the bottle.”
It’s time for a change.  It’s hot outside.  We need to hydrate.  We need water.  Water makes up a large percentage of our body weight.  Water is good.  Water is boring.  Eeaarrgh, stop the car!  “Water is boring,” says our daughter.  It does not have to be.  I made her a glass with a bit of lemon juice and tiny bit of stevia. “Um, this is good.”  She has not asked for it since.  Good girl, water is her friend again.  I drink a lot of water.  If I’m not super thirsty or working out, I usually want something other than water to sip.  Every morning before I go to work, I make two 14 ounce cups of hot green tea with organic blue agave syrup and one 16 ounce cup of water with apple cider vinegar.  I sip on these drinks throughout the day instead of taking trips to the coffee shop or soda machine.   I’m so used to drinking water, that juice seems too thick to drink.  I’ve been diluting juice for years, mostly because I’m cheap, but also because I can’t handle the sweetness.  I doctor up water to give it a bit of punch.  Here are a few recipes:
Lemon-Lite:  Fill a glass with water.  Add one tablespoon of lemon juice; one tablespoon of blue agave syrup; half tablespoon organic raw unfiltered apple cider vinegar.  Stir. 

Alternative Water:  Fill a glass with water.  Pour in about a tablespoon of organic raw unfiltered apple cider vinegar or lemon juice.  Stir.

Boosted Juice:  Fill a glass 2/3 with your favorite 100% fruit juice.  Fill remainder with water.  Add about a tablespoon of organic raw unfiltered apple cider vinegar.  Stir. 

Green Tea:  Pour a tablespoon of organic blue agave syrup and drop an organic green tea bag into a heat tolerant cup.  Add hot water and stir.

These drinks are refreshing and healthy.  It may take a bit of time for you to get used to the cheery flavor, but all it means is that you drink too much sugar.  Oh, but what about the fruit water drinks on the shelves?  Read the bottle.  The drinks contain no fruit.  “Huh?” (…with furrowed brows and turned up lip).  Save your money.

It’s time to wean from the sodas and it won’t take 12 steps.  Enjoy your health, vitality and a great smile. 
Thanks: publicdomainpictures.net

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