How to choose a healthy drink?
What is a Healthy Beverage?
A healthy beverage is
- Hydrating
- Low in sugar (less than 8 grams per bottle)
- Contains simple ingredients
- Free from chemicals and additives, like artificial sweeteners and caramel colour
Water
The ultimate healthy beverage is tap water (if safe to drink in your community). Food Guide recommends making water your drink of choice. Drinking water is important for your health, staying hydrated, and quenching your thirst without added sugar.
Make water your drink of choice by
- Bringing a reusable water bottle with you and fill it up at water fountains.
- Ask for water when you eat out.
- Drink some water at each meal.
- Ensure you are replenishing your fluids with water during and after exercise (in most cases, a sports drink is not needed).
- Try sparkling water or hot water with lemon.
- Add flavour to your water by adding some chopped fruit and herbs. For example, lemon and mint, strawberries and basil, raspberries and cucumbers.
A common recommendation is drinking 6 to 8 cups (8 fl oz) of water each day. Adults may need more or less depending on their health, exercise and climate conditions.
Added vs Natural Sugar
Sugar is a carbohydrate that occurs naturally in or is added to beverages. Add sugars are added during processing.
Common example of sugar-sweetened beverages are:
- Pops, fruit juices, sweet teas, sport drinks, energy drinks and specialty water such as vitamin water
- Other names include “cocktails”, “punch” and “-ade” such as lemonade.
Identifying added sugars on an ingredient list may be difficult. Because they’re not always labelled as “sugar”. Here are different forms of added sugars that commonly show up on ingredient lists.
- Sugar/Cane Sugar
- Corn syrup
- Evaporated cane juice
- Fruit juice concentrate
- Honey
- Invert sugar
- Molasses
- Syrup
- Dextrose
- Agave
Natural sugars are found in fruit (called fructose) and ทางเข้า ufabet dairy products such as milk, yogurt and cheese (called lactose). Beverages, such as cow’s milk, with natural sugars can be nutritious choices and part of a healthy eating plan.
That being said, fruit and vegetable juices and commercial smoothie drinks are still very high sources of sugar (“natural” or not). It is better to eat your fruit and vegetables than to drink them. Water should still be your first choice beverage.