Natural "Diet" Soda

For the most part, I have given up artificial sweeteners.  I do not use Splenda, aspartame, and some of the other ones that I cannot pronounce or spell.  However, I don't like to eat much sugar either.  I think it makes me hungrier and it's a waste of a lot of calories.  Sometimes I will use agave nectar and maple syrup, but once again, I feel like it's a waste of my calories.  I made pancakes this weekend and put plain soy yogurt and strawberries on top of them with some Truvia instead of maple syrup.  1 TBSP of maple syrup is about 50 calories and 1/2 cup of the soy yogurt is 70 calories.  The yogurt kept me feeling full a lot longer than 1 TBSP of maple syrup.  Anyway, the point is that I typically use stevia and stevia products such as Truvia, Stevita, Wholesome Organics Organic Zero, etc.  These are the no calorie sweeteners I feel comfortable with. 

Most sodas on the market that are zero calories are sweetened with the artificial stuff.  Giving up Diet Dr. Pepper was a sad, sad moment in my life!  :)  I got over it though.  When I found Zevia soda for the first time, I got really excited.  It's sweetened with stevia and has natural ingredients.  When I tried it, I really liked it.  R and I occasionally started buying Zevia when we could catch it on sale at Earth Fare and Whole Foods.  But the truth is, it's still pretty expensive in comparison to mainstream artificially sweetened diet soda.  I know I can't support a habit of drinking it on a regular basis. 

(Photo source: Zevia.com)

After buying Zevia for awhile, then I noticed Blue Sky Free.  Also sweetened with stevia and also delicious.  I was never one of those people who had to drink Pepsi or Coke.  I could always drink either one.  So what I am saying is that I am not that particular about the taste.  If it tastes like soda and it tastes good, I am on board.  Both Zevia and Blue Sky Free taste really good to me. 

(Photo source: FoodBizDaily.com)

Not too long ago, we discovered Virgil's Diet Root Beer sweetened with Stevia.  This might be favorite of all the natural calorie free sodas I have tried.  Virgil's is in a bottle instead of a can so it feels even more special when I have one with dinner.  :)  I have noticed that most health food stores are now carrying Virgil's Diet Root Beer. 

(Photo Source: BevNet.com)

When I was doing a little research on natural diet sodas online, I found another company that I have not tried.  It's called SANS soda.  However, under their FAQ section, it says that their soda is not vegan.  I looked at the ingredients list and I did not see any ingredients that would not be vegan.  I sent them an inquiry about this and if they get back to me, I will update this section of the blog for anyone else who might be curious.  I have also not seen this soda anywhere near me.  But I did feel like I should list it since it's also sweetened with Stevia.  But if it's not vegan, that's lame!

****UPDATE****The kind people at SANS Soda got back with me very quickly and said that their product is actually vegan and they are correcting their website.  Here is the message:  Yay!  I want to give this a try!

Thank you for contacting us! I apologize for the confusion, but SANS is actually a vegan product. We are changing the website to reflect that fact. If you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to contact us.

Yay for it being vegan!  I want to give this a try!

(Photo Source: MarketWire.com)

Water is cheapest (and healthiest), of course, but sometimes it's nice to have a treat.  I like that more of these zero calorie natural  sodas are hitting the market.  Hopefully that means the demand is going up and the prices will get more competitive.  Right now, even on sale, they are pretty expensive but it's still worth it to me to have one of these sodas as an occasional treat.