30 day bread and sugar fast

[Jaymann]

Thanks for the reminder - I was out of bread and cocoa.

[Holman]

I'm not saying it's going to be easy, but I want to get as close as possible. Avoiding all sugar will be a logistical challenge. I will have the same problem when it comes to peanut butter. Glorious peanut butter.

Years ago I switched from old-style commercial peanut butter to all-natural peanut butter (the kind that's just peanuts and a little salt). The difference is night and day.

Natural peanut butter tastes like peanuts. The other stuff tastes like syrup.

[Anonymous Bosch]

Put tap in your bottles, and don't buy any other bottled water for a few weeks.

Meh. You can buy a flat of Kirkland bottled water with forty 16.9 fl. oz. bottles from Costco for $5 or so, which includes the CRV recycling fee in California (so they're llkely a good deal cheaper in most other states). Still, even at the inflated CA price, that's only 12 or 13 cents a bottle.

Also, refilling and reusing water bottles that aren't designed to be reusable is likely somewhat unsanitary (though Smoove would be the expert there).

[mori]

If beer = bread, then no deal.

[Blackhawk]

Also, refilling and reusing water bottles that aren't designed to be reusable is likely somewhat unsanitary (though Smoove would be the expert there).

I believe it is safe in the short term (and I was suggesting a month or less.) You don't want to use them repeatedly, as you'll eventually start to leech chemicals from the bottle.

[Jeff V]

Put tap in your bottles, and don't buy any other bottled water for a few weeks.

Be ironic and put it in Aquafina bottles (Aquafina is tap water).

[Skinypupy]

I found the switch from sugary drinks to water so easy that I can't believe it I resisted it for so long.

I've been making the transition from diet soft drinks to water. What helps is flavoured sparkling water. After awhile, with the carbonation, you don't even notice that you're not drinking a soft drink.

I've been trying to cut out soda...and failing miserably. I don't like coffee, so a Pepsi in the morning is my go-to for waking up. I hate, hate, hate the taste of diet soda, so that's not an option. Been trying to find an alternative, but haven't found anything yet. Water just doesn't cut it.

In truth, there's a million things I need to change about my diet. I very rarely have the time/energy/desire to cook, so I eat a ton of pre-packaged or microwaveable garbage. It's awful, but I simply can't work up the motivation to make the change. I've put on at least 20 lbs over the last two years and know I need to do something different, but after a 10-12 hour work day, an hour commute, and trying to wrangle the three kids, the last thing in the world I want to do is spend more time cooking. There's got to be a better balance there, somewhere.

[Moliere]

Day 3 and so far my only cheating has been the accidental kind like the sugar in craisins. My next challenge will be when all the Valentines candy is 75% off.

[ImLawBoy]

I found the switch from sugary drinks to water so easy that I can't believe it I resisted it for so long.

I've been making the transition from diet soft drinks to water. What helps is flavoured sparkling water. After awhile, with the carbonation, you don't even notice that you're not drinking a soft drink.

I've been trying to cut out soda...and failing miserably. I don't like coffee, so a Pepsi in the morning is my go-to for waking up. I hate, hate, hate the taste of diet soda, so that's not an option. Been trying to find an alternative, but haven't found anything yet. Water just doesn't cut it.

Unsweetened iced tea? I don't know the caffeine levels, but it's got at least some.

In truth, there's a million things I need to change about my diet. I very rarely have the time/energy/desire to cook, so I eat a ton of pre-packaged or microwaveable garbage. It's awful, but I simply can't work up the motivation to make the change. I've put on at least 20 lbs over the last two years and know I need to do something different, but after a 10-12 hour work day, an hour commute, and trying to wrangle the three kids, the last thing in the world I want to do is spend more time cooking. There's got to be a better balance there, somewhere.

I hear you. I'm fortunate enough to be able to leave the office by 5 on most days, and my commute is less than a half hour. That means I'm able to get home, immediately cook dinner for the family, do the dishes afterwards, get my 3 kids to bed, do some more daily household stuff, and then either do leftover work I didn't get to during the day or crash on the couch. I enjoy cooking (usually), so it's part of my relaxation to get dinner ready, but it's exhausting. If I were working 10-12 hours straight, I wouldn't be able to see straight.

[Isgrimnur]

[Skinypupy]

I found the switch from sugary drinks to water so easy that I can't believe it I resisted it for so long.

I've been making the transition from diet soft drinks to water. What helps is flavoured sparkling water. After awhile, with the carbonation, you don't even notice that you're not drinking a soft drink.

I've been trying to cut out soda...and failing miserably. I don't like coffee, so a Pepsi in the morning is my go-to for waking up. I hate, hate, hate the taste of diet soda, so that's not an option. Been trying to find an alternative, but haven't found anything yet. Water just doesn't cut it.

Unsweetened iced tea? I don't know the caffeine levels, but it's got at least some.

Nope, don't like tea either. Sort of a cultural thing, it's not big in Utah and I never got used to the taste.

In truth, there's a million things I need to change about my diet. I very rarely have the time/energy/desire to cook, so I eat a ton of pre-packaged or microwaveable garbage. It's awful, but I simply can't work up the motivation to make the change. I've put on at least 20 lbs over the last two years and know I need to do something different, but after a 10-12 hour work day, an hour commute, and trying to wrangle the three kids, the last thing in the world I want to do is spend more time cooking. There's got to be a better balance there, somewhere.

I hear you. I'm fortunate enough to be able to leave the office by 5 on most days, and my commute is less than a half hour. That means I'm able to get home, immediately cook dinner for the family, do the dishes afterwards, get my 3 kids to bed, do some more daily household stuff, and then either do leftover work I didn't get to during the day or crash on the couch. I enjoy cooking (usually), so it's part of my relaxation to get dinner ready, but it's exhausting. If I were working 10-12 hours straight, I wouldn't be able to see straight.

I really wish I enjoyed cooking, but I just get no satisfaction from it at all. I'm an extremely picky eater, so the idea of experimenting with new foods simply doesn't appeal in the least. Combine that with my voracious sweet tooth, and it's a recipe for waistline disaster.

I've tried the big "comprehensive overhaul" diets before, and they never stick. I'm either always hungry (which isn't great for productivity on 12 hour days) or I severely dislike the food they recommend. So I'm going to try and start small with things like cutting out one soda a day, staying away from the candy dish at work, mix in more veggies, smaller portions, etc., and work up to a more comprehensive diet change.

[ImLawBoy]

the candy dish at work

Pure evil.

[Paingod]

In truth, there's a million things I need to change about my diet. I very rarely have the time/energy/desire to cook, so I eat a ton of pre-packaged or microwaveable garbage. It's awful, but I simply can't work up the motivation to make the change. I've put on at least 20 lbs over the last two years and know I need to do something different, but after a 10-12 hour work day, an hour commute, and trying to wrangle the three kids, the last thing in the world I want to do is spend more time cooking. There's got to be a better balance there, somewhere.

Living the American Dream, right there. No joke. It's such a common theme that who we are is killing us that it's sad.

"Hard" soda - sugared, that is - is essentially a toxic swill that your body loves to hate, and it converts very easily to fat. "Soft" soda - the diet stuff - is still a chemical factory in a bottle, but less bad. I forced myself to go through the conversion and afterwards I found that the hard stuff tasted like thick syrup and made my face want to implode. I don't even want it anymore, not even as a special treat.

If you look at the back of a bottle of seltzer water, you wonder why other sodas' ingredients lists looks like dumping grounds for chemical waste. Carbonated Water, Natural Flavors. That's it. Somehow that's a beverage that holds up with a decent shelf life. It doesn't have the kick of flavor diet soda has, but it's a hell of a lot healthier.

If you want some motivation, Google "Mountain Dew Mouth"... but get your barf-bag ready first. Graphic demonstration of what sugar in soda does to teeth, never mind your waistline. I've managed to avoid it myself somehow, but have seen it first hand in someone else. I mean, I drank hard 'Dew for 15 years and still have no cavities, but that's an abnormal point of data - not an endorsement.

A huge part of why we're fat in America, I believe, is the sheer convenience of junk foods and the chemistry they put into making them addictive. Not like heroine, but damn close. It's remarkably hard to shake the urge to eat foods that contain or convert to sugar.

Glucose is bad, but fructose is worse. We're biologically triggered to chase fructose like dogs chasing cats. Food companies know this - hence "High Fructose Corn Syrup" is in everything from cereal to soda to salad dressing. It sounds like looney-tunes conspiracy theories, but if you're eating the average American diet, you're being controlled and slowly killed for profit. It's hard to break that chain.

I know. I'm still trying. I'm on like day 8 of zero added sugars and no highly processed foods, and my body is hating it. My stomach complains that it wants to eat. My brain is floating images of cheesecake and pizza to torment me. Biologically, I've been wired through decades of repetitiously bad eating to pursue a quick "feel good" that comes with eating poorly at the cost of my overall health.

My thoughts on dealing with a 12 hour work day, 3 kids, and no time to eat healthy is that you MUST make time, and it can't be a half-measure. If you gained 20lbs in the last 2 years, what will you do if/when you gain another 20 in the next two years? When they put you on dialysis will you have time? When they amputate your foot, will you have time? When you go blind?

You'd think that you'd see a bunch of fit motherf###ers in those "bad food" documentaries. "Yeah, man. I got diagnosed with diabetes, and I changed my life around. I lost a lot of weight and started eating right, but I still have to come here to get my blood cleaned." ... Nope. You see a bunch of people still killing themselves with food and slowly progressing their diseases until the disease owns them. WTF, right? Sugar. They're addicts. They're not robbing convenience stores and turning tricks in back alleys, but they are destroying themselves with each bite, often knowingly. They just can't stop.

It's goddamn hard. I'm fighting it. I've relapsed a half dozen times in the last 3 years. I start eating right, start losing weight, then I think I can handle a little ice cream, maybe have some cereal. Get convenient. Three months later, I'm back to eating crap and gained back every pound I lost and then some.

I'm still fighting, though. I'm afraid that there will come a day when my doctor tells me I'm diabetic. There is no such thing as "pre-diabietic" - that's just a soft way to tell you you've gone too far.

Make time. Cook with your kids as a family event. Prep a half dozen things that can be bagged or broken down into tupperware. Make a chili that lasts four people for a week in a giant pot. Make a big bowl of salad once every couple of days and dole that out into tupperware containers for lunches.

Most importantly, stop buying anything with any of the 65+ kinds of added sugar, or that converts easily to simple sugars in your body - like bread and pasta. Imagine being an alcoholic, walking into a bar, and ordering a drink - thiking "I got this" ... right? Insanity. I haven't been able to sustain a diet that survived "I can do this in moderation" so now I'm trying to stick with just being healthy and tossing moderation.

... I'm ranting. Sorry.

I'm also hungry and dying for a f###ing Snickers bar or something. Right after eating a nice healthy lunch of pecans, kale, carrots, and tomatoes. I'm shouldn't be hungry. WTF. My body is so broken.

[Skinypupy]

... I'm ranting. Sorry.

Now I'm depressed...I need to go eat a cookie. That was a really good rant, actually.

I've been slowly coming to the realization that I need to make a massive change. When dad was alive, we always viewed him as significantly overweight. When he passed, I went through his closet to see what clothes I wanted before we donated them to Goodwill. I realized in horror that his pants - the ones that I always thought he looked fat in - were actually a little bit tight on me. That's...not good.

Time for a change, this thread will be a good catalyst.

[LordMortis]

smaller portions,

When I diet successfully it's about cutting high calorie low pay off things like Ranch dressing and being exceptionally conscious about portion control via pre-portioning my food. So I'll allow myself to buy a family size bag of chips but the second I get home, I not the portions and calories per portion on the back and I make 16 or 32 baggies of chips and note that every time I eat them, it's adding x] calories to my daily intake. The goal was always to almost always stay under 2500 calories but really try to get to around 2000 per day. Being obsessive and always wanting to leave room for "Oh shit I can't sleep without food" I often came in around 1800 calories a day.

The problem for me is I stick to it as long as I'm obsessive about it, when I'm not obsessive the portion control goes out the window and the weight comes right back but the key was always to pre-portion and to have an idea of how many calories I was getting in to before I elected to eat. Pizza, fine. But two slices of pepperoni regular crust pizza is one of three meals for the day and you better drink coffee or water with it and nothing on the side.

I'd splurge once every couple of weeks and often end with a 3500 calorie day and it never hurt me tracking for 250 to under 180.

[ImLawBoy]

... I'm ranting. Sorry.

Now I'm depressed...I need to go eat a cookie. That was a really good rant, actually.

I've been slowly coming to the realization that I need to make a massive change. When dad was alive, we always viewed him as significantly overweight. When he passed, I went through his closet to see what clothes I wanted before we donated them to Goodwill. I realized in horror that his pants - the ones that I always thought he looked fat in - were actually a little bit tight on me. That's...not good.

Time for a change, this thread will be a good catalyst.

This may not be what you want to hear, but the single most effective change to my diet was cutting out sweetened beverages. Within a few months, I had dropped 20 pounds, and it's stayed off. The calories from pop really add no value whatever. Like Paingod, I can't even think about cracking a can of Coke now without feeling grossed out (although I do occasionally have dreams where I find myself drinking a Coke despite the fact I haven't had one in years). My doctor kept gently suggesting that I drop my 1-2 cans/bottles per day, but I always figured it wasn't making that much of a difference. Boy, was I wrong. I can't imagine how skinny I'd be if I stopped my remaining form of liquid calories - beer!

[LordMortis]

Like Paingod, I can't even think about cracking a can of Coke now without feeling grossed out (although I do occasionally have dreams where I find myself drinking a Coke despite the fact I haven't had one in years).

Heh, I'm the other way around. Now Coke isn't something consumed just because or with a meal. It's a treat. The longer I go without the better it tastes when I have one. If I go three months without a soda and then get a glass of Faygo Rock and Rye with a slice of pizza, I'm no heaven and the pop reminds me of what it was like to be a kid. Sooo good. This why I fear I'll never truly quit smoking. I'm someteen months without a ziiggy and I still want one every single day and I dream of smoking often and then feel guilty when I wake up.

Also I put my pop quitting weight back on.

[Moliere]

This why I fear I'll never truly quit smoking. I'm someteen months without a ziiggy and I still want one every single day and I dream of smoking often and then feel guilty when I wake up.

Sounds like me with donuts. A couple years ago I started the habit of eating them for breakfast 3-4 days a week. Mmmm, donuts. The idea of no more donuts makes me sad. So far its only been 6 days.

[Skinypupy]

... I'm ranting. Sorry.

Now I'm depressed...I need to go eat a cookie. That was a really good rant, actually.

I've been slowly coming to the realization that I need to make a massive change. When dad was alive, we always viewed him as significantly overweight. When he passed, I went through his closet to see what clothes I wanted before we donated them to Goodwill. I realized in horror that his pants - the ones that I always thought he looked fat in - were actually a little bit tight on me. That's...not good.

Time for a change, this thread will be a good catalyst.

This may not be what you want to hear, but the single most effective change to my diet was cutting out sweetened beverages. Within a few months, I had dropped 20 pounds, and it's stayed off. The calories from pop really add no value whatever. Like Paingod, I can't even think about cracking a can of Coke now without feeling grossed out (although I do occasionally have dreams where I find myself drinking a Coke despite the fact I haven't had one in years). My doctor kept gently suggesting that I drop my 1-2 cans/bottles per day, but I always figured it wasn't making that much of a difference. Boy, was I wrong. I can't imagine how skinny I'd be if I stopped my remaining form of liquid calories - beer!

Been telling myself for years now that quitting soda was the logical and obvious first step for weight loss, and that it actually will make a difference. And every time, I talk myself out of it with the justification of "one can a day (which usually turns into 3 or 4) isn't so bad". While I inherently know it already, it is good to hear some anecdotal support that this change helps. I don't drink much beer (once, maybe twice a month), so that shouldn't be much of an issue.

My sweetened beverage cleanse begins tomorrow morning...caffeine pills will be at the ready. When my co-workers ask why I turned into such a cranky fucker, I'm putting the blame squarely on you people.

[Rumpy]

"Hard" soda - sugared, that is - is essentially a toxic swill that your body loves to hate, and it converts very easily to fat. "Soft" soda - the diet stuff - is still a chemical factory in a bottle, but less bad. I forced myself to go through the conversion and afterwards I found that the hard stuff tasted like thick syrup and made my face want to implode. I don't even want it anymore, not even as a special treat.

Yeah, I find I can't drink the sugared stuff anymore even if I wanted to because I find it way too sweet. Funny how our tastebuds change over time. I even find the diet versions too sweet.

[TheMix]

We have been trying to eat more salads. Which can be really hard due to the amount of prep time and the veggies going bad (mostly the lettuce).

The key for us has been to prep a bunch of stuff at the same time: cut up 1-2 bell peppers, cut up some carrots (if we have them), cut and wash some lettuce (generally 1-2 Romaine hearts). We also have feta cheese and black olives. Most of the stuff we get at CostCo. Carrots and spinach (which doesn't generally require any prep) we get at the store because the CostCo sizes have proven to be too much for us.

I try to add a bit more protein when the salad is the only thing. Usually ham (when we have it). Sometimes hard boiled eggs. Though I tend to not make those very often.

Edit: Oh... and the point of my post was really that you could spend 30 min or so prepping on Sunday, and then have quick meals for several days. It only takes a minute or two to put together the salad when everything is already cut and prepped.

[LordMortis]

Sometimes hard boiled eggs.

Eggs are my best friend when I'm dieting as long as you don't cook them in our a large egg is only about 100 calories. That's about as filling and satisifying as 100 calories can be for money.

[Jeff V]

I can't imagine how skinny I'd be if I stopped my remaining form of liquid calories - beer!

More crazy talk!

[Ralph-Wiggum]

Sometimes hard boiled eggs. Though I tend to not make those very often.

When you do, you should try adding in some banana as well. I hear that's a great combination.

[ImLawBoy]

Sometimes hard boiled eggs. Though I tend to not make those very often.

When you do, you should try adding in some banana as well. I hear that's a great combination.

Microwave it a touch to get the best texture.

[LordMortis]

mmmm... Warm and soft...

[Kraken]

I can't imagine how skinny I'd be if I stopped my remaining form of liquid calories - beer!

More crazy talk!

Yeah, that's the big source of empty calories in my diet. I don't snack very much and don't drink soda. I can shave my meals back a little to save a few calories, and I can exercise more to burn a few calories, but the real key is my beer ration.

[Jeff V]

Thanks to this thread, I'm having pizza and beer for dinner tonight (well, the pizza was actually my wife's idea for a change).

[LordMortis]

Thanks to this thread, I'm having pizza and beer for dinner tonight (well, the pizza was actually my wife's idea for a change).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GkyKXFm7WBM

[Anonymous Bosch]

I've been trying to cut out soda...and failing miserably. I don't like coffee, so a Pepsi in the morning is my go-to for waking up. I hate, hate, hate the taste of diet soda, so that's not an option. Been trying to find an alternative, but haven't found anything yet. Water just doesn't cut it.

if you're after a decent-tasting alternative to soda, I'd recommend True Citrus 10-Calorie Lemonade or Limeade. Unlike Kool Aid and the like, it contains no artificial sweeteners, flavours, or any other weird additives and preservatives. It's essentially just crystallized real citrus juice and oils sweetened with stevia and a smidgen of sugar, which makes for a pleasant natural flavour. They also offer a decent variety of additional flavours to choose from, too -- their Black Cherry Limeade is among my favourites. Anyway, it's a great way to add some flavour to bottled water or tea with a miniscule amount of calories.

[Jeff V]

It's the artificial sweetener that makes diet pop bad for you, not the bubbles. Those water additives aren't any better, really -- they would still have the same physiological effect.

I think True Lemon has a completely unsweetened version -- it's pretty horrible.

[Blackhawk]

For all those wondering what to replace sweetened caffeine with, can I suggest naturally flavored tea? I'm not talking iced tea or godawful Lipton. I mean something like Twinings Earl Grey (which you can get at Wal-Mart) or some of the many other flavors out there (try Twinings Black Currant - it's one of my favorites.) They don't have calories, they don't have chemicals, and black tea has just about the same amount of caffeine as a Coke by volume. And the fruit/flower flavored ones don't taste like the brewed black tea so many people hate.

To be clear, I don't suggest this as a soda replacement, but as an alternative. It doesn't travel like a coke, and it doesn't taste like a coke. It does, however, let you satisfy the 'drink something' urge and the caffeine addiction while you're fighting off the sugar addiction. And most of the fruit ones have a slightly sweet flavor (and scent!) as well.

Just don't pour sugar into it. After all, the alternatives are artificial sweeteners, which aren't much better than sugar, or water.

[Rumpy]

It's the artificial sweetener that makes diet pop bad for you, not the bubbles.

Yeah, this. Unless someone has an issue with carbonation in general.

As for beer, I limit myself to one a week, if that. Sometimes I'll go weeks or even months without one, so I don't consider myself a drinker.

[msduncan]

Three rules to this diet:
1) No bread products
2) No refined sugar
3) Everything else in moderation

Who's with me?

Today is Day 1.
Breakfast: oatmeal and craisins.

Easy because I'm on the Keto diet. I'm down 30 pounds since October.

[Zarathud]

When dad was alive, we always viewed him as significantly overweight. When he passed, I went through his closet to see what clothes I wanted before we donated them to Goodwill. I realized in horror that his pants - the ones that I always thought he looked fat in - were actually a little bit tight on me. That's...not good.

That was my "Big Fat Grandpa" who kept sneaking potato chips after going on dialysis. Not fitting into his shirts after a few years was hard.

I always patted myself on the back for eating bananas over donuts. Turns out the donuts had fewer carbs. I fight a wicked soda habit from high school-law school when I drank 2 liters a day to keep awake and able to function on 6 hours sleep. Down to a 20 oz every few days, most of the time. My parents had high metabolisms and not a lot of money, so we always ate high carb foods and cleared our plates because of the "starving children in China." I started down this path and it's hard to change, but my kids were on a different path -- even before it became an immediate and chronic health issue for them.

Best thing you can do is teach your kids better food habits. My kids didn't have apple juice that wasn't watered down. They know Dad's soda is poison. That didn't stop them both from developing genetic Type 1 diabetes, but it will keep them healthier and more able to cope.

[Jeff V]

I always patted myself on the back for eating bananas over donuts. Turns out the donuts had fewer carbs. I

Have you tried cutting your bananas with hard boiled eggs? Mainlining them will kill you.

My son (4) sipped soda once and hated it. Since he doesn't eat veggies, for awhile I was giving him Capris Sun made fruit/veggie juice pouches, until Meijer discontinued them. Mostly he drinks water.

[Paingod]

My son (4) sipped soda once and hated it. Since he doesn't eat veggies, for awhile I was giving him Capris Sun made fruit/veggie juice pouches, until Meijer discontinued them. Mostly he drinks water.

Unless there was a medical reason - like an Autism trigger or other similar thing - we'd never let our kids decide what they liked and would eat. Dinner is dinner. If the youngest (6) grumps about how he hates the spinach and kale in his salad, we make him eat that first before he gets into anything else, and don't hesitate to put his plate in the fridge and offer it back up for the next meal if he refused to eat it. I've been know to, on occasion, walk past him prodding a leaf like it's a dead mouse and pick it up to casually stuff it in his mouth. He's actually getting better about it and knows what the rules are.

I know too many unhealthy adults that walk around claiming they hate vegetables and can't/won't eat them to let my kids get away with not eating them.

[ImLawBoy]

I've been trying to cut out soda...and failing miserably. I don't like coffee, so a Pepsi in the morning is my go-to for waking up. I hate, hate, hate the taste of diet soda, so that's not an option. Been trying to find an alternative, but haven't found anything yet. Water just doesn't cut it.

if you're after a decent-tasting alternative to soda, I'd recommend True Citrus 10-Calorie Lemonade or Limeade. Unlike Kool Aid and the like, it contains no artificial sweeteners, flavours, or any other weird additives and preservatives. It's essentially just crystallized real citrus juice and oils sweetened with stevia and a smidgen of sugar, which makes for a pleasant natural flavour. They also offer a decent variety of additional flavours to choose from, too -- their Black Cherry Limeade is among my favourites. Anyway, it's a great way to add some flavour to bottled water or tea with a miniscule amount of calories.

Stevia may not be an "artificial" sweetener (although many of its permutations in retail, such as Truvia, are considered artificial because of their processing), but it still has many of the negative side effects of artificial sweeteners from an eating trigger standpoint. Also, it has an aftertaste, so if you generally avoid artificial sweeteners because of the aftertaste, odds are you'll have the same issue with Stevia. (And if you think Stevia has no aftertaste, you're either used to it specifically or the aftertastes of artificial sweeteners generally.)

I'm in agreement with (I think it was) Rumpy about using carbonated, non-sweetened beverages if you absolutely must have some flavor in your water (and aren't worrying about needing the caffeine). The first couple of times of tasting the flavoring without the sugar was definitely weird (especially since I was still a pop drinker back then), but I got used to it quickly enough. I don't really drink it today, but my wife will occasionally pick up a 12-pack of LaCroix.

My son (4) sipped soda once and hated it. Since he doesn't eat veggies, for awhile I was giving him Capris Sun made fruit/veggie juice pouches, until Meijer discontinued them. Mostly he drinks water.

Unless there was a medical reason - like an Autism trigger or other similar thing - we'd never let our kids decide what they liked and would eat. Dinner is dinner. If the youngest (6) grumps about how he hates the spinach and kale in his salad, we make him eat that first before he gets into anything else, and don't hesitate to put his plate in the fridge and offer it back up for the next meal if he refused to eat it. I've been know to, on occasion, walk past him prodding a leaf like it's a dead mouse and pick it up to casually stuff it in his mouth. He's actually getting better about it and knows what the rules are.

I know too many unhealthy adults that walk around claiming they hate vegetables and can't/won't eat them to let my kids get away with not eating them.

We're pretty similar, but perhaps not quite as strict. Young kids don't like bitter as much, so we try to watch especially bitter things with them and will give them an alternative. Also, if they try something and really don't like it, we don't force the issue. That has the chance of being abused by the kids, but since they rarely actually use this as an excuse to not eat something, we're not in that danger zone yet.

[Paingod]

Unless there was a medical reason - like an Autism trigger or other similar thing - we'd never let our kids decide what they liked and would eat. Dinner is dinner. If the youngest (6) grumps about how he hates the spinach and kale in his salad, we make him eat that first before he gets into anything else, and don't hesitate to put his plate in the fridge and offer it back up for the next meal if he refused to eat it. I've been know to, on occasion, walk past him prodding a leaf like it's a dead mouse and pick it up to casually stuff it in his mouth. He's actually getting better about it and knows what the rules are.

We're pretty similar, but perhaps not quite as strict. Young kids don't like bitter as much, so we try to watch especially bitter things with them and will give them an alternative. Also, if they try something and really don't like it, we don't force the issue. That has the chance of being abused by the kids, but since they rarely actually use this as an excuse to not eat something, we're not in that danger zone yet.

I suppose it sounds harsh. I should preface it with "we've raised our kids on veggies from infancy" and the 6-year old has eaten everything he "hates" now without complaint before. He drinks water 99% of the time, and snacks are apples and carrots in between meals.

[Anonymous Bosch]

Stevia may not be an "artificial" sweetener (although many of its permutations in retail, such as Truvia, are considered artificial because of their processing), but it still has many of the negative side effects of artificial sweeteners from an eating trigger standpoint. Also, it has an aftertaste, so if you generally avoid artificial sweeteners because of the aftertaste, odds are you'll have the same issue with Stevia. (And if you think Stevia has no aftertaste, you're either used to it specifically or the aftertastes of artificial sweeteners generally.)

Just to clarify, I was not suggesting stevia has no aftertaste, but it's much less noticeable in the True Citrus 10-calorie lemonade and limeade products given the predominant natural citrus flavours involved, and the fact they're also sweetened with a small amount of sugar. As for the hand-wringing over the evils of sweeteners -- be they artificial or natural -- my suggestion was made within the context of putting forward a decent-tasting alternative to sugary soda. Sure, drinking plain water is the healthiest option. But for those hooked on soda and looking to break the habit -- but that do not share your preference for drinking plain water -- so what? The point being, drinking a 10-calorie lemonade or limeade would still likely be a healthier alternative relative to drinking 200-calorie cans of soda on a regular basis, even if not the healthiest.