What is the healthiest Drink? Hint: water is just one of many healthy drink options

What is the healthiest drink besides water? It’s way too easy to sip a bunch of calories and added sugars without even noticing it. Worry no more: Here are your healthy drink options.

---

When people learn what I do for a living, they inevitably ask me the one question they’ve been dying to ask an expert. Their question usually has best or healthiest in it. Like what is the healthiest drink or what’s the best diet for prediabetes? Sometimes they want to know what I eat. I’ve been asked, “do you eat carbs,” more times than you might imagine. The answer is Yes, I Do Eat Carbs. And I’ve been asked, “do you eat sweets?” My oh my, I have never outgrown my sweet tooth, but here’s how I cut back on sugar.

Best and healthiest make me uncomfortable.

Best for whom? Healthiest for what?  I couldn’t possibly answer what is the healthiest drink unless I know an awful lot about you. And there are probably several best healthy drink options for each of us.

So today, I’ll give you choices. Here’s my list of healthiest drinks besides water, of course.

What is the healthiest drink besides water?

Well that depends, right?

If you have diabetes, I’m not going to recommend a large glass of grape or cherry juice because gulping down all those carbs will likely spike your blood sugar level. But if you’re healthy, with normal lab reports, and struggling to put weight on, fruit juice is a terrific option. Sipping on grape, pomegranate, cherry and orange juice throughout the day is a nutritious way to sneak in extra calories. This was a winning strategy for my husband when he trained for a marathon several years back.

If you’re watching your weight or your blood sugar, you’ve got to put limits on fruit juice.

Sparkling water

Love it! My refrigerator is full of various flavors of zero-calorie sparkling water, especially in the summer. Fruity, fizzy water is so refreshing after a bike ride, when I’m working in the yard, or when I simply need an escape from drippy, sweaty heat.

Sparkling water is hydrating, and it doesn’t cause bone loss. But it might be bad for your tooth enamel, so don’t drink it in place of flat water all day long.

Pro tip: Look at the label carefully to be sure you’re getting a zero-calorie drink. LaCroix and Nixie are a couple brands to check out.

Fun tip: Enjoy a no-calorie or very-low-calorie cocktail. Pour your favorite plain or flavored sparkling water into a pretty cocktail glass. Add fresh fruit or a splash of fruit juice if you’d like. I’m all about the glass! Sipping from a cocktail glass lifts my mood and boosts my energy.

Coffee

Where would I be without coffee? And again, I’m all about what I’m drinking out of. I have small coffee cups, giant coffee mugs and teeny tiny espresso cups. Each one serves a different mood or setting.

Coffee is jam-packed with health-boosting compounds such as phenolic acids and lignans that may boost insulin sensitivity (giant yay for people with prediabetes or diabetes) or act as antioxidants or anti-inflammatory compounds. Even decaf coffee contains these health boosters, albeit in smaller amounts. They still add up, however, especially for people like me who drink lots of decaf coffee.

Researchers find that drinking coffee is linked to a lower risk of developing endometrial and liver cancers. If you’ve ever worried that acrylamide in roasted coffee beans causes cancer, you can stop worrying right now. The American Institute for Cancer Research gives it a solid zero on the “cancer worry” scale.

Pro tip #1: Next time you serve yourself a cup of coffee, measure your add-ins like sugar and cream. Determine the approximate number of calories, carbohydrates and saturated fats you just poured into your cup. Ask yourself how that fits into your daily goals.

If you add heaps of cream, sugar, or syrups to your coffee, you’ve turned a healthy, nearly zero-calorie drink into a calorie monster. Such a beverage has no place on a healthiest drink list.

Pro tip #2: Especially if you have high cholesterol – but even if you don’t – be cautious with unfiltered coffee like French press and espresso. Unfiltered coffee has compounds that can raise LDL cholesterol levels.

Yum tip: If you want some flavor without extra calories, brew coffee with ground cinnamon or cardamom. It’s sooooo good!

Tea

I’m #TeamTea just as much as I’m #TeamCoffee. And again, you should see my collection of cups and mugs. 🙃

Black, green, white and oolong teas each come from the leaves of the same evergreen plant: Camellia sinesis. They look and taste different because their leaves are harvested from the plant during different stages of growth and go through various levels of fermentation. Don’t worry about which is the healthiest drink option. Drink the teas you like the most. They’re all loaded with phytonutrients (like flavonols) and have multiple health benefits. Research connects tea drinking to less type 2 diabetes, stronger bones and less heart attacks.

One super cool thing about tea is that it contains the amino acid theanine, which is thought to have the oddly combined dual actions of enhancing focus and relaxation at the same time.

Pro tip: Brew your own tea instead of relying on bottled teas. The disease-fighting flavonoids don’t last long, so there aren’t many – or any – in bottled teas. The flavonoids in your brewed iced tea will last a couple days in your refrigerator, especially if you add some citrus like lemon or orange slices. If your pitcher is cloudy at the bottom, you’ve got degraded flavonoids. You can still drink the tea. Degraded flavonoids don’t hurt you; they just don’t shield health.

Vegetable juice

Yes, V8 and other brands of vegetable juice (and tomato juice) count as servings of vegetables. Juiced and pureed vegetables are loaded with phytonutrients, vitamins, and minerals. An 8-ounce glass of traditional V8 also has 2 grams of fiber. All for only 45 calories, which is a real bargain.

The biggest drawback to vegetable and tomato juices is their high sodium content, but many brands have low or lower sodium options.

Pro tip: You can trim the sodium substantially and maintain good flavor when you mix regular and low sodium varieties together.

Fun tip: You guessed it – I’m all about the glass. Fancy up your drink by pouring it into a fun cocktail glass. Dress it more with a lime wedge and a stick of celery. Or some fresh-from-the-garden basil.

Weight control tip: I very often pour myself a big glass of V8 shortly before dinner to help manage my appetite. It works beautifully. And I always pack cans of vegetable juice when I travel by car and ask for tomato juice on airplanes. Nutritious, delicious, low calorie.

V8 rescued dinner once years ago. Instead of adding a tablespoon of chili powder to my simmering chili, I spiced the living daylights out of the pot by adding cayenne pepper, which is about a million and two times as spicy as chili powder. Yikes. So glad I always have vegetable juice on hand to dilute my over-the-top chili. Since then, I’ve purposefully used V8 is lots of recipe creations.

Milk

Drinking milk is an easy way to boost your intake of protein, vitamin D and calcium, which sets milk apart from the other beverages on this list of healthy drink options. Except for the nonfat (skim) variety, milk is also set apart by its fat content. The saturated fat in whole milk and 2% milk is a concern for many with high cholesterol levels. Emerging research suggests that milk fat may not be as harmful as other types of dairy fat, but this is still controversial.

Pro tip: To save calories and saturated fats, choose nonfat milk or 1% milk most often. You’ll save 60 calories and 5 grams of saturated fat for each 8-ounce glass of nonfat milk you drink in place of whole milk.

If you don’t drink milk because of a dairy allergy or other reason, grab a carton of soy milk. Of the typical non-dairy beverages on the market, it’s the closest in nutrition to cow’s milk.

These make the healthiest drink list SOMETIMES

What about herbal teas?

Hot or iced, herbal teas can be soothing, refreshing, and low in calories. My favorites are hibiscus, ginger and mint teas. All herbal teas have different properties, and some people may have allergic or nonallergic reactions to some types. They might interfere with medications or be ill-advised during pregnancy or breastfeeding. Ask your healthcare provider for specific advice.

What about smoothies?

A healthy smoothie like this Very Berry Smoothie can substitute for a meal or most of a meal because of its protein content and nutritional boost. But then there are smoothies that are more like dessert for 3 or 4 days! Stay away from dessert-y smoothies, as well as smoothies with a bunch of additives for immunity, focus or muscle building. They’re usually based on junk science and may be harmful.

Check out how to make healthy smoothies for prediabetes and your heart.

What about green juice?

I got rid of my juicer after using it just a few times. I hated tossing out so much nutritional goodness after extracting just the juice from green veggies or anything else. Instead I use a powerful blender like a Vitamix because it purees instead of juices leaving me with nothing to put in the trash or compost bin. If you like homemade green juices, drink them, but they’re not nearly as nutritious as eating your green vegetables. If you buy packaged green juices, read the labels carefully. Many are “green” only in color and are packed with calories from added sugars or fruit juices.

I bet you can see why it’s hard for me when someone asks, “what is the healthiest drink?” I might need 10 minutes just to get though half my list of healthy drink options.

But whatever drink you choose and whatever mood you’re in, I’ve got the perfect cup for that, so come on over!

Learn about meal planning for prediabetes

Get the Prediabetes Meal Planning Crash Course