In the journey to lose weight, many people often focus on eating less or choosing healthier foods, but forget about a “silent culprit”: sugary drinks. A can of soft drink, a glass of milk tea or even a glass of canned fruit juice can contain up to hundreds of empty calories (calories that do not provide nutritional value but contribute to rapid weight gain). Therefore, learning how to limit and replace sugary drinks is an important step to both control weight and protect long-term health.
Why should you limit sugary drinks?
Empty calories are calories that come from sugar or fat but provide almost no necessary vitamins or minerals. A 330 ml can of soft drink contains about 140 calories, but your body does not receive any additional nutrients other than sugar. What’s more dangerous is that they do not bring a feeling of fullness, making you tend to eat more and accidentally consume more calories than necessary.
For example: If you only drink one can of soda a day, the excess calories in a month can be equivalent to gaining more than 0.5 kg of excess fat.
5 Tips to Help You Limit Sugary Drinks When Losing Weight
When thinking about losing weight, many people often focus on eating less rice, less fat or exercising more. But few people realize that it is the daily soft drinks, milk tea or iced milk coffee that are the “secret saboteurs” of weight loss efforts. They not only contain a huge amount of calories but also easily make the body dependent on sweetness. So how can you control your weight without being influenced by the habit of drinking sweets?
Here are 5 tips that can help:
1. Recognize hidden sources of sugar
Many people think that just avoiding carbonated soft drinks is enough, but in fact, sugar is “hidden” in many other types of drinks. Canned fruit juice, energy drinks, bottled tea, ready-to-drink milk coffee… can all contain a significant amount of sugar.
For example, a bottle of green tea may be labeled “low sugar,” but still contain 20–25 grams of sugar, that’s 5 teaspoons. If you don’t read labels carefully, you can easily fall into the trap of “drinking healthy” but still be consuming sugar regularly.
2. Choose healthy alternatives
Instead of sweet drinks, prioritize water, unsweetened sparkling water, or herbal tea. You can also make water more appealing by adding lemon, orange, cucumber, or mint leaves to enhance the flavor without adding calories.
For example, a pitcher of water with a few slices of strawberries and mint leaves not only looks appealing, but also gives the refreshing feeling of enjoying a premium beverage.
3. Understand the impact of sugar on health
Sugar not only causes weight gain, but is also a risk factor for many dangerous diseases such as type 2 diabetes, obesity, heart disease, and tooth decay. When you consume too many sugary drinks, your blood insulin levels increase, which can disrupt your metabolism and cause insulin resistance over time.
For example, one study found that people who drank 1–2 cans of soda a day had a 25% higher risk of diabetes than those who rarely drank it.
4. Make conscious choices
You don’t have to completely abstain from sugary drinks if you’re not ready, but think of sugary drinks as an “occasional treat” rather than a daily habit. Having a cup of bubble tea on the weekend as a reward is a far cry from drinking it every day.
For example, if you cut down from 5 milk teas a week to 1, you could save more than 1,000 calories a week – equivalent to nearly 0.5 kg of fat loss in a month.
5. Set yourself up for success
The best way to avoid temptation is to always have alternatives available. Carry a bottle of water with you when you go out, or prepare unsweetened herbal tea in the refrigerator. When you are thirsty, you will have a healthy solution right away, instead of conveniently buying a soft drink at the store.
For example: Many people often buy energy drinks after exercising because they think it is good for recovery. In fact, for most people who exercise at a moderate level, plain water is enough to meet their hydration needs.
Thus, avoiding sugary drinks is one of the simple but effective ways to lose weight and maintain health. Just changing your daily drinking habits can reduce hundreds of unnecessary calories, limit the risk of disease and maintain more sustainable energy. Start with small steps, such as gradually reducing the number of soft drinks you drink each week and replacing them with water or herbal tea. This small change will create big results for your weight, health and quality of life.
