Water .vs. Soda, 2012
Now I could begin to list the reasons why soda is the first thing I dropped when I wanted to lose weight. Between the “empty calories”, the carbs, the high fructose corn syrup, the caffeine, or that soda is created entirely in a lab, well, let’s just say, I stopped looking for any type of soda as my go to drink. But this blog is not titled the “Frugal Dr. Rican” so I’m going to cast most health cons aside in my debate to compare drinking soda versus drinking water.
One of the side advantages of dropping soda was realizing how much soda could actually cost in the long-term versus just drinking water. True, we live in a time where water can be free but we opt to pay for it in bottled form, but even then, water is by far cheaper than soda. So as I saw my weight drop, I also saw my budget not be as tight.
So for the sake of this blog entry, I am going to compare buying 24 cans of coke to 24 bottles of water. I figured, this would be easy enough to translate the cost benefits of eliminating soda. Unfortunately for me, I have to buy bottles, since I don’t trust the water in Jersey and because my faucet has a nozzle I can’t attach a filter to.
As of this week, my local Shoprite has two specific sales for bottled water and cans of Coke on the front page:
- Coke 12-Pack (4 for $12) 12 oz cans
- Poland Spring 24-Pack Water (2 for $8) 16.9 oz
Right off the bat, I can tell you that the Coke is worth more. You are getting the same amount of Coke (48 cans) than the same amount of bottles (48), but for $4 more and for less quantity. Each bottle of water has 4.9 ounces more than a can of Coke, definitely giving you even more bang for your buck. For the sake of argument as well, let’s assume these offers last you one month each. Trust me, I know a bunch of Coke fiends that would easily drink at least two cans of Coke a day. And have you ever seen people toting Big Gulps? I’ve never figured out how they’re bladder doesn’t explode on the spot.
So over the course of a year, you are spending $144 just on all those cans of Coke. How much do you spend on the bottles of water? $96. Just on that comparison alone, you are saving $48 per year. Just THAT alone. Remember all those times you went out to eat at a restaurant and that soda cost you $2.89? Oh, but they tell you that you get free refills, you know, so that you meet your new friend Diabetes a lot sooner in life? You can easily get a glass of water with a lemon wedge, for free. Assume you go out to eat four times a month and ordered soda. Over the course of a year, you just spent $138.72. Water? $0.
So by now, you’ve pretty much spend almost $200 more just because you had soda, while water, for the most part, has the option to be free.
I keep healthy and frugal, by sticking with water. Because there is another added benefit to drinking water that will cost me less in the long run. Soda has always been in the discussion when it comes to detrimental effects to one’s teeth. Guess where that could cost you? Visits to the dentist. Soda has been linked to several diseases and conditions as well. No matter which ones we are talking about, your insurance is still going to stick it to you with the co-pay. Extra expenses right there.
I could go on and on about other ways it definitely affects your pocket, but by now, it seems like the case is overwhelmingly in favor for the consumption of water. It’s healthy, it’s what your body is composed mostly of, and at least for now, it’s most definitely frugal. Here’s to H2O! Cheers!
I generally drink beer in restaurants. (No fear, never pop. Sometimes whisky, and even, if I’m feeling bold and the restaurant is the kind with a sommelier, wine.) The problem with alcohol is thus: if the restaurant has cheap alcohol, the food sucks, and if the food is good, so is the expensive alcohol. Like a standard $5 small Guinness at a “casual dining” place like Applebee’s or TGI Friday’s. Or a $2 double Coors at the local bar-with-overpriced-fast-food (although one local establishment serves genuine Greek gyros – the original, most ancient processed food – which, as a Greek, is astounding). Or the $7 microbrew/homebrew (or $25 shot or scotch and soda of Glemorangie or Glenfiddich 18 or $35 for the same of Laphroiag, or $8 for even a basic Tullamore Dew) at a brewpub or gastropub with good food, $16 pierogies, $10 (delicious) fried ham and cheese sandwiches, and $7 sausages.
I made the mistake of ordering a beer to go with some Italian food once at a chain restaurant, because I can’t stand wine (especially cheap Olive Garden wine). I can’t remember whether the beer made the food more disgusting, or the food made the beer more disgusting. Lesson learned, Sam Adams makes tomato sauce and ricotta cheese really, really unappetizing.
Back on topic: I most certainly do wash the alcohol down with water, usually two glasses with a few extra lemon wedges to give it a little tart taste or weak lemonade consistency (which is nevertheless unapparent while having two thirty-ounce Russian Imperial Stouts on the tongue). What really gets me is when the restaurants (generally nicer ones) try to charge me for the water too, after I’ve just spent $25-75 on alcohol with them, including a snifter of whisky that’s keystoned four or five times over (granted that a fifth of Glenfiddich 18 costs about $95-100, and contains 17 shots that they sell for $25 each). I’d never be dumb enough to spend $3 for a pop to wash down the food and destroy the palate. Pop ruins the taste of any food except for cheap hotdogs, and also ruins the palate (disregarding any health effects).
Gatorade or Powerade (between $0.60 and $1.00 for 32 oz, generally closer to $1.00) is my everyday go-to drink. Water is for horses. (Remember to say it with a Bostonian accent like me.)