Less People Drink Soda Every Day Than You Might Think - Exclusive Survey

There's nothing quite like a sweet, fizzy soda, and it seems store shelves are lined with dozens of choices ranging from sugar-free to caffeine-loaded. While there are dozens of brands, one of the oldest still reigns as the king of soft drinks. In naming the top 10 most popular sodas, Newsweek reports that Coca-Cola sits at the top of the list, raking in $38.66 billion dollars in 2021, per Statista. Coca-Cola also owns Diet Coke, Fanta, and Sprite, which also appeared on Newsweek's list.

Sodas might be money makers, but that doesn't mean that they are all that good for you. WebMD reports that some studies associate sodas with a variety of health conditions including kidney damage, obesity, and some cancers. Health Digest wanted to know how popular sodas are among our readers, so we conducted a poll to find out. Turns out that our readers drink less soda than you might think.

For the survey, Health Digest polled 583 individuals, asking how often they drank sodas. Almost one-third – 28.64% – said they only drink sodas once in a while, with 23.16% stating that they have them a few times a week. Other respondents had them more frequently, with 19.73% saying they drink sodas daily, and 11.49% said they have them once a week. However, 16.98% of those polled said they never drink sodas at all.

If you're looking for ways to cut down on your soda consumption, you should start by finding something to replace it. Sparkling water is a carbonated option, but you can also drink seltzer with a few slices of fresh fruit. You should also try to cut down slowly. For example, go without sodas for one day a week, then increase to two, and so on over a few months (via U.S. News and World Reports).