Soda

When making a rhubarb galette recently, I had a lot of leftover syrup from cooking down the rhubarb. There was no way that I was letting that ruby red sauce, full of concentrated rhubarb flavor, go down the drain. Determined to figure out a solution, I ventured to try a refreshing glass of rhubarb soda. I poured about three tablespoons of the syrup per glass (although you can use less if you prefer a less-sweet beverage) over tall glasses full of ice.

Next, in went the sparkling soda water. If you plan to serve this at a party, don't stir it up, because the pink and clear layers are quite eye-catching.

Keep reading to see what it tastes like.

I'm not a hardcore soda drinker, but lately, every time I stop into an A.G. Ferrari foods store, I find myself picking up a handful of Sanbitter. I first spotted the soda years ago; I was drawn to its diminutive glass bottling and Big Red color, but repulsed by the word "bitter" in the name. Why would anyone want to drink bitter soda? I wondered to myself.

That was a long time ago, years before I built up an appreciation for arugula salads, lattes without sugar, and other provisions that were more edgy than sugar-sweet. When I landed in Germany and discovered the country was going through a bitter Aperol spritz phase, I drank the country's cocktail of choice any time I didn't have a glass of wine in hand. Upon returning to the office, I had only one nonalcoholic beverage on the brain: Sanbitter.

Like Campari or Aperol, Sanbitter has a distinct bitter citrus note upon first sip, ending with a pleasantly sweet finish. It's perfect for those times of day when you're craving a Negroni but can't succumb to spirits just yet. Plus, drinking out of that bottle feels quaint and distinctly European. My only complaint? I wish each drink lasted longer.

You may feel young, vibrant, and strong now, but you don't want to be one of those women later in life whose bones are so weak that they lose three inches of height, or worse — end fracturing a hip during a fall. Osteoporosis is no joke, and in order to prevent issues later in life, it's important to take care of bones now.

1. Go for a run: Exercise is key to keeping bones strong; be sure to get at least 30 minutes a day. Weight-bearing workouts like going for a run, yoga, or strength training cause muscles to pull on the bones, which helps increase bone density.
2. Cut back on cocktails and cola: Bone loss leads to osteoporosis, and drinking excessive amounts of alcohol or soda has been linked to an increased risk of the disease. Stick to one alcoholic drink a day, and limit cola intake, too.
3. A glass of milk in the sun: Calcium is key to preventing bone loss, but vitamin D is necessary to help the body absorb the mineral. Dairy products, almonds, sardines, salmon, enriched cereals, orange juice, and dark-green veggies are great sources of calcium. Couple it with with five to 10 minutes of sun exposure three times a week, and your bones will thank you.

Pepsi Next, the line of Pepsi sodas with 60 percent less sugar than standard cans, has released two new limited-edition flavors for Summer: Paradise Mango and Cherry Vanilla. Considering our generally unfavorable opinion of the new wave of "semidiet" sodas, we were skeptical, but wanted to give the flavors a fair try.

It wasn't easy. We weren't that impressed with Pepsi Next when we taste tested the soda a few months back. To make matters worse, when the new flavors were shipped to us via a sand-filled plastic box, one of the cans exploded inside the box during transit. The YumSugar team shrieked upon realization that the sandbox was seeping, and soda was inches away from our precious laptops. We made a sincere, three-person effort to carry the soaked sandbox to the trashcan without leaving a Pepsi trail.

Despite it all, we cracked the cans anyway and entered into taste-test mode with willing palates and open minds. Find out if the sodas were a hit or a total letdown by reading the taste-test results.

Drinking enough water during the day is important for everything from fighting fatigue to controlling your appetite, but you could be doing more with those eight glasses a day. Here's why you should jazz up water to make it even better for your body and your taste buds.

Essential nutrients: Add flavor and vitamins with cooling cucumber or melon; not only will these fruits help hydrate, but they will also add a dose of vitamins and minerals. Cucumbers, for example, contain good amounts of silica to keep skin glowing and magnesium and potassium to help lower blood pressure. Watermelon contains lycopene, which can help lower your risk of cancer — so as the weather heats up, don't forget to add a few slices of hydrating fruit to your glass.

Better detoxing: Drinking enough water is one of the best ways to detox, since it helps aid in digestion. For added detox power, drink your water with lemon; the fruit helps cleanse your digestive tract and helps food break down properly.

Beat bad-for-you soda cravings: Now that we know that soda can cause gout and diet soda makes you fat, there's even more incentive to keep things strictly H2O. But if you're finding it hard to resist a can of cola, make your water a bit more easy to swallow with these bubbly ways to make your own carbonated beverage.

Last week's controversial report linking soda consumption to cancer is more evidence indicating that the popular fizzy drink may not be the best choice for a healthy lifestyle. Even if you go the healthier route by choosing sugar-free diet soda, you're still not off the hook. Here are reasons to kick (or at least cut back) your daily diet-soda habit.

1. Weight gain: While researchers have yet to agree on the exact reason, studies show a link between diet soda consumption and weight gain. Study results indicate it's one of two reasons: most diet-soda drinkers already follow poor lifestyle habits that lead to excess weight gain, or artificial sweeteners confuse the body, causing it to crave the one thing it was deprived of — real sugar. Based on these recent studies, it's safe to say that diet soda alone is not going to make you fat, but it may be smart to limit your intake and view it as a vice, rather than a healthier alternative.
2. Risk of disease: Recent studies show that a diet-soda habit can increase your risk of stroke, osteoporosis, and type two diabetes. Early studies show diet-soda drinkers are 61 percent more likely to have a stroke, have four percent lower bone mineral density, and are more at risk for developing type two diabetes.
3. Damaging to the body: If you're a fan of your kidneys or teeth, now might be the time to curb your diet-soda habit. In a study, women who drank two or more diet sodas per day had decreased kidney function by about 30 percent. On top of that, the phosphoric acid in soda, dissolves the calcium in tooth enamel, weakening it.

If quitting this daily habit seems impossible to you, follow this 28-day plan to stop drinking diet soda for good.

We are excited to share one of our fave stories from Shape here on FitSugar.

Cracking open a can of diet soda instead of regular pop may seem like a good idea at first, but research continues to show a disturbing link between diet soda consumption and weight gain. And though the sweet, effervescent drinks may taste good, they're certainly not good for your body. "Diet soda may not have the sugar or calories of regular soda, but it's chock-full of other health-draining chemicals, including caffeine, artificial sweeteners, sodium, and phosphoric acid," says Marcelle Pick, member of the American Nurses Association and co-founder of Women To Women. It is possible to ditch your diet soda dependency, however. Read on to find out how after the break