The World Health Organization said Thursday that the artificial sweetener aspartame is “possibly carcinogenic to humans,” adding it to the same risk category as breathing in engine exhaust, working in dry cleaning and consuming certain pickled vegetables.
The WHO suggests that you would have to drink enough diet soda to enter the danger zone. Its new guideline for safe consumption is 40 milligrams of aspartame per kilogram of body weight, which means a committed diet cola fan weighing 150 pounds could drink as many as two dozen cans a day.
However, the news can give the jitters (caffeinated or not) to diet drinks. If you’re ready to ditch the stuff, or at least moderate your habit, here are 11 aspartame-free alternatives to reach for instead.
Iced Tea
It doesn’t look or taste exactly like diet coke, and it’s not even fizzy. But the tannins in iced tea mimic some of that carefully crafted complexity of Diet Coke, and the caffeine will keep you from passing out at your desk. Just take it easy on the sugar.
Kombucha
Lightly caffeinated and made from fermented black or green tea, it’s mildly effervescent, reasonably sweet, and may even be good for your gut microbiome — or whatever microbiome your diet-drinking habit left you with.
Sparkling Water
Choose any brand or flavor. It fizzes and is available in a can that gives you the same satisfying hiss when you open it.
Seltzer and Bitters
A bar staple for many pregnant and breastfeeding women, it’s quick, kind of sophisticated and very satisfying.
Pomegranate Juice and Club Soda
This mix hits the same bright and tangy notes as an icy Diet Coke, and even better, the foam is a vibrant pink.
Prosecco
This is already the soda pop of sparkling wines. Indeed, alcohol is listed by the WHO as clearly carcinogenic, possibly even in modest amounts. And Prosecco is hardly low in calories. But hey, pick your poison.
Shrubs
Shrubs is a type of locavore-hipster homebrew made from fruit-infused vinegar and sparkling water. Bonus: They come in farm-to-table flavors like rhubarb-beet and turmeric-cucumber.
“Healthy Coke”
This one-off TikTok feeling is a cool drink of seltzer spiked with balsamic vinegar. It has the bubbles and mahogany hue of diet coke, and many TikTokers claim it tastes just like it too. Even better, you can pour it on your salad when you’re out of vinaigrette.
DIY Coke
In his book “Homemade Soda,” Andrew Schloss offers a recipe for “natural cola” made from fresh and dried citrus peel, coriander, nutmeg and Kitchen Bouquet browning sauce, adding optional gum arabic for “mouthfeel”. Caroline Russock write more the website Serious Eats that “its complexity is almost bitter-like – dark and full of rich, sweet aromatics, a more grown-up consumption of cola.” Carbonate it with a CO2 siphon for the fluffiest foam. For die-hard enthusiasts only.
Sugary Hard Drinks
These may be the versions you originally fell in love with. It may be tempting to get back in touch with your ex, but due to the dietary dangers of too much sugar or corn syrup, keep your connections occasional.
Water
Here’s the no-brainer solution: sugar-free, easy to find and free. But even water carries risks. Drinking more than a quart per hour, especially if you’re doing something strenuous, can cause dangerous electrolyte imbalance.
Really, too much of anything can harm you, so whatever you drink, do it in moderation.