Best powdered drink mix.

[Zeke]

Wife suffered a kidney stone. Other than sodium, lack of hydration is the culprit. She needs to drink more water. The problem is she doesn't like water. She will drink pre-brewed cold tea sold at the market. Not the best in my estimation because although she will avoid any sugars, she has to have sweet. Hence artificial sweeteners. She drinks very little coffee and when she does she uses Truvia. I'm OK with that considering the low quantity.

What she will drink is powdered drink mix like Chrystal Light. I'm not OK with that. The requirements are fairly simple: low sodium, sweetened with something not harmful and tastes good, think candy and sweet tooth. I would buy two types, with electrolytes and w/o. The electrolytes are recommended for bedtime.

At her age and condition, old and bad habits are not going anywhere but I can substitute something sweet that she will drink. What are some suggestions? We're not talking about drinks for active people here. Old and ill are the conditions I am dealing with.

[Scott Douglas]

Would she like something like Ocean Spray Cran-Grape drink?

[Seahawk]

I use Native Hydrate, tangerine flavor, from Native Path in the morning.

At lunch I use one 1000mg of EmergenC, Super Orange.

They work for me and there are different flavors. Recommendation only.

As always, YMMV.

[Zeke]

@Scott Douglas, I think fruit juices have to much fructose even though it is natural in that product. I forgot to mention she is pre-diabetic.

@Seahawk, thanks, I'll look into those. Sounds good.

Wait, Emergen-C says "no water needed." I think that misses the point. The Native Hydrate is more on point.

[Scott Douglas]

I hear ya on that @Zeke. I do dumb stuff like put honey on my Grapenuts every morning and have a glass of the Cran-Grape with a banana for breakfast. Keeps me going all morning. So far I haven't gained any weight back from what I lost when I had my surgery so I'm happy. I should drink a gallon of water more per day though.

[fanaudical]

I was also going to suggest Emergen-C. I buy the powdered drink mix - not sure how it could be "no water needed" unless you're looking at the gummies. I usually use 1/3 of packet per 12oz glass when I'm trying to hydrate. "Super Orange" is a better flavor than "raspberry". I usually find this at Costco.

[Seahawk]

Originally Posted by fanaudical

I was also going to suggest Emergen-C. I buy the powdered drink mix - not sure how it could be "no water needed" unless you're looking at the gummies. I usually use 1/3 of packet per 12oz glass when I'm trying to hydrate. "Super Orange" is a better flavor than "raspberry". I usually find this at Costco.

I should have been more clear: I use the powder as well, 1/2 a packet to 12oz.

Hydration is life.

[Arizona_928]

Pickle juice is my go to. I’m not sure if it applies to this case… ��*♂️

[flatbutt]

I make sun tea in a 1 gallon glass jar. Sweeten with honey if I'm in the mood. Or I'll add a bit of 100% unsweetened fruit juice. Yes it has fructose but I add only a small enough amount for flavor.

I don't do powders. Well other than hot chocolate.

[flipper35]

I am diabetic and avoid all artificial sweeteners like the plague. Then again, my main drink is black coffee or unsweetened iced tea. When I do drink "sugary" drinks my CGM says drinks with monkfruit, honey or maple syrup don't spike my sugar nearly as high as regular sugar and HFCS sends it through the roof.

For hydration Powerade works for me. It is slightly sweetened but not enough to be of concern since I am fairly active. One that was awesomely balanced was called Balance, but it is no longer available. Mixed with milk and it was like drinking raw cake batter for flavor, but it was high protein and kept sugar in check.

If she likes sweet, Flatbutt has a good drink for a pre-diabetic with the honey.

This is just what works for me and what I have found with a continuous glucose monitor. Sadly it told me just how bad fried foods are.

[Cajundaddy]

Zeke, I don't know if this will work for her-

I drink True Lemon lemonade which has 1g of sugar per packet and sweetened also with stevia. It is designed for 16oz per packet but I often mix 32oz per packet. It adds a fairly realistic flavor to water and I will drink it throughout the day to keep hydrated. No HFCS or weird aftertaste so it works for me. Several other flavors available but I think the lemonade is the best. Maybe worth a try.

https://www.target.com/p/true-lemon-original-lemonade-10pk-0-10oz/-/A-16744117

[Zeke]

I'm the one that is confused. One of the first hits on A said this in the listed descriptions on the side bar.

"Convenient Stick Packs are easy to use with no water needed just pour the crystals in your mouth and feel the pop to emerge your best on-the-go"

I guess I need scroll more.



I have to be very careful regarding the source of electrolytes. Sodium is totally out as that is the secondary cause of her stone. No more sodium.

[Zeke]

This is a nutrition label for one of the apparently scores of products from Emergen-C.



I might run that one by a nutritionist and see. I eat tortoise food and drink water out of the hose.

[craigster59]

When I used to do a lot of backpacking you'd get tired of drinking just straight water for days on end.

I always found a packet of Crystal Light added to my container made it a bit more palatable. I liked the lemonade flavor.

[Alan A]

My kids love an electrolyte drink - powdered - from skratch. You can get it from Amazon.

[juanbenae]

My buddy and his MIL both quit coffee a couple years or so ago and switched to black tea. They both developed kidney stones this past spring and their research indicated it was likely the tea.

Cranberry juice is good for stones, kidney and bladder.

[rwest]

Could you do an “infused” water? I think you just put different fruits or vegetables in water and let it sit in the fridge for awhile to get the flavors of the ingredients infused in the water.

[Bill Douglas]

My favourite for hydration and something nice to drink is coconut water. There is nothing artificial about it and comes in a handy tetra Pac. In fact I'm drinking some right now. It's why us boys in the south pacific are called coconuts.

Do a google of it and see what you think.

[porsche tech]

Liquid IV

[Seahawk]

There is also a lot of advice online concerning filtering tap water and the benefits of doing so.

We use the Brita Pitcher and it is cheap and effortless.