8 ms·

One of the more interesting comments in the article is in regards to the social stigma of only consuming water during meals - people who have quit alcohol for v

• chrishacken 9y ago
  Interesting theory. I think that's just a mental game though; I think of myself as "healthy" when I order water when we're out. Most of my friends are also healthy individuals and will also order water though, so maybe it's dependent on who your "friends" are.
  • dvfjsdhgfv 9y ago
    That's my thought, too. When I order water, it's almost like a declaration of a lifestyle - I choose to be fit, to stay healthy, and not to drink any of the substances that are an obstacle on my way. I guess it's a question of company. If most of your friends order water, you feel a bit guilty ordering something less healthy.
    • jcburke 9y ago
      I think that might be why it bothers people who some people do drink when you order water: they see it as you somehow saying that you're better than them by declaring your health lifestyle
      • mlnhd 9y ago
        No one can make them feel inferior without their consent. They are just projecting their own insecurities.
• GiorgioG 9y ago
  Just order the most expensive steak on the menu. Problem solved.
• danhak 9y ago
  Just a heads up that most tonic water is actually loaded with sugar and calories--nearly as much as soda! I was pretty surprised when I'd realized this--G&T's had been my go-to "low-cal" cocktail for quite a while. Ordering a club soda w/ lemon or lime however is a great move when avoiding alcohol in a social setting.
  • zitterbewegung 9y ago
    Avoiding alcohol is easy as long as no one pushes you to drink every five minutes when you obviously want to only drinking water. Drinking culture is extremely annoying.
  • ehutch79 9y ago
    You don't actually drink your decoy drink. You just hold it and maybe sip a tiny bit to make it look like you're drinking so people leave you alone.
    • paulsutter 9y ago
      A friend of mine adds salt to his glass of wine, to ensure that his decoy drink lasts a very long time.
  • aaachilless 9y ago
    I'm not sure if you meant to imply the contrary, but club soda isn't the same as tonic water--club soda doesn't have sugar added. So if you're yet to find a replacement for your gin and tonics, you could try out vodka sodas :)
• wastedhours 9y ago
  The non-alcoholic "evening out" drinks market is actually one of the fastest growing at the moment. Even to the extent that Diageo's investment arm recently ran a competition to find the best up and coming non-alc drinks.
• derekp7 9y ago
  I order water with my meals, because I want to taste the food. About the only food that is good with a soda (or beer) is pizza.
  • bdamm 9y ago
    And only low-quality pizza at that.
  • matwood 9y ago
    > I order water with my meals, because I want to taste the food. A lot of food tastes are enhanced with alcohol like wine.
  • donpdonp 9y ago
    same here, mostly because its a easy way to cut out a significant source of sugar.
  • tigershark 9y ago
    I can't imagine what kind of food you like to eat then. The food-wine (or beer) pairing is an integral part of a lot of cuisines. But I can understand that it may be a very alien concept if you like to eat Mac Donald burgers or American pizzas.
    • derekp7 9y ago
      I can understand wine or beer -- I was mostly referring to water instead of a sugary soda. But pairing an appropriate wine with seafood or a good steak does enhance the experience. However, in my case, my schedule (and budget, and family factors) keep me from restaurants, except for an occasional lunch out at work. And then alcohol is verboten if I'm going back to work afterwards.
• koolba 9y ago
  Pro tip: Club soda with a lime looks just like a vodka soda. Works great when you're trying to keep a clear head at a party full of heavy drinkers too. Just make sure to take slow sips so that people don't catch you with an empty glass.
  • stepvhen 9y ago
    Club soda with anything, syrups, bitters, citrus, is the secret for a happier sober life. not to mention is usually free in bars. (bitters are technically alcoholic, so that is a personal choice)
    • mmmpop 9y ago
      Will seriously give this a shot! Thanks for the tip.
      • eyan 9y ago
        I see what you did there. :)
      • seanp2k2 9y ago
        Ginger beer (as in fancy ginger ale) + lime juice + bitters, well-iced, is quite tasty. It's a Moscow mule without the vodka. You can mess with adding tonic water if you miss the vodka taste. A splash of Luxardo syrup, cherry juice, blueberry purée, of any number of other little flourishes (lychee is notably great, tumeric is interesting) can make it extra special. I drink occasionally but I also enjoy these NA concoctions. It helps that I don't have friends who make it weird for anyone to not drink alcohol when we're out or at parties.
        • Myrmornis 9y ago
          Bitters (e.g. Angostura) is typically alcoholic though isn't it?
          • brianwawok 9y ago
• pdog 9y ago
  > One of the more interesting comments in the article is in regards to the social stigma of only consuming water during meals - people who have quit alcohol for various reasons have faced the same stigma when going out with friends. That stigma is entirely self-perception. No one cares or even notices what anyone else drinking.
  • jessriedel 9y ago
    This is definitely false. I've had multiple women tell me the dominant thing they noticed on a first date was that I didn't order a drink. Likewise, many people can attest that the social encouragement to get everyone drinking in group situations is very explicit. Shared consumption of intoxicating substances is closely monitored by everyone in the group, and is not same thing as the true fact that no one cares whether you have a brown or black belt.
    • exhilaration 9y ago
      I overheard one of my male co-workers telling a female co-worker that he doesn't drink. Her reaction was a literal "eww". That's when I learned that - much like smokers - drinkers were a tribe.
      • seanp2k2 9y ago
        Were? Smoking isn't very cool anymore, but drinking is still pretty cool. It's losing popularity in some circles, but in pop culture, rappers are still in the club ordering bottles, and not of Voss. Weed has a big chance to shake up the alcohol industry, because you can smoke like a Cummins 12-valve until you pass out, then feel fine the next morning. You also don't die if you have too much to smoke. It does have to do some work to get out of the goofy / high schooler / college bro image, but I think they can make it classy (esp stuff like vape pens...the whole blow torch + dabber + water pipe thing has pretty limited appeal because it's too involved and conspicuous). Coming soon to a state near you.
        • dagw 9y ago
• xorbyte 9y ago
  Not all tonic water is low cal, a 350 mL bottle can be 100 calories from the 30g of sugar added.
• wutbrodo 9y ago
  > One of the more interesting comments in the article is in regards to the social stigma of only consuming water during meals Wow this is insane. The culture I grew up in is famously health-friendly, so I've never come across this, but it sounds horrible. I started drinking only water around high school, and the only reaction I ever got was "good for you, I wish I had that habit". > Because something like this still costs money, it helps convince the purchaser that they aren't appearing to be "cheap" by only ordering water. Interesting, you think that appearing cheap is behind the stigma? I would've guessed it would be something along the lines of anticipated reproach.
  • jcburke 9y ago
    Ya, I think it's more that people assume that if you choose not to drink, you look down on people who do drink, and especially in one-on-one settings that makes them feel uncomfortable drinking around you
    • maccard 9y ago
      Reading the comments in this thread, can you blame people?
    • wutbrodo 9y ago
      Ah yes, the concept of "anticipated reproach", where seeing someone do something that you deep down know you should do triggers a defense mechanism that makes you dislike them. It's pretty easy to spot in people, and I go out of my way to avoid people that are that morally and intellectually stunted, so that may contribute to me seeing less of this reaction.
• pwenzel 9y ago
  On the alcoholic drinks front: In Minneapolis there are a number of places where you can buy kombucha on tap, even getting a growler to take home. Lately I've been drinking a glass of that in the evening instead of my standard beer. It seriously makes a difference in my overall well being, especially now that I'm in my 30s and really feel the toll on my body when I drink.
• dalacv 9y ago
  no-calorie tonic? Hmmm.
  • dagw 9y ago
    It exists, using artificial sweetener instead like diet soda.
• stevewillows 9y ago
  I quit alcohol a few years ago. I wasn't an alcoholic or anything of the sort --- I just decided to stop. For social things along the lines of house parties, I'll bring my own cup. I bought a set of vintage tupperware cups, and, to my surprise, they're always a hit. Its silly, but it helps. I don't make a show of drinking water, and most people assume the cup is filled with beer. When people do ask what I'm drinking, and I tell them that its just water, my assumption is that their assumption is that I was / am an alcoholic... sometimes I let it slide, other times I will clarify. Over these past few years I've moved away from everything but one cup of coffee per day, and about 2 - 3 litres of water. Regarding the stigma, it may be a regional thing (Vancouver), but most people don't care about what I order at a restaurant or drink at a social function. The strangest look I'll get is when I order room temperature tap water... but that's understandable :) Since moving away from everything else, I've found that I rarely crave sugar --- and when I do, everything is far too sweet for me. I used to have a notorious sweet-tooth, but moving away has cured me of that. I also can't handle fizzy things anymore, which was also surprising.
  • Kluny 9y ago
    > Regarding the stigma, it may be a regional thing (Vancouver), but most people don't care about what I order at a restaurant or drink at a social function. The strangest look I'll get is when I order room temperature tap water... but that's understandable :) I think you might be right about that (Victorian here). No one ever cared what I was drinking in Victoria. Now that I'm in Europe it seems like people drink soda, beer or wine with every meal, even at home and they get weird when I ask for water. Like, they'll try to push soda or beer on me to the point where it gets uncomfortable if I say no. I'm still trying to figure a way to navigate around this, even as I slowly become acclimatized to drinking way more sugar and alcohol than I'm happy with.
    • stevewillows 9y ago
      Where you are, is the tap water any good? I often wonder if that is a major contributing factor.
      • 9y ago
• bariswheel 9y ago
  Topo Chico is the bees knees.
• JohnBooty 9y ago
  On behalf of drinkers, I apologize for the that a lot of drinkers act this way. Personally I really don't care what anybody else consumes and I certainly don't look down on people for not drinking. People have lots of good reasons to abstain from drinking, and zero of those reasons are my business (unless they want to share)
  • 52-6F-62 9y ago
    I agree here. -- I actually drink beer quite regularly, and whiskey when I am more in the mood (and in the money). (see: Canadian) That said I rarely drink when I'm out with coworker, or I'll limit myself to a beer or two. I've never seen a real hard time from anybody, but I'm also a stubborn person when I feel the need to be. I wouldn't dream of giving anybody a hard time about not drinking and certainly would never look down on anybody for not partaking. I think my only hope is that this view is reciprocated. I've found drinkers can just as often be condescended to for the indulgence -- and unless one really cuts loose and acts like an idiot, I think it's unwarranted and in poor taste... that it can be seen as an act of lower intelligence, or whatever you want.
• bb611 9y ago
  I think your perception is stronger than the actual social effect - people who object to others not drinking are loud, but in my experience very much the minority.