My clients always ask me what I drink so I thought it would be helpful if I just created a blog post with my top 5 healthy drinks. Remember, what you drink is just as important as what you eat!

Top 5 Healthy Drinks

(1) Water. I mean come on, it has to be water, right? Water is essential for not just living, but being healthy. But it can’t just be any water. It has to be clean water. No, tap water is not clean water no matter what your city might tell you. Just because it’s cleared by the EPA doesn’t mean that it’s healthy. In fact, many studies have shown that there is a number of toxic chemicals, heavy metals, pesticides, and other contaminants in tap water. I went into more detail about this in my “Is Your Drinking Water Poisoning You?” blog post.

What type of water is good to drink? My number one choice is water from a reverse osmosis system. When we moved into our new house in Texas, the first thing I did was install an under sink reverse osmosis system because of how poor the quality of water is in Texas. They can be quite pricy, but it’s well worth it. I believe mine cost around $500 and I got it from ThePerfectWater.com. However, it’s probably right around the same amount you would spend purchasing bottled water each year, except RO water is much better. Most RO systems remove 98% of contaminants, but they also remove important minerals as well. The RO system I got adds minerals back in during the filtration process. If you get an RO system that doesn’t add the minerals back in, a pinch of Himalayan salt in your water should do the trick.

If you absolutely cannot afford an under sink RO system, a normal fridge filter or pitcher filter system is fine, too. However, you have to make sure you change the filters regularly. In the end, though, they aren’t going to remove nearly the amount of toxins an RO system will.

(2) Organic Kombucha. Kom-what? Don’t worry, I didn’t know what it was either until I started digging into the importance of healthy gut bacteria, AKA probiotics, when I was diagnosed with Lyme Disease. I learned quickly that a strong immune system stems from the gut. We have an antibiotic problem. Doctors prescribe antibiotics anymore like they are handing out candy. Most people don’t realize that antibiotics not only destroy bad bacteria in the body, but ALL bacteria, including the good kind that is crucial for a strong immune system. Kombucha is a fermented tea that is loaded with healthy bacteria. After I finished up my round of antibiotics for my disease, I started drinking kombucha daily. There are a few options when it comes to kombucha. We purchase our kombucha from our local Whole Foods store and normally get the Synergy brand. However, you can easily make it as well. We haven’t done so yet, but we are planning on doing so eventually. A simple Google search will teach you how. And just a warning, the floating stuff at the bottom of the bottle is normal! Just drink it up.

(3) Organic Bone Broth. Dealing with Lyme Disease taught me a lot about what it means to truly be healthy. Not only did I come across the importance of drinking (or eating) fermented foods, I learned about the incredible benefits of drinking bone broth. First of all, what is bone broth? Basically, the bones, tendons, feet, and ligaments of animals are boiled and then simmered over a few days. The process draws out glutamine, collagen, proline, and glycine. Bone broth also contains phosphorous, calcium, magnesium, and other important minerals. The benefits of bone broth include strengthening the gut lining (helping leaky gut syndrome), reducing inflammation, strengthening the immune system, and detoxification. I normally drink bone broth in the evening once or twice a week. I do have to warn you, though, more store bought bone broths aren’t actually real bone broth. To get the real stuff, you have to either make it yourself or go to your local organic grocery store.

(4) Green Tea. Green tea comes in at #4 on my list of top 5 healthy drinks. Green tea is one of those drinks you can pretty much find anywhere. Hell, even Starbucks carries green tea. Why is it so healthy? It contains polyphenols and antioxidants. What are the benefits? Lots of them. Drinking it reduces the risk of heart disease, reduces cholesterol and inflammation, improves memory and bone density.

(5) Coconut Water. I’m a huge coconut anything fan. Coconut oil, coconut water, coconut rum. Wait, what? Yeah, I enjoy some coconut rum every once in a while. But coconut water is an excellent drink that has multiple benefits. Last month we were down in St. Lucia and they gave us coconut water every single day. They literally chopped off the top of the coconut, put a straw in it, and gave it to all the people around the pool. Coconut water is LOADED with vitamins and minerals, such as potassium and sodium. It has also been shown to contain antimicobrial properties. It tends to be loaded with antioxidants as well, which help reduce free radicals and toxins in the body.

So there you have it, my top 5 healthy drinks! Next time you’re at the store and tempted to grab soda, choose one or all of these instead. Your body will thank you. Questions? Feel free to reach out to me at [email protected], message me on Facebook, or DM me on IG! (@TheJoshSpencer)