When did sodas, teas, and tonics become medicine?

Beverages are trying to do the most. Consumers are drinking it up. vox.com/culture CULTURE   Functional beverages aren’t a new phenomenon: We’ve been seeking [coffee’s]( buzz since at least the 15th century and deploying [tea’s]( medicinal properties for millennia, and our appreciation for all the effects of [alcohol]( may [predate the modern jawline](. But there’s something different about the near-infinite array of drinks on contemporary shelves that promise to do very specific things for our skin, sleep, gut, mood, and immune systems. The variety of functional beverages available to today’s consumers is immense, and also immensely profitable. Why do we even want this stuff? The answer has a lot to do with the growing sense that we can use food as we use medicine — to modify health. A product’s pledge to even briefly put us in the driver’s seat is particularly powerful when so many other parts of our world feel wildly out of our control. For consumers hoping to reclaim some agency, it’s no longer enough for their beverages to just be wet. —[Keren Landman, MD](//link.vox.com/click/36791560.2462/aHR0cHM6Ly94LmNvbS9tZWxpbmRhZmFrdWFkZT91ZWlkPTNhNTA3ZmY1ZmYzNzViYTNjYWU5MjFkMzUzMTNiN2Nk/6094319a7418d377a33af3d5Cd214e67d//link.vox.com/click/36791560.2462/aHR0cHM6Ly90d2l0dGVyLmNvbS9hbGFubmE_dWVpZD0zYTUwN2ZmNWZmMzc1YmEzY2FlOTIxZDM1MzEzYjdjZA/6094319a7418d377a33af3d5C6f099ee3, senior reporter P.S. [Explain It to Me]( is Vox’s new franchise focused on answering your questions. The newsletter tackles an audience question each week, answered by different journalists from the Vox newsroom. Sign up [here](. When did sodas, teas, and tonics become medicine? [an illustration of a woman on shelf next to many energy drinks with faces ]( Victoria Stampfer for Vox When several Olipop species bobbed at me from an ice tub during a recent conference lunch break, I was unable to resist their allure. The strawberry-vanilla variety featured a spare, wholesome graphic, and I was taken in by its promise to “support digestion”: Each can contains about [6 grams]( of dietary fiber, much of it in the form of the natural compound inulin. What could be bad? I chugged one and shoved another in my bag, and when I retreated to my hotel room two hours later — epically, irredeemably, and unsociably gassy — I had my answer. Although it’s good I was alone, I’m not actually alone. Neither is Olipop. [Consumer demand for drinks that offer added health benefits — known as functional beverages — is booming](, and manufacturers are giving us what we demand. Olipop is just one of a growing group of “prebiotic” sodas, which claim to give a boost to the good bacteria in your gut microbiome. And prebiotic sodas are themselves just one of a cascade of these so-called functional beverages that are taking up increasing space in the global drink aisle. Worldwide, the market for these products exceeds [$150 billion](, and it’s expected to top $200 billion in the next 4 years, with millennials twice as likely to consume them as any other age group in 2023. The proliferation of drinks in this category peaked [just before the pandemic](, but [consumer demand]( for them has been on the rise ever since, jumping more than 50 percent in the US since 2020. Wanting our beverages to do more than just quench our thirst isn’t a new phenomenon (see also: coffee; booze; whatever people sipped from the Holy Grail). But [the list of wishes we’re asking our elixirs to grant is longer and includes more fantasy than ever before]( (except for maybe the Holy Grail). We’re not just hoping to be woken up or mellowed out — we’re asking to have glowier skin (SkinTē, Tru, Aura); stronger immunity (Kin Euphorics, Health-Ade, Bolthouse Farms); dreamier sleep (Som, Neuro, Elements of Balance); smoother digestion (Olipop, Poppi, Sunwink); keener focus (MUD\WTR, Odyssey, Focus); calmer dispositions (Recess, Moment, Tranquini); brighter moods (Juni, Kowa, Aplos); and lots more energy (Celsius, Red Bull, Gorgie.). Increasingly, when brands tell us they can sell us these things, we’re ready to open up our wallets. [Read the full story »]( Diddy’s arrest — and the allegations against him — explained The rapper’s indictment on sex trafficking and other charges is the latest in a months-long saga of sexual assault and violence allegations. [Read the full story »]( This is what admissions officers really want to read in college essays The important thing is not to overthink it. 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