Find out if soda is gluten-free, what it’s made from, and which brands are safe for a gluten-free diet.
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If you have been into any restaurant, grocery store, or cafe in your entire life, you’ve seen soda on a menu or store shelf I’m sure. Soda, pop, or soft drink – whatever you choose to call it, is a popular beverage that many folks enjoy drinking on occasion or regularly.
Soda has made its way into our culture (at least American culture) at every checkstand in the grocery store, movie theaters, gas station, restaurant menu, and even vending machines outside of your favorite big box stores.
If you follow a gluten-free diet or are just getting started with one, you may have wondered how this drink will fit in. Can you drink soda on a gluten-free diet? Is there gluten in some soda and not others?
In this post, we’re going to talk about what soda is, what it’s made from, and if it’s generally considered gluten-free. We’ll also go over a long list of gluten-free soda options for you to choose from, and answer some questions about popular soda brands.
If you enjoy drinking soda often or even occasionally and are trying to stick with a gluten-free diet, this post will give you some answers you’ve been looking for!
What is soda?
Soda is a common word used to describe carbonated water mixed with sweeteners and flavorings. This popular beverage, also known as a “soft drink” or “pop” is front and center at almost any restaurant, convenience store, grocery store, and cafe you walk into. It’s almost expected that soda is on the menu in some form just about everywhere you go in the United States.
This sweet drink is bubbly and refreshing for many folks who enjoy it. Despite its popularity, it doesn’t have a great reputation. With loads of sugar or sugar alcohols, soda has been linked to plenty of health conditions like diabetes, weight gain, heart disease, kidney disease, and gout.
While I’m not here to tell you what to do by any means, enjoying soda in moderation is a good idea for your overall health and you might consider only drinking it once in a while to keep your body in good shape for the long and short term.
What is soda made from?
Soda is made from just a few ingredients, though it will vary based on the brand and flavor of what you’re drinking. The most common ingredients in soda are carbonated water, high fructose corn syrup (sugar), caffeine, caramel color, citric acid, natural flavors, phosphoric acid, and carbon dioxide.
Different flavors of soda may have different additional ingredients and varying amounts of these other ingredients that I’ve just listed.
What is gluten?
Gluten is a protein found in most wheat products, and acts as the “glue” that helps to hold wheat, barley, kamut, spelt, farro, durum, bulgur, rye, and semolina together to maintain their shape.
Gluten is naturally occurring, and therefore is impossible to strip away from the grain. If a grain naturally has gluten in it, there’s no way to make that food gluten-free.
Is soda gluten-free?
The most common brands and flavors of soda that you’re likely to find in stores and restaurants in the United States (and North America as a whole) are gluten-free. This is because the ingredients that are added to soda and soft drinks do not contain any ingredients from gluten-containing grains.
As indicated by Healthline, generic or store-brand varieties of popular sodas could potentially contain gluten as they use a different set of ingredients than the major soda manufacturers like Coca-Cola, Pepsi, and Dr Pepper.
Gluten-free soda brands
Since most soda and soft drink brands don’t contain any gluten ingredients, I thought it would be helpful to list off some popular brands that we know for sure are safe for a gluten-free diet.
This list can help you make some informed decisions next time you’re ordering at a restaurant or picking up drinks for a barbecue or get together.
7UP
- Original 7UP
- 7UP Zero Sugar
- 7UP Cherry Zero Sugar
- Cherry 7UP
A&W Root Beer
- A&W Root Beer
- A&W Zero Sugar Root Beer
- A&W Cream Soda
- A&W Zero Sugar Cream Soda
Read on: Is root beer gluten-free?
Barq’s
- Root Beer
- Diet Root Beer
- Creme Soda
- Red Creme Soda
Coca-Cola
- Coca-Cola
- Caffeine Free Coca-Cola
- Coke Zero Sugar
- Caffeine Free Coke Zero Sugar
- Coca-Cola Cherry Vanilla Zero Sugar
- Coca-Cola Cherry Zero Sugar
- Coca-Cola Vanilla Zero Sugar
- Coca-Cola Cherry
- Coca-Cola Cherry Vanilla
- Coca-Cola George Peach
- Coca-Cola California Raspberry
- Coca-Cola with Coffee Mocha
- Coca-Cola with Coffee Vanilla
- Coca-Cola with Coffee Dark Blend
- Coca-Cola with Coffee Caramel
- Coca-Cola with Coffee Vanilla Zero Sugar
- Coca-Cola Starlight
Read on: Is Coke gluten-free?
Read on: Is Diet Coke gluten-free?
Dr Pepper
- Dr. Pepper
- Dr. Pepper & Cream Soda
- Dr. Pepper Cherry
- Dr. Pepper Zero Sugar
- Dr. Pepper & Cream Soda Zero Sugar
- Dr. Pepper Cherry Zero Sugar
- Diet Dr. Pepper
- Caffeine Free Dr. Pepper
- Dr. Pepper Cherry Vanilla
- Diet Dr. Pepper Cherry Vanilla
- Diet Dr. Pepper Caffeine Free
- Dr. Pepper Made with Sugar
Fanta
- Fanta Pina Colada
- Fanta Orange
- Fanta Pineapple
- Fanta Strawberry
- Fanta Grape
- Fanta Peach
- Fanta Fruit Punch
- Fanta Zero Sugar Orange
- Fanta Berry
Fresca
- Fresca Original Citrus
- Fresca Peach Citrus
- Fresca Black Cherry Citrus
Jarritos
- Mandarin
- Pineapple
- Fruit Punch
- Grapefruit
- Guava
- Passion Fruit
- Strawberry
- Tamarind
- Lime
- Jamaica
- Mexican Cola
- Watermelon
- Mango
Jones Soda
- Berry Lemonade
- Blue Bubblegum
- Cream Soda
- Diet Black Cherry
- Diet Cola
- Fufu Berry
- Green Apple
- Lemon Lime
- Orange & Cream
- Root Beer
- Strawberry Lime
- Watermelon
- Warheads Extreme Sour Black Cherry
- Pineapple Cream Soda
LaCroix
This isn’t exactly soda, but lots of folks replace their soda consumption with seltzer water these days, so it seemed worthwhile to include it.
- Beach Plum
- Guava Sao Paulo
- Black Razzberry
- Limoncello
- Pasteque (Watermelon)
- Hi-Biscus!
- Key Lime
- Tangerine
- Apricot
- Mango
- Passionfruit
- Coconut
- Pamplemousse
- Peach-Pear
- Verry
- Razz-Cranberry
- Orange
- Lemon
- Lime
- Pure
- Mure Pepino
- Kiwi Sandia
- Melon Pomelo
- Cerise Lemon
- Pomme Baya
- Pina Fraise
- La Cola
- Coconut Cola
- Coffea Exotica
- Cubana
Mello Yello
- Mello Yello
- Mello Yello Zero
Sierra Mist
- Sierra Mist
- Sierra Mist Zero Sugar
Mountain Dew
- Mountain Dew
- Major Melon Zero Sugar
- Major Melon
- Code Red
- Live Wire
- Mountain Dew Voltage
Mug Root Beer
- Mug Root Beer
- Mug Cream Root Beer
Pepsi
- Pepsi
- Pepsi Zero Sugar
- Diet Pepsi
- Pepsi Mango
- Pepsi Zero Sugar Mango
- Pepsi Wild Cherry
- Diet Pepsi Wild Cherry
- Pepsi Zero Sugar Wild Cherry
- Pepsi Real Sugar
- Pepsi Caffeine Free
- Diet Pepsi Caffeine Free
Pibb
- Pibb Xtra
- Pibb Zero
Schweppes
- Original Sparkling Water
- Orange Sparkling Water
- Pomegranate Sparkling Water
- Cranberry Lime Sparkling Water
- Lime Lime Sparkling Water
- Raspberry Lime Sparkling Water
- Pink Grapefruit Sparkling Water
- Black Cherry Sparkling Water
- Ginger Ale
- Diet Ginger Ale
- Dark Ginger Ale
- Raspberry Ginger Ale
- Diet Raspberry Ginger Ale
- Dry Grape Ginger Ale
- Black Cherry Ginger Ale
- Club Soda
- Tonic Water
- Diet Tonic Water
Shasta
- Shasta Apple
- Shasta Black Cherry
- Shasta California Dreamin’
- Shasta Cherry Cola
- Shasta Club Soda
- Shasta Cola
- Shasta Creme Soda
- Diet Shasta Cola
- Diet Shasta Creme Soda
- Diet Dr Shasta
- Dr Shasta
- Diet Shasta Ginger
- Diet Shasta Grape
- Diet Shasta Grapefruit
- Diet Shasta Orange
- Diet Shasta Root Beer
- Diet Shasta Twist
- Shasta Fiesta Punch
- Shasta Ginger Ale
- Shasta Grape
- Shasta Zazz
- Shasta Kiwi Strawberry
- Shasta Mountain Rush
- Shasta Orange
- Shasta Pineapple
- Shasta Raspberry Creme
- Shasta Root Beer
- Shasta Strawberry
- Shasta Tiki Punch
- Shasta Tonic Water
- Shasta Twist
- Shasta Very Cherry Twist
Sprite
- Sprite Original
- Sprite Cherry
- Sprite Tropical Mix
- Sprite Lymonade
- Sprite Zero Original
- Sprite Zero Cherry
Squirt
- Squirt Grapefruit
- Squirt Zero Sugar Grapefruit
- Ruby Red Citrus Berry Squirt
Sunkist
- Sunkist Strawberry Lemonade
- Sunkist Berry Lemonade
- Sunkist Zero Sugar Orange
- Sunkist Orange
- Sunkist Grape
- Sunkist Strawberry
- Sunkist Cherry Limeade
- Sunkist Peach
- Sunkist Fruit Punch
Virgil’s
- Handcrafted Root Beer
- Handcrafted Vanilla Cream
- Handcrafted Black Cherry
- Handcrafted Orange
- Zero Sugar Grapefruit
- Zero Sugar Dr Better
- Zero Sugar Ginger Ale
- Zero Sugar Root Beer
- Zero Sugar Vanilla Cream
- Zero Sugar Black Cherry
- Zero Sugar Lemon Lime
- Zero Sugar Cola
- Zero Sugar Orange Cream
Are my favorite brands of soda gluten-free?
If you have a favorite soda, you may be wondering if the brand has made any official statement regarding gluten in their products. Find out with some of these Q&A’s below.
Is Coca-Cola gluten-free?
Though there is no official statement from the Coca-Cola brand, there are no gluten containing ingredients in this product. It is generally accepted amount the gluten-free community that it is a good option for folks on a gluten-free diet.
Read on: Is Coke gluten-free?
Is Pepsi gluten-free?
Yes! According to the Pepsi website, most of their products contain no gluten ingredients. Here are the words directly from their site:
“While our company does not currently make gluten-free label claims, with the exception of 1893 Original Cola none of the ingredients in our products are derived from grains or flours that have been linked to malabsorption syndrome associated with gluten sensitivity.”
Read on: Is Pepsi gluten-free?
Is 7UP gluten-free?
7UP contains no gluten containing ingredients and is considered gluten-free.
Is Sprite gluten-free?
There are no gluten ingredients in Sprite, and although the Coca-Cola brand doesn’t make any official statements about gluten in their products, it is generally accepted as a gluten-free beverage among the gluten-free community.
Read on: Is Sprite gluten-free?
Is Dr Pepper gluten-free?
According to the Dr Pepper website, “All of our products are considered gluten-free. Note: All products, which contain High Fructose Corn Syrup, may contain trace amounts of corn gluten. According to the Celiac Sprue Association, corn gluten is not harmful to people with Celiac Sprue disease.
Read on: Is Dr Pepper gluten-free?
Is there any soda that is not gluten-free?
The 1893 Original soda line from PepsiCo contains gluten ingredients and they share this on their website.
If you enjoy drinking soda once in a while and have been wondering if it was safe, I hope this post has given you the information you’ve been looking for. Of course, most soda is full of sugar or sugar alcohols that can lead to other health issues down the road. So moderation is encouraged on any diet.
If you loved this post, I hope that you’ll share it with your friends on Facebook and pin it for future reference on Pinterest.
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