Are prebiotic sodas like Poppi healthy? Here's what dietitians say after lawsuit filed

Dietitians agree that Poppi, Olipop, Culture Pop and other prebiotic sodas are healthier options compared to traditional soft drinks, but they are weary about how beneficial these brightly colored canned alternatives really are due to their lack of effect on gut health.

Coke, Sprite and other common sodas have "tons of added sugar" and are "pretty calorically dense," which is the opposite of most prebiotic sodas on the market, Jessica Alfano, a clinical dietitian at Huntington Hospital in New York, told USA TODAY on Thursday during a phone interview.

"It's certainly a healthier alternative to soda for people who are looking for a bubbly (and) sweet drink and don't want to completely give up their soda intake," Alfano said about prebiotic sodas.

The only caveat to drinking prebiotic sodas is they won't likely provide much gut-healing benefits, according to Alfano.

"It's definitely not a product that's going to cure gut health just from drinking one or two cans a day," she said.

The limited amount of prebiotics in these sodas has caused at least one consumer to not only question the companies selling the drinks but even take legal action. A San Francisco woman named Kristin Cobbs filed a class action lawsuit earlier this month against the manufacturers of Poppi soda, claiming she wouldn't have bought the drinks if she knew they only contained two grams of prebiotic fiber.

Prebiotic vs. probiotic

Probiotics help provide fuel for good bacteria, Bonnie Taub-Dix, a registered dietitian nutritionist and creator of BetterThanDieting.com, told USA TODAY.

"Pre-, pro- and post-biotics are all so important, and yet the majority of us don’t get enough of any fiber," Taub-Dix said.

Probiotics are beneficial bacteria (human microflora), and prebiotics are food (typically high-fiber foods) for these bacteria, according to Mayo Clinic and Healthline. Postbiotics are "the waste left behind after (the) body digests both prebiotics and probiotics," Harvard Health said.

"(Probiotics) really just kind of make sure our gut has all the good bacteria we need in it," Alfano said. "There's a lot of diseases like irritable bowel syndrome that are linked to having poor gut health."

'It is soda at the end of the day'

Cobbs' lawsuit wants to hold Poppi accountable for not telling consumers the actual prebiotic content in their sodas, and while Alfano agrees that companies should disclose this information, she said people "need to just be a little bit more aware of when a food product sounds too good to be true."

"These prebiotic sodas might be promising better gut health, but I think we have to look at the product itself and realize it is a soda at the end of the day."

Alfano recommends getting the necessary prebiotics, which is upwards of 5 grams per day, from foods such as kimchi, sauerkraut, fermented pickles and fruits and vegetables. Kombucha and smoothies are liquid substitutes to prebiotic sodas, although they do tend to contain a high sugar content, she added.

"We want a variety of different foods in our diet," according to Alfano. "Eat the rainbow."

Are prebiotic sodas worth drinking?

Prebiotic sodas have their benefits, but just how beneficial they can be has not been determined due to a lot of questions remaining about prebiotics and probiotics, Alfano said.

"It's definitely a newer topic of interest," the clinical dietitian said about prebiotics. "Unfortunately, in the medical world, we haven't found a lot of answers and research about exactly how much probiotics and prebiotics we should be intaking."

Although the sodas contain prebiotics, some people might be sensitive to different types like chicory root, Jerusalem artichoke or inulin and could experience gas, bloating or gastrointestinal distress, according to Taub-Dix. Poppi sodas combine an unspecified amount of agave inulin, apple cider vinegar and fruit juice, according to the drink company's website.

Poppi and other companies not telling consumers the prebiotic content in their drinks is not them "trying to blatantly hide anything," but rather a "general lack of knowledge across all areas regarding what pro and prebiotics are and what the correct amount for us to consume is," according to Alfano.

In actuality, most people are not drinking soda and coffee "because they think it's going to cure all their gut health problems, they like it because it tastes good," Alfano said.