Tsss—a fizzle from a muted red can lingers in the front of an English classroom. Next to a large smartboard featuring rigorous literature coursework sits teacher Ruth Greene, opening a can of her beloved beverage: Dr. Zevia.
English teacher Ruth Greene has been an avid Zevia drinker for the past 12 years. After working with a nutritionist, she transitioned from drinking Diet Coke to Zevia. Since then, Greene is now known around campus for her love for the carbonated drink.
“It is my treat and my caffeine source,” she said.
Zevia is a caffeinated soft drink that is promoted for having health benefits. It is often marketed as being a healthier alternative to different soda brands.
“Drinking soda in general is not really that healthy, but if you choose to, drinking Dr. Zevia is better.”
After experimenting with different Zevia flavors, Greene has quickly realized that Dr. Zevia is her favorite flavor. Students and teachers have given her cans of Dr. Zevia over the years as gifts. Greene has also donated her cans to science teachers for experiments and her cans were once used to buy supplemental items for the school band.
However, throughout her years of teaching, Greene has experienced ridicule for her consumption of Zevias.
“Every year, they make fun of me for drinking it,” she said, “I’ve had some kids steal them out of my stash.”
Eight years ago, a student posted online that they stole one of Greene’s Dr. Zevias, claiming that it was “nasty”.
“When I was drinking Diet Coke when I first came to Venice, I had a bunch of students photoshop Shakespeare holding a bottle of Diet Coke,” she said.
“They put it as a screensaver on all of the computers in the room.”
Zevia is Greene’s main source of caffeine because she strongly dislikes the taste of coffee, “I think it tastes horrible and disgusting,” she said.
A disdain for coffee runs strongly through the Greene family genes, with her and her sister disliking coffee and relying on Dr. Zevias and Dr. Pepper Zero for caffeine.
Zevia is based in Los Angeles and Greene has contacted the brand before to address issues with bad batches. At one instance, Greene had discovered that two different Zevia flavors accidentally spilled together into one batch.
“They were astounded that I had figured out that it was Dr. Zevia mixed with Ginger Root Beer,” she said.
“I don’t think the guy believed it.”
Though she loves Zevia, she doesn’t think that students should become over reliant on sodas for energy. She also believes that it’s important to indulge in healthier alternatives and be careful with consuming sugar.
“I advise everybody to be really careful about what they’re putting in their body and start noticing how they react when they eat food or drinks or anything else for that matter.”
