Are Flavored Waters the Same as Soft Drinks?

by Shereen Jegtvig

When I walk through the beverage aisle at the grocery store, it looks like about one-quarter of the shelf space is devoted to bottles of water.  Quite a change from when I was a kid.  Back then there were a few gallon jugs of distilled water, and the only reason my mom bought those was for use in the iron – we didn’t drink it.

Getting enough fluids every day is important and the bottled-water industry has done a great job pushing their products.  They’re convenient, possibly better than some tap water, but they still taste like water and not everyone likes the taste of water.  So between the bottles of water and soda, you’ll see several brands of flavored water.  If water is good for you flavored water must be good too.  But isn’t that the same as a soft drink?

To be truthful, some flavored waters are not much different from soft drinks.  There are a few flavored waters that contains just a touch of fruit juice for no added calories, but they aren’t always so easy to find.  Some flavored waters have added sugar or high fructose corn syrup.  Avoid these flavored waters if you don’t want the extra calories.  And other flavored waters have no calories, but they use artificial sweeteners.  A few flavored waters contain fruit juice, which adds some calories, but also a bit of potassium or other nutrients.  A good choice if you like fruit juice, but want fewer calories.

If you want flavored water, be sure to look at the label to see what you’re getting along with your water.  Or use our FoodEssentials tool – take a look at all the flavored waters that contain high fructose corn syrup.  Flavored waters? Look like soft drinks to me.

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