What are you drinking? Real scoop on H2O

April 2007

WHAT ARE
YOU DRINKING?
The Real Scoop On H2O
By Leah Jayasanker

Whether the barometer outside is sizzling or your pipes are frozen solid, water is certainly a hot commodity. A trend that brings in billions of dollars annually (and growing) is bottled water. Over the last two year’s Americans consumed more bottled water annually than any other beverage (excluding carbonated soft drinks). From L.A. to New York, the hype on bottled water is reaching reveling heights. Either Michael Jackson is bathing in Evian or Madonna is electing where to stay based on who stocks her preferred bottle of choice (Voss). I say order up a menu for water rather than wine.

If your planning to frequent New York city’s Battery Park Ritz Carlton you’ll be in a for a surprise. Forget the spa when you can have your own water sommelier. Yep, that’s right-a sommelier for bottled water. Diners can sample a surplus of water via an extensive list. And if the brand you fancy is missing, the Ritz will command your preference within 24 hours. Shall we say luxury at its finest.

Europeans are no strangers to bottled water. Collete’s ultra chic store spoils its clientele with their very own water bar that serves over 60 different types of H20. For some 60 is grandiose, however, lets talk numbers. More than 500 companies across the United States bottle water, thus producing more than 1000 different consumer brands. Import wise hundreds more exist, many of which include carbonated and mineral types. Across the globe, India carries over 200 bottled brands, of which 80 percent are local.

Nestle, known for its dominance in European packaged-foods, controls seventy brands of water worldwide, some of which include; Perrier, San Pellegrino, Vittel, Zephyrhills, and Poland Spring. Groupe Danone also partakes in producing many brands worldwide, including the well-known Evian. And we cannot forget the soft-drink companies who also contribute with PepsiCo's Aquafina and Coca-Cola's Dasani.

Water over wine is easier to store for freshness and less difficult to acquire via retail (including luxury brands). Instead of raising the price on wine double the retail on water. A bottle of Evian sold at a restaurant averages an easy $25. This is a clear 300% markup. Don’t be surprised if your tab reads $50 for water– which you never ordered or barely even consumed. Due to an increasing number of social and economic factors the bottle water lifestyle is more accepted. In other words, buying bottled water has become a more ‘mainstream’ activity in our lives. It is okay to spend three to five dollars on a bottle of water at the airport or a gas station.

The Best Bottles

Every year water enthusiasts congregate in West Virginia at the Berkeley Springs International Water Tasting to sample over one hundred waters from around the globe at the largest competition in the world. For three days judges rate contestants’ products on taste (clean and crisp), aroma (lack there of), aftertaste (leave you desiring more) and several other qualities. So what makes bottled water desirable and how does it differ from tap? The two key principles that distinguish what’s consumed are taste and consistency in quality.

With so many choices how does a consumer decide what’s first-rate. Here’s a little insight on what to look for when selecting the finest and purest H20.

Every bottle of water contains quality because it’s inspected and monitored by private and governmental laboratories. Tap water varies with consistency as it comes from lakes and rivers, a source which many times fail to meet the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency’s minimum standards of quality. Taste is the other main reason people prefer bottled water versus tap. Chlorine is used to disinfect tap and it can leave an aftertaste and lead to health issues. Some bottlers use ozone, a form of supercharged oxygen, and/or ultraviolet light to disinfect the final product, both of which leave no chemical residue (trace) or taste. Many times labels indicate the water is drinking or purified, which is essentially processed tap water. To avoid getting tap water in a bottle focus on labels that read natural, mineral or spring indicating FDA regulations are in place and the source is actually natural.

The latest craze available in bottled water is HINT (24 15 oz. bottles at $44, drinkhint.com ), pure water, accented with a hint of natural flavor, that contains no sugar or artificial sweeteners.

Let’s Talk Type (glossary of water) *

Artesian Water or Artesian Well Water
Bottled water that comes from a well in a confined aquifer (a water-bearing underground layer of rock or sand).

Distilled Water
Basically this is water turned into steam, or condensed into pure water. Commonly used in the manufacturing of pharmaceutical and liquid dry prescriptions.

Fluoridated Water
This refers to water that contains fluoride determined by the Federal Regulations. Both artesian and spring are natural sources of fluoride.

Mineral Water
This is water that carries regular and trace elements. It comes from a geologically and physically protected underground resource. According to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), no less than 250 parts per million (ppm) total dissolved solids (TDS) can be present.

Purified Water
Also known as demineralized water. Reverse osmosis, distillation and/ or deionization, are the suitable processes for making water ‘purified.’

Sparkling Water
In a nutshell, water with carbon dioxide.

Spring Water
Water that must be collected at the spring or through a borehole tapping underground.

Sterile Water
Better known as sterilized water. According to the United States PharMacPPCopoeia, water is not sterile unless it meets the "Sterility Tests".

Well Water
Tapping the water of an aquifer in which water comes from a hole, drilled, bored or otherwise constructed in the ground.

Fast Facts *

The average human body contains 65% of water.

The world is made up of 70% water.

Next to oxygen water is the second most vital element for your body. You can survive a month without food but only a mere five to seven days without water.

After a workout your body needs two cups of water for each pound lost.

For every hour you fly on a plane you should replenish your body with eight ounces of water.

For every alcoholic or caffinated beverage you consume your body should consume eight ounces of water.

* Bottled Water Web & International Bottled Water Association