Drinking your eight glasses a day: the skinny on bottled water brands

We've all known for years about the recommended eight glasses of water a day. Many people gasp at the thought of downing eight glasses of water each and every day. “I don't like water! It tastes terrible!.” As a result, many people fudge, rationalizing that soda pop is mostly water anyway.

Others, who say they hate the taste of water, opt for bottled water brands, for a variety of reasons. “Now, this water tastes good!” Bottled water brands seem just a bit superior and surely must be healthier than that nemesis of our taste buds that flows from the faucet. So what's the skinny? Are bottled water brands better for you? Are they really so tasty?

The doctor's recommendation to drink water, not soda pop, is based on the fact that plain water contains nothing to interfere with the simple objective of keeping our bodies hydrated, flushing toxins through the body, keeping the kidneys working well and so on. Plain water also doesn't pose any digestive repercussions, such as burping at just the wrong moment. Yet, most of us ignore this common sense advice.

There have been a number of 'blind taste tests' conducted over the years, lining up unsuspecting consumers to take a few sips of unmarked water products and then give their opinion on which tasted best. The guy and gal on the street are offered several cups of water and then asked which rang their bells and which were just yucky. The results of these investigations have been consistent and surprising.

The people who swore up and down that plain tap water was unacceptable, most often named the municipal water 'best of class'. Some devotees of particular bottled water brands declared that very water to 'taste like toilet water'! (How do they know??!!)

Bottled water is undeniably big business. Americans spend billions of dollars on bottled water brands each year. Are we just fooling ourselves? Are we simply rebelling against all the healthiness being forced into our diets? Perhaps not. Let's look at the different categories of bottled water and then, you decide.

Water is regulated by the FDA, classified as a food product. Next time you shop for water at the grocery, read the labels. There's purified water, drinking water, natural water, naturally carbonated water, carbonated water, flavored water, tonic water, spring, sterile, distilled, artesian and artesian well water. Who would have thought? What's your favorite?

Purified, drinking, sterile and distilled waters are derived from municipal water sources and, according to FDA definitions, 'not substantially altered'. The bottom line here is that it's tap water. Here I thought these many years that distilled water was only for my iron!

Natural, naturally carbonated, artesian and artesian well waters come from underwater springs which contain minerals and trace elements not made or modified in a factory.

The message is, get your eight a day. How much you pay for that taste is up to you.

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