Dasani Flavored Water

[Nuggets]

I think somebody may have already asked about this somewhere else, but I couldn't find it right off the bat, so I'll ask it again.

Does drinking Dasani flavored water ( lemon or raspberry ) count as drinking water just as it would if you just drank regular water, or is it different? I don't know whether to count the flavored water as part of the water that I drink on a daily basis or not. The only difference I see is that it has 12.5 mgs of sodium in it. So is it real water?

[SSC]

Well of course it's real water, just not as healthy as water. If you're looking for some truly wonderful tasting and energizing fluid, drink Propel or whatever Powerade's version of Propel is... those are key for keeping nutrients in your body but getting the whole water effect.

But as far as the Dasani goes, it should be fine, but the sodium could be killer.

[The Charming Canuck]

Propel melon is my favorite. MMMMM but I still prefer regular water. If it helps you to drink water then drink it.

[abrannan]

Mmmmm... Water with added chemicals.

[Grant.]

i LOVE chemicals!

[banana]

ngts said:

Does drinking Dasani flavored water ( lemon or raspberry ) count as drinking water just as it would if you just drank regular water, or is it different? I don't know whether to count the flavored water as part of the water that I drink on a daily basis or not. The only difference I see is that it has 12.5 mgs of sodium in it. So is it real water?

There's no "quota" of water that one has to drink in a day. The idea that it's healthy to "drink eight glasses of water" is a myth. [Google "myth drinking water" or equivalent for tons of information.] So it really doesn't make sense to ask if it "counts as drinking water".

So, it depends what you are really asking! If you're trying to drink water because it makes you feel full but has no calories, then flavored water will do that just as well as any other water.

[Nuggets]

Uhm. I'm trying to drink water because it's good for me. I don't care about it filling me up. I drink it as an alternative to sodas and other things. My question is this: am I wasting my time feeling good about myself because I'm drinking lemon water, or is that actually okay to think of as water?

[abrannan]

You're not wasting your time.

[banana]

ngts said:

Uhm. I'm trying to drink water because it's good for me. I don't care about it filling me up. I drink it as an alternative to sodas and other things. My question is this: am I wasting my time feeling good about myself because I'm drinking lemon water, or is that actually okay to think of as water?

The point is that water isn't "good for you", it's just a preferable alternative to soda.

[Nuggets]

I thought water was supposed to be good for you because it helped clear your body out instead of adding sugars and such to it like sodas do. ?

[banana]

The idea that you need to force yourself to drink extra water to "clear your body out" is a myth.

It's true that you need to drink enough liquids to keep yourself hydrated, but if you just drink when you're thirsty, then that will be enough fluids. You never need to force yourself to drink extra water to stay hydrated. Your body will tell you to drink when you need to drink. And water that you ingest from fruit and flavored drinks, such as soda, is just the same to your body as plain water.

It's also true that soda is "empty calories" in the sense that it contains no nutrients and lots of sugar. Soda, then, is not particularly healthy, and it's probably better to drink water when you are thirsty instead of soda.

But counting the amount of water that you drink because you're trying to get in a certain number of glasses a day is basically pointless. Drink when you are thirsty. Forcing yourself to drink extra water won't hurt you, but it's also not going to make you any healthier.

The snopes.com article about the "8 glasses a day" myth:
www.snopes.com/medical/myths/8glasses.asp

[abrannan]

banana said:

The snopes.com article about the "8 glasses a day" myth:
www.snopes.com/medical/myths/8glasses.asp

It's important to note that the snopes article only deals with whether or not you need 8 glasses a day to avoid being "chronically dehydrated". It makes no claim as to whether or not additional water has additional benefits, aside from a reference to a self-published book that they credit as being the source of the "8 glasses or you're dehydrated" myth.

[banana]

Okay, but there's still no evidence, anywhere, that drinking more water than that is good for your health. Drinking extra water does exactly one thing: it makes you pee more. ;-)

Actually, I originally found out that this was a myth during a medical school nephrology lecture. The nephrologist teaching the class mentions in passing that there is no reason to force yourself to drink a certain amount of water, and that one should just drink when thirsty. A hundred or so medical students all sitting with their carefully measured Nalgene bottles look up aghast at the thought that they've been needlessly obsessing over how much water to drink for years.... ;D

[havix]

I personally prefer water over that flavored crap. No flavor > that "flavored" water...I do not know how to describe it, I just hate the diluted taste of this product.

[urbanjunglekitten]

If you like Dasani lemon water but aren't sure about the sodium, why not get big gallon thing of regular water and squeeze a real lemon into it? It's the same effect without the sodium, and the vitamin C in the lemon will be good for you as well.

UJKitten