Is Sparkling Water Good or Bad?

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Despite the fact that sparkling water is just water with some carbon dioxide dissolved in it, some people seem to think that there might be health risks associated with drinking too much of it.

But do these risks hold any merit, or are these just a bunch of myths? Let’s take a practical look at the pros and cons of drinking sparkling water for weight loss.

Seltzer vs club soda vs sparkling water vs tonic water

First, let’s get our definitions straight. Carbonated water may all look the same, but there are subtle differences.

A seltzer is just plain water that’s been artificially carbonated. So devices that force carbonation into water like SodaStream or DrinkMate create seltzers.

Club soda is kind of like a seltzer, but with added minerals on top.

Sparkling water refers to spring water which naturally has some minerals, as well as some natural carbonation.

Natural sparkling water is actually very weakly carbonated, nature just doesn’t produce that much carbonation.

So many commercial sparkling waters end up adding additional carbonation to it, because when we think of sparkling water, we really want it sparkling.

Tonic water is carbonated water that has an additional ingredient called quinine, added to it as well, which gives it a bitter taste.

To simplify things, I’m going to disregard any additional flavorings when I talk about sparkling water. So this means I’m not going to consider tonic water to be a type of sparkling water.

Also, the vast majority of commercially available sparkling waters in North America are artificially carbonated, regardless of the source, so the practical difference between seltzers, club sodas, and sparkling waters are somewhat minimal.

So for simplicity’s sake, I’m going to refer to all these types of water as sparkling water. I apologize in advance to all the water connoisseurs out there.

Is too much sparkling water a problem?

Acidity?

A central issue with sparkling water is related to the carbon dioxide dissolved within. I’ll do my best not to bore you with a chemistry lesson, but essentially, for carbon dioxide to be dissolved in water, the water needs to be acidic.

Heavily carbonated waters, like club soda, generally need to be more acidic to dissolve more carbon dioxide compared to lighter carbonated waters, like natural sparkling water.

Because nearly all commercially available sparkling waters tend to be so heavily carbonated, if you’re drinking sparkling water you got from the grocery store, chances are it’s going to be pretty acidic.

Sparkling water has a pH of approximately 4.5. It varies depending on the brand, with some flavored sparkling drinks reaching a pH of below 4, but some people suggest that this acidity could potentially cause some sort of acidification of our bodies.

Well, the stomach acid your body produces, is hundreds to thousands of times more acidic than sparkling water.

Given that your body naturally produces around 1.5 L of this super concentrated stomach acid a day, and you can see why drinking a bottle of sparkling water is not going to do much to the acidity of your body.

Can it cause cavities?

However, the acidity could possibly harm tooth enamel over time and cause erosions and cavities. But before you panic, let me put this risk into perspective.

Most fruit juices like orange, cranberry, and apple juice are 10 to 100 times more acidic than most sparkling waters.

Juices also have sugar which can harbor bacterial growth and cause tooth decay. So if drinking fruit juice doesn’t really bother you, neither should drinking sparkling water.

Can it cause bloating?

Another issue with sparkling water is related to the carbon dioxide gas it produces. Because most commercially available sparkling waters are so heavily carbonated, they tend to produce a lot of gas when consumed.

As a result, it can cause the sensation of bloating as carbon dioxide gas is released into your digestive system.

The gas is going to be harmlessly either burped or farted out, since the carbon dioxide is not going to be absorbed into our bloodstream or anything, however the gas can cause discomfort as it passes through your digestive system.

Can it cause acid reflux?

Occasionally, when the carbon dioxide gas causes too much burping, it can push stomach acid into the esophagus, irritating it and aggravating any existing heartburn and GERD symptoms. You may find that drinking too much sparkling water worsens your heartburn.

Oddly enough, there are some people who report the opposite, with sparkling water helping to reduce their heartburn symptoms.

It may have something to do with the sensation of the sparkling water just masking the heartburn symptoms.

Regardless, if you already suffer from heartburn or GERD, you might want to make sure you don’t drink too much sparkling water or it could aggravate your symptoms.

Can it cause IBS / diarrhea?

Carbonated beverages in general are sometimes blamed for triggering Irritable Bowel Syndrome.

While this may be true for carbonated beverages like pop, soda, and other artificially flavored carbonated drinks, sparkling water by itself is unlikely to trigger IBS or cause diarrhea.

However, as we said before, the production of carbon dioxide gas can aggravate any symptoms of bloating and create gas, which you may already be feeling if you suffer from IBS.

So it’s not likely going to trigger it, but it might worsen some of those symptoms.

Can it cause other health issues?

Along the same vein, some people will associate other health problems like kidney stones from drinking sparkling water, based on studies that look at the consumption of carbonated beverages in general.

Again, these studies are looking at carbonated beverages like pop or soda, not sparkling water.

While Coke or Pepsi may indeed increase your risk of kidney stones, we don’t have any evidence that sparkling water will cause any such issues.

Can it cause weight gain?

Now there are some people who believe that sparkling water can cause weight gain.

This unusual belief stems from a small study that found that people and rats who drank carbonated water produced more ghrelin over those who drank uncarbonated water.

Ghrelin is a hormone naturally produced by the body, which stimulates feelings of hunger.

The theory was that because more ghrelin was produced by drinking carbonated water, it could possibly trigger more feelings of hunger, leading to more eating and weight gain.

However, the study did not actually find any weight gain because of this small increase in ghrelin. Also, this is only one small study, and these results have not been replicated since.

Is it good or bad for weight loss?

So if you’re drinking sparkling water during your weight loss diet, there’s no need to worry too much as long as your sparkling water is free of artificial colors and sweeteners.

In fact, the additional carbonation might help fill up your stomach more with gas. Realistically however, any additional benefit over regular water is likely minimal since the gas escapes your stomach so quickly.

Also if you’re comparing it to regular water, there may be some downsides to sparkling water, especially if you suffer from bloating or indigestion.

However, it’s a perfectly acceptable drink to have on your weight loss diet. It still doesn’t beat drinking regular water in my opinion, but if sparkling water helps you to drink more liquid, avoid drinking other sugary sodas or fruits juices, and doesn’t cause you too many issues like bloating or heartburn, that’s a win in my books.

There’s really no need to overthink it, it’s just water, with some carbon dioxide dissolved in it.

Learn more about

• Is Diet Coke Good For Weight Loss?
• Other foods for weight loss

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