Are These New Drinks Better Than Only Water?

Only water??  You must be kidding.It is we who think that pure water is boring.  This has spond the million dollar industry of flavored water or sport water with added vitamins.  Or you can buy natural mixers to add to your own bottled water.  Flavored water encourages people to drink more water.But aren’t we becoming a little spoiled here?

In contrast to enhanced or vitamin waters flavored waters are just that, flavor and water and a sweetener if you must. We have divided the flavored waters into two subsets: unsweetened and sweetened with various natural or artificial sweeteners.

Currently on the market are unsweetened bottled water, this is water with just a hint of a flavor to make the water not so boring.  Then there are the sweetened bottled water sweetened with sucralose or carbonated sweetened bottled water.There are many on the market that are claiming for zero calories.

Before you throw out your regular vitamins, you might want to read the label on one of these vitamin drinks very carefully. Take Glacéau Vitaminwater Essential Orange Carrot. The label claims that it packs a “megadose of vitamins and minerals from A all the way through zinc.” A closer look reveals that the $1.49 bottle delivers 100 calories but only between 2 percent and 50 percent of the daily value of 12 vitamins and minerals. Essentials, like folic acid and vitamin Bi and D, are also missing.

Oxygenated water (also known as “superoxygenated” water) is offered at hundreds of Web sites and from many companies representing multiple brands. Oxygenated water is highly recommended it if you happen to be a trout or salmon and you have gills to breathe.  If you have lungs to breathe, forget about it!
All  water that has been exposed to the air is “oxygenated” to a small extent– about 8 milligrams of O2 per liter of water at room temperature– and this can be increased by pressurizing the water with oxygen gas; each additional atmosphere of oxygen pressure pumps an additional 40 mg into each liter. But what happens when you open the bottle?  That’s right, the extra oxygen goes right back out— but not immediately, so by drinking oxygenated water, you can still take in a bit more oxygen. But can any oxygen molecules that don’t get burped back out actually find their way into your bloodstream through absorption in the stomach or intestine?

The American Council on Exercise (ACE), America’s nonprofit fitness advocate, announced results of an ACE commissioned study of super oxygenated waters that promise higher energy, greater mental awareness and concentration and more energy to all athletes who are “looking for a competitive edge or anyone who wants to be truly healthy.The study tested the claims and compared the physical performance effects of several oxygenated water products to regular tap water.

Researchers found that drinking super oxygenated water had no measurable effect on the subjects’ resting heart rate, blood pressure or blood lactate values. The results were not surprising to researchers. Porcari said, that there are only two ways possible to carry oxygen in the blood, either dissolved in the plasma or bound to hemoglobin. In normal healthy exercisers, hemoglobin is already 97 to 98 percent saturated with oxygen. No points for guessing that, there is a little room to improve up on this factor.”

“At this time, there is no scientific evidence or logical rationale to suggest that drinking super oxygenated water can in any way increase the amount of oxygen in the blood stream,” said Porcari. “Therefore, any potential benefits of super oxygenated water would undoubtedly be attributed to the placebo effect.”

Researchers conducted a dissolved oxygen analysis on three bottles of Aqua Rush and three bottles of SerVenRich. The tests disclosed that the oxygenated waters have three times less than the amount of oxygen found in tap water-markedly lower than its advertised claims.
The study results confirm ACE’s opinion that these types of products do not live up to their claims, but water is one of the most essential components of the human body. The American Council on Exercise has always and continues to promote healthy hydration. Water regulates the body’s temperature, cushions and protects vital organs, and aids the digestive system.  And you can get that from just plain water!

Tags: bottled water, carbonated bottled water, drinking oxygenated water, New Drinks