20 AMERICANWAY
NOVEMBER 1 2008
D R I N K
IF YOU’VE CONFUSED
thewater aisle at
your local grocery storewith the candy aisle
lately, don’tworry— it’s completely under-
standable. After all, these days purveyors of
bottledwater have ratchetted up the color and
the content of their productswith supposedly
better-for-youwaters enhancedwith vitamins,
minerals, and herbs and sporting funkyflavors
more reminiscent of Kool-Aid than good old
H
2
O.
But are all these candy-colored newwaters
actually healthier for you than the unenhanced
versions— anddo they really taste better?
Three phone calls to nutritionists and 19
bottles ofwater later (yes, we tasted each and
every one), we’ve reached a few conclusions:
The health benefits in drinks likeVitaminwater
don’t come from the vitamins; they come from
thewater.Why?BecausemostAmerican
adults already get the vitamins they need from
their food, much ofwhich is vitamin-fortified.
That said, while the benefits associatedwith
these drinks’ extra nutrients are negligible,
their pretty colors andpunchyflavorsmay
be useful in helpingpeople stay hydrated. But
tread carefully. During our taste test, we found
several of the brands left a lot to be desired
in theflavor department. These six, however,
made the cut.
—MeredithSimons
WhateverHappened
toPlainOldWater?
Glacéau’s
Vitaminwater:
Power-C
THE FLAVOR
Drag-
onfruit
THECLAIM
Can
provide you
with “enough
strength to bench-
press llamas.” (We
did not test this.)
THECONTENTS
Taurine, vitaminC
CALORIES
125 (one
20-ounceCoke has 240
calories)
SUGAR
32grams (the
aforementionedCoke
has 65grams)
CELEBRITYENDORS-
ERS
Toomany to
name… includes Carrie
Underwood, LeBron
James, 50Cent, Dono-
vanMcNabb, andTony
Parker.
Walgreen’s
PureAmerican:
Lemonade
THE FLAVOR
Um,
lemonade
THECLAIM
Provides
youwith vitamins from
“a— zinc.”
THECONTENTS
At
least 10percent of the
daily recommended
amount of vitaminA, a
handful of B vitamins,
vitaminE, folic acid,
and zinc
CALORIES
0
SUGAR
0grams
Aquafina’s
Alive:Protect
THE FLAVOR
Berry
Pomegranate
THECLAIM
Its
antioxidants “help to
protect your body from
free radicals.”
THECONTENTS
25
percent of your RDA
for vitaminC and vi-
taminE
CALORIES
0
SUGAR
0grams
SoBe’sLife
Water:
E-ssential
THE FLAVOR
Yuzu
BlackCurrant
THECLAIM
It’s a
“vitamin-enhanced
water beverage.”
THECONTENTS
Açai
and juniper, B vitamins,
andmore than twice
the vitaminC you need
every day
CALORIES
100
SUGAR
23grams
CELEBRITYENDORS-
ERS
Naomi Campbell
andLee the Lizard (of
the creepy dancing
lizards inSoBe’s “Thril-
licious” commercial)
Glacéau’s
Smartwater
THE FLAVOR
Water.
Justwater.
THECLAIM
“Purity
you can taste+ hydra-
tion you can feel”; no
word onwhatmakes it
so smart.
THECONTENTS
Elec-
trolytes
CALORIES
0
SUGAR
0grams
CELEBRITYENDORS-
ERS
JenniferAniston,
TomBrady
Aquafina’s
Alive:Satisfy
THE FLAVOR
Peach
Mango
THECLAIM
“En-
hancedwith…fiber to
help lightlyfill you up.”
THECONTENTS
25
percent of theRDA for
fiber in each bottle
CALORIES
25
SUGAR
0grams
Our
Favorite!
