Some experts say that water only is the best drink.  Is this true?

Chemists have long accepted water as a marvellous substance, unique and unusual,  that one would not at first sight expect from a small molecule like H2O. It is generally agreed that the special properties of water stem from the tendency of its molecules to associate, forming short-lived and ever-changing polymeric units that are sometimes described as “clusters”. These clusters are more conceptual than physical in nature; they have no directly observable properties, and their transient existence (on the order of picoseconds) does not support an earlier view that water is a mixture of polymers (H2O)n  in which n  can have a variety of values. Instead, the currently favored model of water is one of a loosely-connected network that might best be described as one huge “cluster” whose internal connections are continually undergoing rearrangement.

Any uncertainty that the chemistry community may have about the nature and existence of water clusters is not apparently shared by the various “inventors” who have not only “discovered” these elusive creatures, but who claim findings that science has never even dreamed of! These promoters have spun their half-baked crackpot chemistry into various watery nostrums that they say are essential to your health and able to cure whatever-ails-you. These beneficences are hawked to the more gullible of the general public, usually in the form of a “concentrate” that you can add to your drinking water— all for a $20-$50 charge on your credit card.
Some of these hucksters claim to make the water into clusters” that are larger, smaller, or hexagonal-shaped, allowing them to more readily promote “cellular hydration” and remove “toxins” from your body.

The fact is that none of these views has any significant support in the scientific communities of chemistry, biochemistry, or physiology, nor are they even considered worthy of debate. The only places you are likely to see these views advocated are in literature (and on Web sites) intended to promote the sale of these products to consumers in the notoriously credulous “alternative” health and “dietary supplement” market.

If you’re exercising solely to lose weight, no-calorie water is the best choice. “But for those who don’t like the taste of water, the added flavor of low-cal sports drinks may help you stay hydrated without too many additional calories,” Kundrat says. Look for 10 calories or less per 8-ounce serving — any higher could negate your workout gains.

Next to plain water is the tried and true Gatorade, which is pretty much the same as it was over 3 decades ago. Still they are dependent on the formula of normal sugars (fructose, sucrose, and glucose in this case), potassium and sodium – end of the story. In comparison of water it will help in increasing your exercise performance by supplying good hydration and ready energy. But it’s “old school”. There are better, more advance and effective formulas on the market.  And no one suggests using Gatorade before or after training. It doesn’t work before training because the concentration of carbs is a bit too high, and their use of pure simple sugars could easily lead to rebound hypoglycemia, which would compromise your performance. And it doesn’t work after training due to the lack of protein and other recuperative nutrients. In reality, Gatorade’s just a watered down soda without the fizz.

Seltzer water goes by many names; sparkling water, fizzy water, carbonated water and is the result of the carbonation process water goes through in a seltzer machine. It is very easy to make sparkling water all you need is a seltzer machine and pressurized carbon dioxide canisters. The seltzer machine forces pressurised carbon dioxide into the water creating the seltzer water. Flavours can be added to the fizzy water to create different drinks.

Seltzer water is a cheap alternative to all the different bottled sparkling water that is currently on the market. The initial outlay for a seltzer machine may be quite high but it is more environmentally friendly as the number of plastic bottles being thrown away is significantly reduced, plus the canisters that contain the carbon dioxide care sent back to SodaStream who recycle them so they can be used again and again.

Flavoured sparkling water has become very popular over the years as more and more people move away from soda because of health issues associated with their ingredients. Soda Club are the company behind the seltzer maker known as SodaStream, they also produce a range of 25 different flavoured syrups called SodaMix that can be mixed in and enjoyed with the sparkling water. These syrups are a great alternative to low calorie pop. Although they taste good they contain artificial sweeteners that are not good for you. If you are looking for a healthier option, there are a large assortment of calorie free flavourÕs to flavour sparkling water for a great taste sold at https://allfreightfree.com. Unlike SodaMix, these flavours contain absolutely no fruit concentrate or sweeteners, just the flavour so you get great refreshment without any extra calories.

Fizzy water is a healthier beverage than other carbonated drinks such as soda or its diet equivalent. You can keep homemade seltzer water fizzy for long periods of time by investing in a seltzer dispenser. These bottles are pressurized in order to keep the water inside from going flat. They use a valve to release the water a bit like an aerosol can.

Seltzer water has a number of things going for it: The technology has advanced considerably since the 1980Õs and now seltzer machines are far more capable of producing good sparkling water, It is very easy to make as the seltzer machines do everything for you, it is very environmentally friendly, it is economically viable as the cost of the machine is offset by the fact that you can make as much seltzer water as you like, the flavours have got better over time with more and more companies entering the market with their own even healthier brands, and of course the fact that it is better for your health compared with traditional sodas.

What is soda water? Carbonated water, also known as sparkling water, and seltzer, is plain water into which carbon dioxide gas has been dissolved, and is the major and defining component of most “soft drinks”. The process of dissolving carbon dioxide gas is called carbonation. It results in the formation of carbonic acid (which has the chemical formula H2CO3).

In the past, soda water, also known as club soda, was produced in the home by “charging” a refillable seltzer bottle by filling it with water and then adding carbon dioxide. Club soda may be identical to plain carbonated wateror it may contain a small amount of table salt, sodium citrate, sodium bicarbonate, potassium bicarbonate, potassium sulfate, or disodium phosphate, depending on the bottler. These additives are included to emulate the slightly salty taste of homemade soda water. The process can also occur naturally to produce carbonated mineral water, such as in Mihalkovo in the Bulgarian Rhodopes.

Sparkling mineral water is a negligible cause of dental erosion. While the dissolution potential of sparkling water is greater than still water, levels remain low: by comparison, soft drinks cause tooth decay at a rate of several hundred times that of regular sparkling water. De-gassing of a sparkling mineral water reduces its dissolution potential, but the total levels are still relatively low, suggesting that carbonation of drinks may not be an important factor per se in causing dental erosion.

Intake of carbonated beverages has not been associated with increased bone fracture risk in observational studies, and the net effect of carbonated beverage constituents on the amount of calcium in the body is negligible, leaving carbonated water as harmless as regular water

Club soda has a higher sodium content. Virtually same thing.
Water that comes from the ground – usually from artesian wells – and passes through layers of minerals containing some form of carbonates may absorb the carbon dioxide gas released by the carbonates. This water is known as natural sparkling water. If the water also picks up sufficient quantities of various minerals to impart a flavor to the water it becomes sparkling mineral water.

Carbonation can be naturally induced into beverages by fermentation. Fermentation occurs when yeast, either wild or cultivated, is introduced into a liquid containing almost any form of sugar. The yeast converts the sugar into alcohol and carbon dioxide gas. When the gas is then absorbed by the liquid a carbonated alcoholic beverage is the result. If the fermentation is done in an airtight container, the carbon dioxide gas will saturate the beverage and it will be carbonated. Many carbonated beverages were originally made through this type of naturally induced carbonation including beer, wine and early types of soda.

Today the exclusive method of making soda and several commercial beers is by the introduction of carbon dioxide gas under pressure. The first uses of artificially induced carbonation date back over 250 years and were done to improve the drinking quality and preservation of water.

In the United States we have many references to carbonated beverages. Generally people ask for a specific product name, like Coke ,7-UP or Pepsi,. Sometimes it is more general, like ginger ale or root beer. Then there are regional nicknames which include soda, pop, soft drink, tonic, seltzer, sweetwater, carbonated beverage, sparkling water and fizzwater.

One thing to remember about adding any carbonated liquids to cocktails: generally they are added last. The only exception is if the drink is topped with a float of spirit. Do not shake a mixture with soda; this will cause the beverage to go flat and lose most of its effervescence. If the drink calls for blending you may chose to shake the other ingredients with ice first then combine in serving glass with seltzer and gently stir.

Basically, it’s water and carbon dioxide. Sparkling mineral water is a naturally-occurring carbonation, as described above. Thomas Henry produced the first forced carbonated water using an apparatus that utilized a pump to impregnate water with fixed air. In the year 1794, a jeweler of Geneva made an innnovative device to produce a highly carbonated artificial mineral water. His name was Jacob Schweppe.

Cocktail conducted a side-by-side tasting of several carbonated beverages. Among the reviewing criteria were: crispness, flavor, clarity and fizz release. We found that Perrier, a sparkling natural mineral water, maintained its fizz the longest, especially its lemon and lime flavored varieties. Canada Dry and Schweppes Seltzers came in a close second.

For those who find seltzer to be a bit harsh, club soda is a kinder, gentler fizz water. As part of our tasting we found club soda to be much milder and slightly sweeter tasting than standard carbonated water. The main difference is the introduction of potassium bicarbonate and potassium sulfate, which dulls the sharp burn of effervescence.

Sparkling mineral water, club soda, seltzer and carbonated water contains no calories, that makes them a dieters alternative for Mellow Yellow, 7-UP, Mountain Dew and tonic water.  A large assortment of calorie free flavors to flavor sparkling water to great taste is sold at https://allfreightfree.com.

Tonic water is a carbonated drink containing water, sugar, carbon dioxide and quinine. Quinine was added to the tonic water to help cure or prevent malaria. It comes from the bark of the Cinchona tree that grows in the rain forest on the eastern slopes of the Andes. To make tonic water more palatable, it was commonly mixed with gin and lemon or lime.

If you run out of tonic water but still have seltzer, 1/4 lemon, 1/4 lime and 2 tbs. sugar you can make a passable substitute.

If you are a shrewd consumer, you know there are many beverage choices today. Before you drink that next high-calorie soda, stop and consider a healthier alternative.

SodaStream was created in 1903. Giles Gilby invented a carbonation system which made fizzy water from standard water; it was originally sold to the upper classes. Flavours were introduced in the 1920s. Sarsaparilla and cherry ciderette were among the new choices. In countries such as Germany, Australia, and the UK it enjoyed vast success In the 1970s and 80s.

The company underwent numerous changes in ownership, even being part of the Cadbury Schweppes empire at one stage. In 1998 the company changed hands for the final time when purchased by Soda Club, at that time the biggest supplier of SodaStream to Israel. SodaStream remained the name of the brand after Soda Club’s unsuccessful bid to change the name to Soda-Club.

More recently Soda Club sought to change the SodaStream brand. SodaStream was relaunched along with a new machine and many more new flavours, concentrating on being a healthy alternative to fizzy, sugar-rich drinks such as Coca Cola and Pepsi, and focused on health and diet issues so prevalent in this day and age.

The SodaStream product is essentially a home carbonation kit, which allows you to change water into sparkling water, as well as allowing you to add low-calorie flavours such as cola and orange. A large assortment of calorie-free flavours to flavour sparkling water to great taste is sold at allfreightfree.com.

Here’s how the SodaStream machine works: it forces co2 into a water-filled bottle suitable for pressurising. It is the co2 that turns the water into carbonated (sparkling) water. This process — dissolving co2 — is referred to as carbonation. The carbonated water can then be drunk on its own as sparkling water, or mixed with flavours to create tasty, healthy treats. Once the co2 canisters have been used up they can be sent back to Soda-Club who recycle the canisters by refilling them with co2 then sending them back out.

As far as the actual health and diet benefits gained from drinking SodaStream, it is claimed that all their flavours are completely sugar-free and contain a maximum of 2 calories per 100ml, surely good news for parents concerned about their children’s diet.

The SodaStream machine adds only co2 to the water, meaning it does not have the added sugar that some bottled sparkling water contains, so there is essentially no difference between it and normal water.

SodaStream have made much of their environmental and health credentials, going so far as to claim that every litre bottle of SodaStream made saves three aluminum cans. This means that over 3 years, a family of four could slash their soft-drink-related packaging usage by over 90%. This is quite a claim, one that in this environmentally conscious age will stand them in good stead. It is obvious that Sodastream has developed into a viable alternative to the big players in the soft drink world.