Carbonated water (formerly called "pop") is one of the most popular soft drinks. Today, some nations can no longer imagine life without it. For example, the average US citizen drinks up to 180 liters of carbonated drink per year.
For comparison: residents of the post-Soviet countries consume 50 liters, and in China - only 20. America has surpassed everyone not only in the amount of soda water consumed, but also in its production. Statistics says that the volume of produced carbonated water and drinks based on it is 73% of the total volume of non-alcoholic products produced in the country.
Benefits of sparkling water
Is carbonated mineral water harmful?
Mineral water is sold, as a rule, with gas. Is carbonated water harmful? Much is said and written about this. By itself, carbon dioxide does not harm the human body. But its small bubbles unnecessarily stimulate the secretion of the stomach, and this leads to an increase in acidity in it and provokes bloating. Therefore, mineral water is recommended to be consumed without gas for those people who have increased acidity in the stomach. If you bought carbonated water, then you can shake the bottle, open it and let the water stand for a while (1.5-2 hours) so that the gas can come out of it.
Carbonated water is a popular refreshing drink, especially popular on hot days. Soda is enriched with carbon dioxide, additives, flavor enhancers, and sugar are added to it. There is such water in nature, but it is extremely rare. Drinks with chemical impurities are usually found on store shelves. With what can be harmful and beneficial properties of sparkling water, we help you figure it out.
Benefit
Natural soda is rare, so ordinary water is saturated with carbon dioxide to get carbonated. Carbon allows you to kill all the harmful microorganisms that can be found in normal sheath fluid. The taste of such water is more pleasant than ordinary water, it refreshes and better quenches thirst. But many experts argue about whether sparkling water is healthy.
The following positive properties stand out:
- Quick thirst quencher.
- Strengthening the walls of the stomach.
- An increase in the content of gastric acid, is prescribed for low acidity.
- Nutrition of cells due to carbon dioxide.
- Increased appetite.
- Improved blood supply.
- Improving the activity of the central nervous system.
- An increase in the content of hemoglobin in the blood, which is important with low rates.
- Support of acid-base balance in the human body.
- Protection of bones and muscles from destruction due to calcium and magnesium in the composition.
But all the positive properties (with the exception of a quick thirst quencher) apply only to natural carbonated water. Common drinks, especially with sugar and chemical additives, cannot improve the functioning of the internal systems of the human body. And for women, and for men, and for children, such water will not bring any benefit. On the contrary, depending on the chemical composition, it can impair the functioning of the gastrointestinal system.
Harm
The dangers of carbonated water are talked about much more often than its positive properties. Around the world, it is drunk frequently and in large quantities by both adults and children. The negative consequences that can lead to the use of soda are as follows:
- Exacerbation of gastritis.
- With frequent use, a stomach ulcer may develop.
- Bloating.
- Heartburn.
- Violation of the functioning of the pancreas.
- The development of diabetes when taking sweet soda.
- Destruction of tooth enamel.
- Addictive to synthetic flavor enhancers.
- Allergic reactions.
- Risk of genetic disorders due to a number of artificial preservatives.
- development of atherosclerosis.
At the same time, it is not natural or mineral soda that causes harm to the human body, but one that includes dyes, preservatives, flavor enhancers and a large amount of sugar. It is not necessary to completely refuse delicious drinks of this kind, if there are no individual contraindications. But you shouldn't use it often. Most of the negative consequences do not apply to natural mineral water.
Dietary Properties
Speaking about the dietary and beneficial properties of sparkling water, it is necessary to distinguish between natural and store-bought sweet. The effects of these drinks are polar opposites.
Plain sparkling water helps to strengthen the stomach and quench your thirst. With eating disorders and the need to normalize appetite, it can only be useful. Therefore, it is prescribed for a therapeutic dietary menu for different patients. As patients with RPP, and people with low acidity of the stomach. But also in limited quantities, it cannot be completely replaced with ordinary water.
Sweet store soda, the composition of which is saturated with sugar and many harmful substances, will negatively affect health and weight loss. It contributes to the destruction of tooth enamel, leads even healthy people to indigestion, and can cause peptic ulcers. It is absolutely contraindicated for patients with diabetes mellitus, even in a small amount (unsweetened, on the contrary, can be taken). Also, sweet water can become a serious cause for the development of obesity and cause a real addiction.
calories
The calorie content of ordinary sparkling water is not just minimal, it is absent altogether. In 100 ml of plain soda, without impurities and flavor enhancers, it is 0 kcal. There are no proteins, no fats, no carbohydrates in it at all. But the calorie content of the sweet, on the contrary, is incredibly high. You need to look at the nutritional value directly by brand, because different sodas have different composition.
Contraindications
There are a number of contraindications to the use of carbonated water, which must be taken into account without fail if you do not want to harm your body. These contraindications:
- Gastritis.
- Gastric ulcer.
- Allergy (relevant for water with additives) to the components of the composition.
- Pregnancy.
Despite the fact that there are few contraindications to drinking carbonated water, there may be more negative consequences for human health. Not only the exacerbation of existing diseases is terrible, but also the effects that can be caused by prolonged and regular use. Therefore, even if there are no contraindications, it is better to think again before taking a bottle of refreshing soda from the store shelf on a hot day.
Is it possible for pregnant and lactating
Absolutely all doctors forbid pregnant and lactating mothers to add carbonated water to their diet. Even simple soda, without additives, can cause heartburn, bloating and intestinal disturbances, which will negatively affect the child and cause discomfort to the mother. And water filled with chemical components can cause serious harm to the development of the fetus, affecting the bones, preventing them from forming normally.
The components of a simple soda for a newborn are not harmful. But frequent use will also cause discomfort to the mother, leading to indigestion. For the entire period of gestation and feeding, any carbonated water should be discarded. It is not even necessary to consult with your doctor about this, because he will give a categorical refusal. Even if you have a low acidity of the stomach and water with carbon dioxide, on the contrary, is indicated for health.
The nutritional value
The nutritional value is relevant for the simplest soda, in which only carbon dioxide is added. For the human body, such water is practically harmless, which cannot be said about the popular sweet. The nutritional value of soda, saturated with additional components, is individual and depends on the direct composition.
The chemical composition is quite modest, vitamins are not included in it at all, only some trace elements necessary for the normal functioning of the human body. But the mineral composition can vary depending on how saturated the water is from the source where it was taken from. The composition of soda with additives will also differ. The specified composition is relevant only for plain sparkling water.
How to use
Just drink carbonated water. And it is best to use it chilled: this increases the ability to quench thirst. Also, soda is added to some types of baked goods instead of regular water to make them more fluffy. The dough loosens better under the action of carbon dioxide, rises faster. Such "carbonated" bread is prepared all over the world, the first patent for recipes appeared in England, later migrated to Germany, France and the USA. Sweet soda is actively used in the preparation of pies and cakes. But you should not forget about the negative properties of drinks. It is often not worth pampering yourself with citrus pies with Fanta.
Storage
The shelf life of sparkling water in a closed bottle is 6 months. In the open - only three days. It is not scary if you have not drunk water during these three days. You can drink it. The drink will simply fizzle out, its taste will change. This is a matter of preference, many people like to drink sweet soda that has stood. The taste is less bright, the bubbles do not hit the nose. But it does not become less harmful to use.
Soda is stored in glass, plastic or tin containers. To increase the refreshing properties, it is necessary to keep it in the refrigerator before use (in no case in the freezer). There are no other special storage rules; in this matter, soda is completely unpretentious.
How to choose
Soda differs in the degree of saturation with carbon dioxide. There are three types: slightly carbonated, medium carbonated and highly carbonated. But you should not worry about a large amount of carbon dioxide: the substance even in a highly carbonated drink is about 0.4%. The choice for this parameter will depend solely on personal preferences.
When choosing, you need to look at:
- Color. Water should be either just clear or completely uniform in color.
- Compound. When buying soda with additives, give preference to products with herbal ingredients, herbs, natural juices.
- The presence of sugar. With diabetes and obesity, a drink with sugar should become an absolute taboo if you do not want to aggravate your health by quenching your thirst.
When choosing sodas and lemonades, be guided not only by your personal preferences, but also by the potential harm that the drink can cause. For stomach problems, obesity, diabetes, it is better to choose other drinks. Simple soda is also not one hundred percent safe, it can cause bloating, heartburn, disrupt intestinal motility and lead to gastrointestinal disorders.
What is combined with
A variety of medicinal herbs are often added to mineral sparkling water, which increases its healing properties. Additionally, such infusions have an antibacterial effect due to the saturation of the drink with carbon dioxide. You can add lemon, it will increase the thirst-quenching properties and improve the taste of the drink. Suitable for mixing and other fruits and berries that you like directly.
Conclusion
Carbonated water causes a lot of controversy about the positive and negative properties for human health. Natural water benefits the body and perfectly quenches thirst. Popular sweet - on the contrary, it is harmful to health, causes problems with the stomach and tooth enamel. But any soda is forbidden to use by pregnant and lactating mothers, because it can cause problems with intestinal motility and cause discomfort.
Our body is mostly composed of fluid, which is why maintaining water balance is a daily task for every person. Metabolic processes in the cells of our body proceed only in the presence of the proper amount of water. But we consume liquid in different forms - like tea, coffee, various juices, soda and mineral water. But how useful are such substitutes? Next, we will consider the harm and benefits of mineral water.
Most often it is sold in stores carbonated. Pleasant bubbles are made of carbon dioxide. By itself, it is harmless, but when consumed along with water, it actively stimulates gastric secretion, which provokes bloating in the intestines and increases acidity. If a person suffers from peptic ulcers, gastritis with an increased level of acidity, or is simply prone to flatulence, then he is not recommended to drink mineral water with gas. To make the carbon dioxide leave the water, shake the bottle and leave it open for a while.
If it's hot outside, try making a great refreshing drink that quenches your thirst quickly and effectively. Take one and a half liters of mineral water, freshly squeezed juice from one lemon and one orange, as well as a pinch of sugar and salt. Mix all ingredients, pour into a bottle and refrigerate.
In fact, mineral water was originally intended for medicinal purposes. And it would be absolutely correct that it was sold only in a pharmacy and did not contain carbon dioxide. For daily consumption, a product with a low mineralization density is suitable. At the same time, it can be used only with active sweating, stable physical exertion, which are accompanied by a significant loss of salts.
Artificial and natural mineral water can be equivalent only if the mineral complex was selected by specialists, and the mineralization itself was carried out on high-quality equipment, carbon dioxide and salts dissolved in water well.
Now there is no reliable and accurate information about the amount of mineral water that can be drunk per day without negative health consequences, as there are no indications about its quality indicators. It should also be remembered that in some diseases the consumption of this product is strictly contraindicated or undesirable.
In addition, you need to follow a few tips: do not drink mineral water regularly. Use it only when your body needs salt intake - during exercise, heat, dyspepsia. Do not forget to carefully read the labels, giving preference to high-quality water with natural mineralization.
Mineral water, as well as any other medicine, can lead to an overdose if taken continuously. If you are prone to any serious illness, be sure to consult your doctor before being treated with her.
Natural water is especially useful for the human body, as it is structured and able to replace liquid with destroyed structures in our cells. If it enters the body constantly, this allows it to recharge itself energetically and independently cope with various infections and foci of pathologies.
But be careful, some mineral solutions can be very harmful. Do not get carried away with water containing the radioactive substance radon and hydrogen sulfide, as they lead to the development of many side effects.
Medicinal mineral water can only be consumed as a course, and its intake should also take place under the supervision of a physician. Since this product was bottled in an industrial plant, no one knows if it was properly extracted, how it was stored and transported. Poor quality water can lead to severe poisoning. Long-term transportation leads to the fact that crystals are destroyed in the structured liquid, and it becomes completely useless.
An excess of mineral water in the diet leads to an overdose of salts in the body, and this can provoke the development of cholelithiasis or urolithiasis, gout and various salt deposits in all joints.
It is especially harmful to use mineral water as a cure for a hangover and drink strong alcoholic drinks with it. If a liquid with carbon dioxide and various salts is mixed with alcohol, this provokes certain biochemical reactions in the human body, which can cause irreversible disturbances in metabolic processes.
The constant intake of carbon dioxide irritates the gastric walls, which can lead to the formation of erosions and ulcers. In this case, the secretion of gastric juice increases, the stomach is stretched, and the gas causes belching. Together with the remaining gas, a certain amount of gastric acid enters the esophagus, which adversely affects its condition and causes heartburn.
Too cold mineral water, which has a high rate of carbon dioxide, can start a gas formation reaction as soon as it finds itself in a warm and acidic environment of the stomach. And this can provoke a rupture of the esophagus and perforation of the ulcer.
Doctors assure that you should not drink more than half a liter of mineral water per day. If you complain of any diseases, the advisability of taking it should be discussed with a qualified specialist.
So, mineral water can be useful if you use it if necessary and know the measure.
Whether mineral carbonated water is useful - the relevance of this issue is undeniable, because a person should consume 1.5 - 2 liters of liquid during the day to maintain health and beauty. Moreover, a liquid that is more useful for cleansing the body is precisely mineral water, and not coffee, tea, juices, soups and other liquid products. AT benefits of natural mineral water for daily use, no one doubts, but how does carbonation affect its beneficial properties? On the shelves of stores, we see an abundance of various bottles with and non-carbonated water from various manufacturers.
According to the degree of carbonation, there are:
- lightly carbonated mineral water;
— medium carbonated mineral water;
- highly carbonated mineral water.
How is carbonated mineral water produced?
First of all, I would like to remind you that drinking mineral waters differ in chemical composition, saturation with minerals and, accordingly, in purpose. We will assume that you have already decided on the water that suits you for health reasons, it remains for us to choose whether it will be carbonated or non-carbonated.
Mineral water is aerated mechanically - by introducing and saturating the liquid with carbon dioxide, simply carbon dioxide.
So, the answer to the question - is mineral carbonated water useful - we will find out if we figure out how its properties change after saturation with carbon dioxide, and how carbon dioxide affects our body.
It should be noted that carbon dioxide is a preservative, so an opened bottle can be stored longer than a non-carbonated bottle.
The effect of carbon dioxide in mineral water on our body
Carbon dioxide is a natural irritant for the stomach, under its action more gastric juice is produced. That's why sparkling mineral waters can harm people with diseases of the gastrointestinal tract with increased secretion of gastric juice. And if the secretion of gastric juice is reduced, then carbon dioxide in mineral water will be a mild stimulating factor for the normalization of the stomach. Should not be consumed carbonated mineral water people prone to flatulence, as well as intestinal ulcers.
So, is mineral sparkling water useful or not?
In favor carbonated mineral water says the fact that it is indicated for some diseases of the gastrointestinal tract to stimulate the work of the stomach, has a longer shelf life and fewer preservatives than non-carbonated. In addition, you can easily turn it into non-carbonated, leaving it with the lid open for a while.
Image copyright getty
You can often hear warnings about the dangers of drinking too much plain sparkling water - supposedly it has a negative effect on the stomach, bones and teeth. Is it really? - the correspondent decided to figure it out.
Everyone knows that the constant consumption of sugary carbonated drinks is unhealthy - the combination of high sugar content with high acidity has a negative effect on the body.
If you leave a coin in a glass of cola overnight, the next morning it will be clean and shiny. The reason for this is the phosphoric acid contained in the drink, which dissolves the oxide coating that covers the coin.
So it is better to drink plain water. But ordinary water does not have a pronounced taste, so many people periodically drink carbonated water for a change.
However, there is an opinion that plain sparkling water is also harmful. Is it really?
Let's start with the stomach. Carbonated water is made by adding carbon dioxide (carbon dioxide) under pressure. In fact, water turns into a solution of carbon dioxide.
If you drink a glass of such water in one gulp, then in some cases this may be followed by an attack of hiccups or indigestion.
Well, if you drink more slowly and measuredly? Really and then the simple sparkling water negatively influences a stomach?
Image copyright getty Image caption There is an opinion that any carbonated drink - even plain sparkling water - can be harmful to health.It turns out just the opposite. In one randomized, double-blind study conducted in the early 2000s, patients with dyspepsia or constipation were asked to drink plain water for 15 days.
One group drank carbonated, the other non-carbonated. The participants were then examined.
It turned out that the condition of those who drank carbonated water improved, while that of the control group remained unchanged.
Drinking large amounts of plain sparkling water can lead to bloating, but Japanese researchers have concluded that this side effect also has a positive side.
In a recent experiment, a group of women did not eat anything in the evening, and in the morning they were given a glass of either still or carbonated water to drink slowly.
It was found that when drinking only 250 ml of water, 900 ml of gas is formed in the stomach. Not surprisingly, women experienced a feeling of satiety, although they actually did not eat anything.
At the same time, the participants in the experiment did not feel any discomfort. Therefore, plain sparkling water is now recommended as a remedy for overeating.
Bad for bones?
For dehydration caused by indigestion, severe vomiting, or a simple hangover, some people let soda stand before drinking to release gas from it.
However, scientists who tested this method on a group of children with acute gastroenteritis found no evidence that it works.
In addition, it turned out that, compared with rehydrating solutions designed to replenish the content of salts and sugar in the body, ordinary carbonated water with gas released from it contains much less sodium and potassium needed by the body.
Well, if even carbonated water does not harm the stomach, then perhaps it makes the bones more fragile?
Image copyright getty Image caption It is possible that phosphoric acid somehow blocks the absorption of calcium by bone tissue.There is no scientific evidence to unambiguously support this claim.
A Canadian study published in 2001 found that teenagers who consumed large amounts of sugary sodas (not plain water) did indeed have reduced bone calcium, but researchers were not entirely sure whether the drinks themselves were the cause, or the fact that teenagers who drink them constantly do not drink milk.
In 1948, the so-called Framingham heart study began in the US state of Massachusetts - a large group of residents of the town of Framingham (in several generations - the study is still ongoing) have been medically monitored for many years in order to identify risk factors leading to the development of heart disease .
Now the descendants of some of these subjects are taking part in the Framingham Osteoporosis Study at Tufts University in Boston.
As part of this study, over 2,500 participants are comprehensively assessed every four years. Among the objectives of the 2006 survey was to investigate the relationship between bone density and carbonated beverage consumption.
The scientists analyzed different types of drinks that the subjects regularly drink.
They concluded that women (but not men) who drink cola three times a week had lower average pelvic bone mineral density than those who did not drink cola as often.
Image copyright getty Image caption The destructive effect of sugary carbonated drinks on tooth enamel appears over timeThe influence of consumption of other types of carbonated drinks on the composition of bone tissue was not revealed. The authors of the study hypothesized that caffeine and phosphoric acid (plain sparkling water contains neither), the mechanism of action of which on bones is not yet fully understood, may be the reason for the decrease in mineral density.
It is possible that phosphoric acid somehow blocks the absorption of calcium by bone tissue, but how exactly this happens, no one knows yet.
Ten years after the announcement of this discovery, there is still debate about the extent to which a person's diet can affect the condition of his bones.
So, in all likelihood, plain sparkling water does not have any negative effect on the bones and stomach. What about teeth?
It would seem that any acid, even in a weak concentration, should destroy tooth enamel. However, this is not necessarily the case.
The effect of plain carbonated water on teeth is very little studied, but there is already plenty of data on other carbonated drinks.
In 2007, Barry Owens of the University of Tennessee College of Dentistry at Memphis conducted a comparative study of different types of carbonated drinks.
It turned out that drinks based on cola are the most acidic. They are followed by diet colas, and coffee drinks close the list.
Cumulative effect
Owens emphasizes that what matters here is not the initial acid-base balance of the drink, but how much it retains acidity in the presence of other substances, since in reality there is saliva in the mouth, as well as other foods that can affect the level of acidity.
The ability of a solution to maintain an acid-base balance is related to its so-called buffer capacity.
If you drink through a straw, the drink goes directly to the back of your mouth, and its impact on the teeth is minimal.
Colas have the highest buffering capacity (which means they also have the most acidity), followed by their diet versions, then fruit sodas, fruit juices, and finally coffee.
In other words, some of the carbonated drinks can actually damage tooth enamel.
Poonam Jain of Southern Illinois University School of Dentistry put shards of tooth enamel into jars of various sodas for 6, 24, and 48 hours and found that the enamel did begin to erode.
You can find fault with the purity of this experiment, because in real life no one holds a drink in his mouth for so long.
But if teeth are exposed to drinks for many years, even if each sip takes only a few seconds, the consequences can be the same.
The young man's front teeth were partially destroyed after he drank half a liter of cola every day for four years in a row, and then - for another three years - one and a half liters a day, plus some fruit juice.
Image copyright getty Image caption The researchers found that the acidity of carbonated water is only 1% of the acidity of sugar-sweetened carbonated drinks.However, a lot depends on how you drink. This patient, in addition to brushing his teeth irregularly, also "retained each portion of the drink in the mouth for a few seconds, enjoying its taste before swallowing."
Swedish researchers compared five different ways of drinking drinks - in one gulp, slow sips and through a straw. It turned out that the longer the drink lingers in the mouth, the more acidic the environment in the oral cavity increases.
But if you drink through a straw, the drink immediately enters the back of the mouth, and its effect on the teeth is minimal.
So what about plain sparkling water?
Catriona Brown from the University of Birmingham conducted an experiment by placing extracted human teeth without signs of caries for 30 minutes in vessels with different types of flavored soda water.
Each tooth was pre-coated with varnish, except for a small area with a diameter of half a centimeter.
Drinks were found to be just as damaging to teeth, and in some cases even more so, than orange juice, which has been found to soften tooth enamel.
Plain soda is 100 times less likely to cause tooth decay than some other sodas
Lemon, lime and grapefruit flavored carbonated waters were the most acidic, probably because they use citric acid as a flavoring agent.
Thus, flavored carbonated waters are not at all as harmless to teeth as regular water. Can the same be said for unflavored plain sparkling water?
There is very little research in this area, but in 2001, researchers at the University of Birmingham studied seven different brands of plain sparkling water by placing extracted human teeth in them.
It turned out that these drinks have an acid-base balance of 5-6 (that is, they are less acidic than some types of colas, which can reach an acid-base balance of 2.5).
For comparison, the balance of plain non-carbonated water is 7 units, that is, it is equal to the balance of a neutral medium. In other words, as the scientists suspected, plain carbonated waters are weak acidic solutions.
However, their ability to destroy teeth is 100 times lower than some other types of carbonated drinks.
Of course, the environment of the oral cavity is different from the environment of a laboratory beaker, but so far there is not much evidence that plain soda is bad for teeth.
So if you are fed up with plain still water, you can diversify the menu of plain sparkling water. Well, to minimize the risk to your teeth, you can drink it through a straw.
Denial of responsibility
All information contained in this article is for general information only and should not be taken as a substitute for the medical advice of your healthcare professional or any other healthcare professional. The BBC is not responsible for, and cannot be held liable for, the content of external Internet sites referred to herein. It also does not encourage the use of any commercial products or services mentioned or recommended on any of these sites. Always contact your healthcare provider if you have any concerns about your health.
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