Your body needs water to function properly, as it’s comprised of 50-60% water. Adequate water intake helps cushion and lubricate your joints, regulate body temperature, protect your organs, improve circulation, and remove waste from your body.
There are several types of water to choose from to keep your body hydrated and functioning at optimal levels. Each water type, such as tap, mineral, or sparkling, has a slightly different composition that sets it apart in feel and taste. Some waters may also be associated with more health risks or benefits.
Knowing the potential composition of each water type can help you determine which beverage aligns best with your goals and preferences.
Tap water is the most accessible, affordable, and commonly used type of water. About 150,000 public water systems provide this drinking water across the country. Municipal water systems treat the water to remove dangerous impurities, making it safe to drink.
Despite these purification methods, about 1 in 7 (15%) of adults in the United States believe home tap water is not safe to drink, and 39% believe bottled water is safer than tap water. About 26% of people do not like the taste of their tap water. However, most of the time, your tap water is safe to drink.
If you are concerned about the safety of your tap water, contact your local water supplier and ask for information on the contaminants in your drinking water. You can also ask them to send you a copy of the Consumer Confidence Report, which is an annual water quality report.
About 10% of people in the U.S. get their drinking water from a private well. Once the well is dug, these structures supply an easily accessible and affordable water option. However, private wells are not regulated under the Safe Water Drinking Act, meaning that homeowners are responsible for ensuring their drinking water is safe.
One study of 2,100 private wells found that about one in five wells contain water with contaminants higher than a human-health benchmark for drinking water. The most common contaminants found were metals, radionuclides, and nitrate. It’s important to have your well tested periodically to ensure it’s safe to drink and address any underlying issues.
Some people use a water filter to improve the taste of their tap or well water. These filters can be included in a water pitcher you keep in your refrigerator or attached to a faucet.
Filtered water does not remove anything harmful from the water. If your tap water has fluoride, lead, or other undesirable elements, a water filter will not significantly change the composition of the water.
Most water filters use carbon, or activated charcoal, to filter minerals and some chemicals. However, there are no federal guidelines regarding the design or effectiveness of water filters. Four of the 50 states—California, Iowa, Massachusetts, and Wisconsin—have some regulations regarding water filters.
Carbon filters need to be changed consistently to avoid becoming dirty or clogged. Some experts warn that a clogged filter can lead to bacterial and fungal growth, making your water more toxic than if you didn’t use a filter.
Purified water can come from any source—such as a tap, well, or spring—but has been treated to meet the purified or sterile standards of the U.S. Pharmacopeia. To meet this standard, purified water must not contain any chemicals and must not contain more than 10 parts per million of total dissolved solids. It also must be free of microbes if treated by distillation or reverse osmosis.
To purify water, companies will use distillation, deionization, reverse osmosis, or another process to ensure it meets the guidelines for purified water.
Spring water comes from an underground formation and flows naturally to the earth’s surface. For bottled water to be labeled spring water, the water must be collected at the spring or through a borehole tapping the underground formation that feeds the spring.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requires that spring water collected using an external force must come from the same underground formation as the spring and have the same composition and quality as the water that flows to the surface.
Mineral water has a natural, constant level of minerals and trace elements. It comes from an underground spring, and the mineral levels are measured when the water is collected at the surface.
To be considered mineral water, the water must contain at least 250 parts per million total dissolved solids, per FDA regulations. Minerals and trace elements in the water must also come from the original underground water source for it to be labeled mineral water. These elements cannot be added later.
However, some artificial mineral water products are available. For instance, some products offer purified water with added salts for electrolytes.
Drinking mineral water may have some health benefits. However, more research is needed before mineral water can be recommended over other types of water.
Sparkling water is water that has been aerated with carbon dioxide. In some cases, this is meant to restore the original water source’s level of carbon dioxide. The sparkling effect occurs after treatment.
Sparkling bottled waters are sometimes labeled as “sparkling drinking water,” “sparkling mineral water,” or “sparkling spring water.”
Drinking sparkling water may offer some health benefits, such as decreasing sleepiness, increasing blood flow to the brain, improving motivation, and causing feelings of exhilaration.
However, sparkling water fails to regulate thermal perception (the ability to sense temperature) like non-carbonated cold water.
Alkaline water contains alkalizing minerals and electrolytes and has a higher pH than normal drinking water, meaning it’s less acidic. Proponents of this type of water claim it can neutralize acidity in the body, improve hydration, and provide other health benefits.
For instance, one small study found that drinking alkaline water has a positive effect on increasing bone density. Researchers suggest that this type of water can help neutralize the adverse effects of acidic diets and prevent osteoporosis in postmenopausal women. However, more research is needed.
Meanwhile, another study found that following a plant-based diet and drinking alkaline water worked as well as medications to alleviate symptoms of laryngopharyngeal reflux (LPR)—a type of acid reflux in which stomach acid travels all the way up to the throat.
Although distilled water is safe to drink, most people do not like the taste, finding it flat or bland. This can happen because the distillation process strips the water of minerals like calcium and magnesium that give tap water and some bottled waters a pleasant taste.
Distilled water is produced through a distilling process and is considered one of the purest forms of water, especially since this process kills microbes and removes minerals. Because of its purity, distilled water is often recommended for use in humidifiers and nasal irrigations rather than for drinking.
There are no universal guidelines on the exact amount of water you should drink per day. Each person’s needs vary based on age, climate, weight, activity level, and health status. However, some health experts recommend 11.5 cups of fluid daily for women and 15.5 cups of fluid daily for men as a general guideline.
Your daily fluid intake comes from water, food, and other beverages. Food typically provides about 20% of your daily water needs, with the remaining 80% coming from plain water and other beverages. This means women would need to drink about nine cups of water and men would need about 13 cups per day.
If you are sick, live in a hot climate, or exercise regularly, you may need more water than the general recommendation. People who are pregnant may need about 12 cups (96 ounces) of water daily, while people who are breastfeeding may need up to 16 cups of water a day.
If you have questions about how much water to drink daily based on your individual circumstances, talk to a healthcare provider for advice.
One of the biggest risks of not drinking enough water is dehydration. Dehydration occurs when your body loses more water than it takes in or you do not drink enough throughout the day to maintain your hydration status.
Even slight dehydration can cause symptoms. Feeling thirsty is often a sign that your body is already dehydrated. Here are some other signs you are not drinking enough water:
- Having dry skin and lips
- Feeling fatigued or tired
- Experiencing lightheadedness
- Getting headaches
- Having muscle cramps
- Feeling dizzy
- Having dark urine or decreased urine output
Water is essential to your survival. Your body uses water to help cushion and lubricate your joints, regulate body temperature, protect your organs, improve circulation, and remove waste.
There are several types of water, including tap water, well water, spring water, alkaline water, distilled water, mineral water, filtered water, and sparkling water. Each version has a unique composition that can affect the mouthfeel and taste of the water. Plus, some types may offer more benefits or come with health risks.
