Those of us who are trying to kick our soda drinking habit may opt for sparkling water as a fizzy alternative, but is sparkling water any better for you than traditional sodas?

Fact or Myth: Sparkling water disrupts our body’s pH because of its acidity.

A study measuring the acidity of sparkling water found that the pH of carbonated water is 3-4, which is slightly acidic.  However, drinking acidic beverages has no affect on the acidity in your body as our kidneys and lungs remove excess carbon dioxide to maintain a pH of 7.35-7.45 no matter what food or drinks we consume.

Fact or Myth: Sparkling water has a negative impact on dental health.

Research on teeth enamel found that sparkling water cancause damage to tooth enamel.  However, the damage sparkling water can cause to tooth enamel is only slightly worse than regular water and 100 times less worse than that of a sugary soft drink.

Fact or Myth: Sparkling water disrupts digestion.

Sparkling water has been shown to increase and extend feelings of fullness more than plain water. It has also been shown to increase the average bowel movement frequency in the group that drank carbonated water as compared to the one that drank tap water.

*As a bonus, carbonated water led to significant improvement of 63% of the participants in a study researching the effects of carbonated water on those with a persistent need to clear their throats.

Fact or Myth: Sparkling water is bad for bones.

Actually, the only beverage associated with significantly lower bone mineral density in a study of over 2,500 people is cola.  Carbonated water had no effect on bone health.

Conclusion

Sparkling water appears to have no negative effects on our health.  In fact, there are many studies suggesting that sparkling water actually offers multiple health benefits.  So, next time you’re craving something bubbly, you can feel good about grabbing that sparkling water!