Water is no longer colourless and tasteless, at least not this one. Vitamin-based water is the latest entrant to the category of ‘healthy beverage’. While the makers claim it to be a good idea, nutritionists have a different take. Shibaji Roychoudhury brings you a report
Being health conscious has become a norm. People not only want food and beverage that tastes good but also boast of high nutritive value. That explains why aerated drinks and other beverages are being replaced with energy drinks and flavoured water. The latest entrant is vitamin-based water. It not only has many vitamins and minerals, it is tasty too.
While Indian water packaging and manufacturing companies are yet to embrace this new product, foreign brands are already here. Beltek Canadian Water limited has recently launched a water, which the company claims is enriched with vitamins. It contains natural flavours and colours with no preservatives, is low on sugar and focuses on both regular and calorie-conscious consumers.
“People want more than just plain water these days. Consumers are shifting from carbonated drinks and packaged juices to a healthier option, with less calories and more natural alternatives. Our products, is not only tasty, it is enriched with vitamin A, B and C along with necessary electrolytes, guarana extracts and zinc. There are flavours like tropical citrus fruits like lemons and oranges,” Mohit Verma, director, Beltek Canadian Water limited says. The New York-based brand Glaceau has also launched a series of flavoured vitamin water in the country which is available in most high-end departmental stores in metros.
While manufacturers are promoting vitamin-water as a healthy drink, doctors and nutritionists have a different take on this new product in the market. “These vitamin drinks may appear to be good, but there are certain aspects that need to be kept in mind. Most Indians take enough vitamins in their meal. As a result, they consume more than the Recommended Dietary Allowance of vitamins daily like B12, B6, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin C, vitamin A, thiamin and vitamin A which includes carotenes. In fact, vitamin E is the only nutrient that Indians usually fall short of, however, only one-third of it is found in these vitamin-water,” Shubi Husain, Indian Diets Consultant and Nutritionist says.
If you want to drink additional vitamin E, there are chances the body will not absorb it. “Vitamins are divided into two groups: Water soluble and fat soluble. Vitamin C and the B complex group are water-soluble and can easily enter the bloodstream with water. Vitamins A, D, E and K are fat-soluble. That means they can only enter the bloodstream to carry out their functions if they are dissolved in dietary fats found in high calorie foods. However, when taken on an empty stomach, vitamin E harms the body,” Shikha Sharma, a Delhi-based nutritionist says.
Even if one were to absorb all the vitamins, vitamin-water might have trouble living up to its image as a salubrious alternative to sugary soft drinks. “Each bottle of vitamin-water contains 32.5 gm or two heaped tablespoons of crystalline fructose,” Annapurna Agrawal, nutritionist at Snap Fitness India tells you.
Fructose is found in fruits, although the crystalline fructose in vitamin-water is produced from cornstarch, not fruit, nobody needs these extra sugars. “The sweetness of sugary drinks may be addictive. The way that vitamin-water is marketed it’s made to look healthy than other beverages, but it’s not. It’s just another soft drink. Adding vitamins and minerals to junk food doesn’t make it healthy,” Agrawal says.