Solving America’s Drinking Problem

Men’s Health Magazine is right: Americans have developed a severe drinking problem.  The search for improved beverages to give us weight control, better nutrition, energy and flavor, as well as convenience has led the beverage industry into unintended consequences.  The resulting concoctions of high fructose corn syrup, ascorbic acid, caffeine and artificial flavors introduced into the market over the past couple of decades are no substitute for drinking pure water or homemade lemonade using real lemons.  Although it may be extreme for Men’s Health to state that walking into a convenience story is dangerous to our health, AquaNew wants to be part of the growing beverage revolution to meet customer demands for more wholesome beverages.  As customers, the beverage industry closely follows our buying preferences such that each of us can actively participate in the “more natural revolution” through good beverage choices.  We provide a snapshot of the contemporary beverage trends and some healthy alternatives for your consideration below.

Carbonated Soft Drinks (CSD)

As society continues to become more health conscious, people are taking greater care in reading labels and selecting beverages which contain ingredients to improve their physical well-being, energy and stamina.  As a result, the beverage industry has been undergoing a global conversion from acidic carbonated beverages, to drinks which contain “healthy” or “beneficial” ingredients, including those which provide a pathway to detoxification and/or an overall feeling of improved health.

Proof of this “change-over” has been seen by the carbonated soft drink (CSD) industry.  According to Beverage World Magazine, January 2011, CSDs have been on a steady decline over the past five years due to competition from bottled water and the influx of new, non-carbonated, health-focus drinks onto the market.  Though diet sodas are projected to gain market share going forward, a decline by 3 billion liters of CSD production in U.S. is projected for 2015 by the market analysts (Beverage World, January 2011).

 

Healthier Alternatives to Consider:

  • Make your own carbonated soda using pure water and natural flavoring ingredients.
  • Consider soda as an occasional treat like ice cream and not equivalent to drinking pure water each day.
  • Drink pure water before and after drinking a soda to flush out phosphates, sugars and artificial sweeteners that accumulate in the body.
  • According to Men’s Health Magazine (January 2011), fruity sodas such as orange-flavored soda, tend to carry more sugar than their cola counterparts.  Consider drinking instead orange juice which does not have artificial colors that are added to orange-flavored soda and may be linked to behavioral and concentration problems in children.

 

Energy Drinks

Our busy days and sleepless nights have contributed to the impressive growth in the energy drink market.  Past trends have doubled dollar sales every two to three years.  Although skyrocketed growth is not expected to continue, the analysts predict positive growth performance in the coming years (Beverage World, January 2011).

 

Healthier Alternatives to Consider:

  • Drink Watt-Ahh® for a natural energy boost and no “crash” effect.

 

Energy Shots

According to Beverage World Magazine, energy shots are the fastest-growing segment within the energy category.  Customers are demanding an energy boost that is low calorie without a crash effect.  Sales in energy shots went into the ionosphere going from $1 million in 2005 to $212 million six years later in 2011.  The analysts are projecting triple-digit percentage gains for the next five years.

One concern in this segment is that FDA has provided warnings to certain manufacturers that caffeine is an “unsafe food additive” when blended into beverages with alcohol (Beverage World, January 2011).

 

Healthier Alternatives to Consider:

  • Drink Watt-Ahh® for a natural energy boost without any potentially unhealthy additives.
  • Watt-Ahh® is an excellent ingredient for energy shots that could reduce the amount of caffeine while providing the same energy boost.
  • Watt-Ahh® enhances flavors and less sweetener may be needed to create even a lower caloric beverage.

 

Ready-to-Drink (RTD) Tea and New Age Drinks

The RTD and New Age segment are functional beverages including ready-to-drink teas, vitamin-enhanced bottled water, nutritional beverages that specifically target bone health or anti-aging, and “super-fruit” drinks for the antioxidant craze.  Prior to recession in 2008, RTD tea and New Age beverages had explosive growth in sales.  Market analysts project RTD beverages are on the rebound since the permanence of the health and wellness trend will continue to boost sales for years to come (Beverage World, January 2011).

One of the primary objectives of the functional beverage category is to bring onto the market…”new beverages that focus single-mindedly on major health issues and support claims with credible clinical research” (Beverage World, January 2011).  AquaNew, L.L.C. continues to work with credible laboratories and universities performing both pilot and clinical studies on Watt-Ahh® concerning nutrient transport and normalizing health trends.

It is expected that consumers will give even greater scrutiny to ingredients in the coming years, particularly in the functional beverages, as consumers learn more about dissolved solids, sugars and impuritiesDissolved solids in functional beverages may reduce or inhibit vitamin and nutrient uptake at the cellular level, similar to a person attempting to get through a doorway, while carrying ten suitcases!  These dissolved solids and impurities preclude the vitamins and nutrients from penetrating cell walls in the body, where uptake of vitamins and nutrients are needed.  The market is also filled with imitation juice products even for children that may contain more sugar than soda.  Thus, as customers learn that although they are spending money to buy “healthier” beverages, they will soon discover that certain ingredients in these beverages are defeating the purpose for which they were purchased.  We anticipate that functional beverage companies will soon be promoting the purity level of the water they are using as the major ingredient, in order to validate the nutritional claims on their products.

Healthier Alternatives to Consider:

  • Watt-Ahh® is an excellent ingredient for functional beverages.
  • Watt-Ahh® may prevent foul after-taste from oxidizing vitamins added to enhanced bottled waters, and could increase the shelf-life of certain natural ingredients such as fruit.
  • Control what vitamins you are consuming by taking supplements and drink Watt-Ahh® for improved cellular absorption of nutrients based on a University pilot study.
  • Make homemade lemonade and iced tea and be sparing on the added sugar.

 

 

 

Bottled Water  (Our favorite category!)

Bottled water, the super star of the fastest-growing beverage categories, has reach the inevitable consequence of the bottled water market’s maturity coupled with customers’ increasing environmental perceptions.  The category will continue to grow over the next five years, going from 61 percent in 2009 to 75 percent in 2014 of the CSD (Carbonated Soft Drink) volume (Beverage World, January 2011).

The reason for the U.S. Bottled Water Market to continue to gain is simple.  Consumers are becoming increasingly aware of their body’s need for proper hydration, in order to function at its optimum.  In the last decade, bottled waters containing the words “vitamins” or “energy” stamped on them, have seen an up tick in sales, however “pure” bottled water continues to gain the strongest momentum, and based upon consumers’ knowledge that our bodies need sufficient daily water intake for proper immune and system functions.

 

Healthier Alternatives to Consider:

  • Try to drink the purest water you can find that is free from dissolved solids and other impurities.  Men’s Health Magazine (January 2011) recommends…”Next time you buy a bottle of water, check the recipe: You want two parts hydrogen, one part oxygen, and very little else”.
  • Make lemonade or tea using pure water and other natural ingredients.
  • Watt-Ahh® makes outstanding flavorful coffee, beer and wine too!