Sparkling water has gone from niche to everyday. Cans of fizzy water now fill supermarket shelves.
But a few worries keep coming up. Does it wear down your teeth, weaken your bones or leave you bloated?
The short answer: plain sparkling water looks safe for most people. The catch is in what gets added to it.
- In lab tests, plain sparkling mineral water dissolved tooth enamel about a hundred times less than soft drinks.
- A large US study linked cola, but not other fizzy drinks, to lower bone density.
- Flavoured sparkling waters, especially citrus ones, were as erosive as orange juice in one lab test.
Is sparkling water bad for you?
No, plain sparkling water isn’t bad for most people. It hydrates you and has no sugar or calories.
Harvard’s Nutrition Source puts it plainly. “Carbonated waters, if unsweetened, are safe to drink and a good beverage choice.”
The American Dental Association says that, “according to available research, sparkling water is generally fine for your teeth”.
Even the NHS suggests it as an option. If you don’t like the taste of water, it says, “try sparkling water, no added sugar squash, or add a slice of lemon or lime”.
There’s no big review that covers sparkling water as a whole, though. So the answer is pieced together from smaller studies, topic by topic.
What the research shows
Teeth: mildly acidic, far gentler than soda
Adding carbon dioxide makes water more acidic. Harvard says it lowers the pH from 7 to 4.
Acid can wear away tooth enamel. But in a 2001 lab study on extracted teeth, plain sparkling mineral water dissolved enamel “one hundred times less” than soft drinks.
Taking the bubbles out reduced its effect further. The authors concluded that mineral waters “appear to offer a safe alternative to more erosive acidic beverages”.
The flavoured problem
Flavoured sparkling waters are different. A 2007 lab test of flavoured sparkling waters in the UK found a pH of 2.74 to 3.34.
All of them showed erosive potential “similar to or greater than that of pure orange juice”. The ADA also warns that citrus-flavoured waters “often have higher acid levels”.
Sweetened versions are another matter again. The ADA says sparkling waters with added sugar “can no longer be considered just sparkling water”.
| Drink | What the research suggests about teeth |
|---|---|
| Plain still water | Best choice for teeth |
| Plain sparkling water | Mildly acidic, but far less erosive than soft drinks |
| Flavoured sparkling water | Can be as erosive as orange juice |
| Sweetened sparkling drinks | A sugar-sweetened drink, with sugar and acid risks |
Plain sparkling water looks fine for teeth, bones and hydration. Flavoured and sweetened versions carry more acid, and sometimes sugar.
Bones: the cola confusion
The worry about bones comes mostly from cola. The Framingham Osteoporosis Study measured bone density in 1,413 women and 1,125 men.
People who drank cola daily had 3.7% lower bone density at the hip than those who rarely did. But the study found “no significant relations between noncola carbonated beverage consumption” and bone density.
A small 2005 trial gave 18 postmenopausal women a litre a day of sodium-rich sparkling mineral water for eight weeks. Markers of bone turnover didn’t change.
Hydration: just as good as still
A 2016 trial in 72 men compared how well different drinks hydrated. Urine output after sparkling water was no different from still water.
There’s one twist. In a small 2026 study, people who’d lost a little fluid drank less when given sparkling water to drink freely.
They recovered less fluid as a result.
That study was funded by ITO EN, a drinks company. It suggests the fizz may stop some people drinking as much, rather than any harm from the water itself.
Digestion: it depends on you
For some people, bubbles help. In a small 2002 trial, 21 people with indigestion and constipation drank either sparkling or tap water for about 15 days.
The sparkling water group’s indigestion scores fell from 7.9 to 5.4, and their constipation scores improved too.
For others, bubbles cause bloating. The NHS lists fizzy drinks among the causes of bloating, and advises not drinking lots of them.
The newest trial
Fewer snacks?
A 2026 trial in Scientific Reports randomly assigned 46 healthy Japanese adults to sparkling or still water. They drank 500 g a day for 12 weeks, and 45 finished.
| Change after 12 weeks | Sparkling vs still water |
|---|---|
| Snacking | 1.49 fewer times a week |
| Alcohol | 24.44 g less a week |
| Body weight | 0.72 kg lower |
| Drink-related side effects | None |
Why I’m careful with this one
The trial was funded by Asahi Soft Drinks, which made both drinks. The first two authors list Asahi as their affiliation, even though the paper says they have no competing interests.
People knew which drink they had, and snacking and alcohol were self-reported. The authors themselves say the findings “should be interpreted cautiously”.
What earlier research found
Bubbles and fullness
A 2011 study in Nutrition Journal found a fizzy drink filled the stomach more. But total calories eaten at the next meal didn’t change.
That study was funded by Coca-Cola.
A 2017 study in 13 young women found sparkling water made them feel fuller and less hungry soon after drinking. One author worked for the drinks company Suntory.
Braces and bonded teeth
A 2018 lab study in the Korean Journal of Orthodontics exposed treated enamel to sparkling water three times a day for a week.
It found sparkling water had “negative effects on etched or sealed enamel”, the kind of surface used to attach braces. People with braces may want to go easy on it.
Bottled water acidity
A 2022 study tested 105 bottled waters sold in Portugal. Ten of the 32 sparkling waters had a pH below 5.2, compared with one of the 73 still waters.
Blood pressure
A 2024 systematic review asked whether people with high blood pressure should avoid sparkling water. It concluded the question “remains unanswered”.
How it fits together
The pattern is consistent across these studies. Plain sparkling water behaves much like still water, while flavours, sugar and cola bring the problems.
How much should you trust this?
Early. The pieces fit together, but they come from small and varied studies.
What makes it convincing
- Different kinds of studies, on teeth, bones and hydration, point the same way.
- The large Framingham study separated cola from other fizzy drinks.
- Major dental and nutrition bodies agree that plain sparkling water is fine.
What makes me cautious
- No systematic review looks at sparkling water as a whole.
- The teeth studies were in the lab, not in real mouths.
- Several trials were funded by drinks companies.
- Most trials were small and short.
| The evidence shows | The evidence does not show |
|---|---|
| Plain sparkling water is far gentler on teeth than soda | That it’s as gentle as still water |
| Non-cola fizzy drinks weren’t linked to bone loss | That cola itself causes bone loss |
| Sparkling water hydrates like still water | That it helps you lose weight |
| It may ease indigestion for some | That it’s right for people prone to bloating |
What this means for you
- Plain is best. Choose unflavoured, unsweetened sparkling water when you can.
- Watch the flavours. Citrus-flavoured fizzy waters are more acidic, so treat them more like juice than water.
- Keep some fluoride. Harvard says sparkling water shouldn’t replace tap water with fluoride for oral health.
- Listen to your gut. If bubbles make you bloated, switch to still water.
- Use it to swap out sugary drinks. That’s where the real health gain is.
The ADA’s guide to sparkling water and teeth explains what to look for on the label.
In this news report, Good Morning America looks at whether sparkling water is bad for you:
What we still don’t know
- Does sparkling water harm teeth in real life? Saliva and diet may change the lab picture.
- Is it safe for people with high blood pressure? Some mineral waters are high in sodium.
- Does it really curb snacking? Only one small, industry-funded trial has tested it.
- What about heavy daily drinkers? Long-term studies are missing.
- What about children? Most studies tested adults.
My take: fizz is fine, flavour is the catch
What I like about this evidence is how it untangles cola from plain bubbles. Most of the scary headlines were really about soda.
I’m less convinced by claims that sparkling water helps you lose weight. That rests on one small trial funded by the maker.
If you enjoy plain sparkling water, keep drinking it. Just check the label for acid, flavour and sugar.
Last reviewed: 2026-10-04
Covers: Whether sparkling water is bad for you, its effects on teeth, bones, hydration and digestion, and flavoured versions
Evidence: Early — consistent but small and varied studies, several industry-funded
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