It’s never made sense to me that some people refuse to drink water even if they know it keeps you functioning properly. The same people will complain of constipation or dry skin but don’t want to do the thing that fixes their issues.

  • ch00f@lemmy.world
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    9 days ago

    Some people don’t have access to decent tasting tap water and bottled water is expensive.

    Tip: If your water tastes like chlorine, just fill a pitcher and put it in the fridge. Whatever chemicals they use will off gas overnight and it’ll taste great in the morning.

    • neidu3@sh.itjust.works
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      9 days ago

      Some people don’t have access to decent tasting tap water

      Most people IMHO. Most places I’ve been where they claim that the tap water is potable, it either tastes like public pool or swamp. Except for Galveston who somehow made it taste like both with residents believing “It’s OK”

      • Caveman@lemmy.world
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        7 days ago

        You should try it in Iceland. Tap water is so clean you practically ruin it by putting it in plastic.

        • neidu3@sh.itjust.works
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          7 days ago

          Never been, but I’m sure their tap water is great for the same reason mine is: Plenty of mountainous lakes, and not that many people around them.

          I generally don’t drink nk bottled water… It tastes… stale.

    • grysbok@lemmy.sdf.org
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      9 days ago

      The water at my office smells like chlorine. It’s dreadful. I wouldn’t even use it to make coffee, I fill up a nalgene at home and bring that in. My home water is well water and tastes a tad high iron, just the way I like it. (HOA regularly tests the water and it’s always within legal limits, yay.)

    • overload@sopuli.xyz
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      9 days ago

      I don’t know if offgassing is the reason the water tastes better when cooled overnight. I would do this with an enclosed bottle (no off-gassing possible) and it would taste equally better.

      Definitely cooling it is an improvement, I always thought it tasted different due to how our mouth/taste buds responds to the dropping temperature.

    • scintilla@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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      8 days ago

      If you have the money for it a water bottle with a filter (even just the carbon Brita ones) improve the taste immensely. I use an Epic water filter for everything and it makes nearly all water taste good*.

      • The only exception I had was the Atlanta airport I have no clue what the fuck was going on their but the water was disgusting.

      Also worth noting: don’t use a filtered water bottle for filtering water that has contaimints you are actually worried about consuming; none except for grayl actually match their claimed results with third party testing.

  • andyburke@fedia.io
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    9 days ago

    ITT: people with crumbling infrastructure under a corporate oligarchy discuss why they are unhealthy.

    • Sciaphobia@sh.itjust.works
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      9 days ago

      What would you suggest we do? Take precious profits away from stakeholders and repair shit? Sounds like communism to me buddy. Up against the wall.

    • ReanuKeeves@lemm.eeOP
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      9 days ago

      Good thing access to clean drinking water isn’t a human right. Oh wait.

      • scintilla@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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        9 days ago

        Luckily the US of A has a sneaky trick called not ratifying shit and refusing to be held to the same standard as “third world countries” while saying they are superior.

        Seriously the US actually hasn’t ratified most of the treaties that govern how warfare or being a functioning society.

  • magic_lobster_party@fedia.io
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    9 days ago

    When I grew up I didn’t like drinking water. I thought it tasted bland compared to all the sugary drinks. Looking back, I think our family struggled with sugar addiction without knowing it. We consumed quite a lot of sugar in my childhood.

    It wasn’t until my teenage years I questioned the amount of sugary drinks I consumed. So I just cut off all sugary drinks and embraced the way of the water.

    Today I’m a proud water enjoyer.

    • happydoors@lemmy.world
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      9 days ago

      Same but I didn’t turn around til my 20s. Educate yourself and your loved ones! Sugar is highly unnecessary, especially in liquid form!

    • scarabic@lemmy.world
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      8 days ago

      This is the answer. People above are somehow blaming private corporations for their public infrastructure (which doesn’t even make sense anyway) when the real answer is that many people just think “it doesn’t taste good” compared to the syrupy swill they’ve become addicted to.

  • Rentlar@lemmy.ca
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    9 days ago

    Some people are addicted to sugar to the point where every beverage must be sweet flavoured.

    I have water, but othertimes I am sugar addicted so I want a different beverage.

    Also I have had tap water in various places across Canada. Most are decent, some are especially delicious, some have awful after tastes and even smell weird (sulfur or chlorine). If that stuff runs to your home I can understand why people prefer bottled water, tea or soda instead of tap water.

  • silly goose meekah@lemmy.world
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    8 days ago

    Basically they’re people who got caught in the food industries propaganda.

    They might consciously know they need regular water, but their body is now craving sugar with every sip. If it’s missing, it feels wrong.

    Sugar needs to be much more regulated, especially for kids… Adults may be responsible enough to handle it but without regulation the industry will run wild and make everyone addicted.

    • Pandemanium@lemm.ee
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      As a counterpoint, I don’t replace water with anything sugary/flavored. I just… don’t get thirsty, like ever, unless I’m working outside in hot weather. Most people’s bodies remind them to drink. Mine doesn’t. I try to remember to drink water throughout the day rather than just at mealtimes, but if I don’t have a glass next to me, I will almost certainly forget. I feel like I can’t be the only person like this.

      • AnarchistArtificer@slrpnk.net
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        8 days ago

        Perchance do you have autism and/or ADHD? I ask because I experience the same thing as you do, and for me, it feels like it derives from my autism/ADHD. Like, sometimes the first cue that I am severely dehydrated is that I get a headache. I get a similar thing with hunger, where I could legitimately go for multiple days without noticing I’m hungry if I don’t get reminded that food is a thing.

    • Caveman@lemmy.world
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      7 days ago

      I’m on the opinion that marketing anything related to addiction is immoral and should be illegal. This includes cigarette, gambling, sugar, drugs (looking at you oxycontin), alcohol and even caffeine.

      There is a backdoor into people’s brains that should not be used. Allow people go get their own coffee and sugar but don’t remind them it’s missing when they’re quitting.

      (Coffee has been shown to be beneficial in reducing the overall death rate in adults when consuming something like 2+ cups a day so marketing it could be beneficial but the chance kids getting addicted to caffeine is something to avoid regardless.)

      • silly goose meekah@lemmy.world
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        7 days ago

        Absolutely agree. It is horrible how our governments allow corporations to use that backdoor to extract as much shareholder value from us as possible

    • starlinguk@lemmy.world
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      8 days ago

      The food industry’s propaganda is that you need to drink 2 litres of water a day. You don’t.

      In 1974 the book Nutrition for Good Health, co-authored by nutritionists Margaret McWilliams and Frederick Stare, recommended that the average adult consumes between six to eight glasses of water a day. But, the authors wrote, this can include fruit and veg, caffeinated and soft drinks, even beer.

      • silly goose meekah@lemmy.world
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        8 days ago

        Honestly not sure where to start with this one.

        I’m sure the blanket statement of needing to drink 2 liters of water is misleading in plenty of situations but I really don’t think this is what we should be focusing on. This is the last thing from the food industry that I’d consider propaganda. Not to mention that it’s really not a bad recommendation, and a 50 year old book 2 people wrote (no matter their qualification) isn’t really a solid foundation for an argument like this.

        Of course water intake is highly individual. Athletes may drink 10+ liters per day, but most people are probably fine with just drinking when they’re thirsty.

        I don’t think anyone is saying that 2 liters are necessary for survival. You can get away with much less. The thing is, it’s easy to drink more than enough, it has many benefits, and there isn’t really much of a downside to it. The 2 liters are a rule of thumb, not an exact required amount for everyone.

        Regarding the beer, we know nowadays there is no amount of alcohol that is healthy. Sure, beer might be able to hydrate you when enjoyed in moderation, but it’s plain counterproductive when recommended as a healthy diet.

  • howrar@lemmy.ca
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    9 days ago

    Growing up, I didn’t like water either because I didn’t like the taste. No one around me could understand how I could dislike it because water supposedly tastes like nothing. BUT IT DOESN’T. WATER HAS FLAVOUR. Anyway, I later figured out that filtered tap water tastes a lot better than the bottled kind.

    • Feathercrown@lemmy.world
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      The gaslighting people do about taste is insane. “Celery doesn’t have a taste” “sweet potato tastes like candy” “Water doesn’t have a taste” What planet do these people live on

      • pdqcp@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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        Whenever I hear that in my family, it always comes from smokers, which basically means their taste buds and olfactory senses have already been compromised

    • Exactly the same here.

      Plus, some people are really sensitive to tastes and textures. When we’re not them, we call them picky eaters. When I was a child, I couldn’t stand the taste of water, and there were other foods I found repulsive. Even a different brand of ingredient from the one I was used to made me gag.

      Somehow, I completely grew out of that and I’m now very adventurous when it comes to food. But it did leave me with empathy when I encounter someone who has a limited palate, which is pretty common among my nerd-spectrum peer group.

      When you think about it, eating the wrong thing is a quick path to sickness or death, so it makes sense that food can trigger extreme reactions of disgust. If you ever ate something and got sick afterward, even if the two were unrelated, it’s very hard to un-make that connection.

  • nocturne@sopuli.xyz
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    9 days ago

    I grew up drinking well water that tastes amazing. When I moved from home I have found that every other water tastes horrid (with a few exceptions). I can drink bad water when it is really cold. I know drinking water is good for me, I do force myself to drink it, but no where near as much as that well water.

      • nocturne@sopuli.xyz
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        9 days ago

        A filter does not improve the flavor, only changes it, and it removes TDS that help hydrate.

        • ysjet@lemmy.world
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          9 days ago

          Guys, please stop downvoting the guy- well water contians more minerals and salts and things that give it it’s distinctive taste (and as someone that grew up with well water, lemme tell you, it can DEFINITELY have a taste- hell, a buddy of ours from school could barely drink it cause he said it tasted like blood- high in copper and iron I think?)

          Filtering water makes it taste vastly LESS like well water! So if that’s what you’re going for/wanting, filtering is the worst thing you could do.

          And yes, depending on well water, it may have more salts dissolved in it, which could help with hydration in the same way Gatorade does.

        • Caveman@lemmy.world
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          7 days ago

          I’d still recommend a filter. It’s not just for drinking it straight but pasta, rice, soup and other boiling makes a huge difference.

          Eating a spoon of rice and have it taste like sink water with carbs is not a good vibe. I want it to taste like rice or rice with minerals.

          • nocturne@sopuli.xyz
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            7 days ago

            rice with minerals.

            What do you think the filter is removing? It is getting rid of the minerals.

            • Caveman@lemmy.world
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              7 days ago

              It is, along with other less desirable compounds like chlorine and PFAS depending on the filter.

  • gerryflap@feddit.nl
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    8 days ago

    I wondered this for a long while, but I’ve realized that I’m in a pretty privileged position. Where I live (the Netherlands) the tap water is not only drinkable, it’s actually almost indistinguishable from mineral water. Certainly for me at least. I’m not much of a traveller, but when I was in Oostende in Belgium I remember the tap water was absolutely vile. It was (or at least tasted like) desalinated seawater. Instead of hydrating and refreshing it tasted stale and salty. If that was the only water I knew I probably would be drinking more refreshing stuff like ice tea or cola all day as well. When I got back to the Netherlands my first glass of tap water tasted like heaven.

    • shalafi@lemmy.world
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      8 days ago

      Similar to my ex-wife who grew up on well water with loads of minerals. She found tap water to be disgusting and said it tasted of chemicals. And everywhere I’ve lived in America, the tap water is indeed loaded with chemicals.

      For anyone wanting a cool experiment to try: Turn your tap water on full blast and fill a cup. Immediately hover your nose directly above the water and take a deep smell. Now set that glass in the sun for an hour or three, or just leave it on the counter for a day, smell again.

      For a longer term experiment: Water identical plants with a) only tap water, b) only rainwater. I catch rainwater and have found a profound improvement in my house plants and terrariums.

  • Raiderkev@lemmy.world
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    9 days ago

    My friend from work doesn’t drink water. Like. At all. She drinks Diet coke like all day. She’s in her 50’s and has a ton of health issues. I don’t think that’s a coincidence.

      • Synapse@lemmy.world
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        8 days ago

        Same, you offer me a Coca-Cola or a glace of tap water, I go with water any time. Cola will just make me more thirsty and my mouth will taste unpleasant sugary for hours. It’s just isn’t nice.

  • weariedfae@sh.itjust.works
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    I grew up on well water that smelled like sulfur and was sometimes unsafe to drink.

    The water fountains at school were HEAVILY chlorinated.

    Water just wasn’t really an option growing up or if it was you had to mask the taste with Koolaid or something.

    I don’t crave it. I’m not in the habit of drinking plain water. I have a zero water system now and I drink it a lot more but some people either have an access issue or never developed the habit due to similar factors as me.

    • scarabic@lemmy.world
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      Water just wasn’t really an option

      This is funny, considering how many people in the world survive on muddy water they had to walk miles to collect in a bucket.

      • JcbAzPx@lemmy.world
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        8 days ago

        I know some people would kill for water that only might kill you, but when you have choices, you don’t choose the stuff that might make you sick.

  • Phoonzang@lemmy.world
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    8 days ago

    “Because I’m not poor! I got all the water I need from food”.

    My boomer dad, constantly suffering from health issues because of poor hydration. Does not help that the only liquids he consumes are beer and wine.

  • HenchmanNumber3@lemm.ee
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    9 days ago

    Some people live or grew up in areas where the water source tastes weird or gross, so they might have a mental association of water with a negative quality. Some people remark that water is generally flavorless. I’ve heard this from other people on the spectrum. I prefer water with some kind of flavor. Water without a flavor is only satisfying on a hot day or if you’ve been working out. This is possibly a side effect of growing up with a high sugar diet where you expect everything to taste sweeter. So it might be attributed to the sugar industry’s “fat makes you fat, sugar is fine” lasting effect on the populace.

    • Buffalox@lemmy.world
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      9 days ago

      You are spot on. Water is absolutely not flavorless.

      Fortunately I live in a place with high quality clean water, and on a warm day if I’m very thirsty, the taste of water is really really good, it clearly beats any soft drink IMO. I can even prefer it over a cold beer when I’m thirsty!
      But even minor contaminants can make it taste way worse, if you live in a house with old plumbing, or if you can see buildup in the metal filter most taps have, the taste of your water is probably influenced by contamination besides Iron from the pipes. Good iron pipes are OK, but new synthetic pipes are better.

      If I drink a carbonized mineral water, I can also most definitely taste the carbonation.

      If the water smells like rainy weather or wet skin or in some other way smells off, it is probably contaminated. However the water can have a slight metallic smell because there are actually naturally occurring minerals in the water. BUT if your water is discolored, it is definitely contaminated, and drinking it can make you sick.
      Our water is pretty high on calcium, but there is for instance also a small amount of lithium. Lower calcium water taste a bit sweeter, so natural water definitely exist that is even better than our water.

      Remember always let the tap run for a short while before drinking from it.
      If the water doesn’t taste good, it’s probably because it’s not good.

      • grysbok@lemmy.sdf.org
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        9 days ago

        Sometimes discoloration of water is just it being full of air. My HOA’s backup water well is like that. It’s been tested and is fine to drink, but it’s incredibly cloudy until it’s sat for a few minutes.

        Also, if you’re on well water get it tested. Even if it was fine when you moved in, things change. Maybe the new farm down the road’s fertilizer is leaking in to the ground water. You won’t know unless someone tests.

        • Buffalox@lemmy.world
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          If it’s only air it just gets cloudy, not discolored.
          It can be disolored from iron, and that’s not a health problem AFAIK.

          I have never heard of anybody here in Denmark who has brown or cloudy tap water. That would simply not be considered acceptable.
          Tap water here is always CRYSTAL clear, and generally higher quality than bottled water.

      • HubertManne@piefed.social
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        9 days ago

        I don’t think the cold water on a hot day is about flavor. Its just as flavorless as its ever been. Its neutral and you can’t get away from that without flavoring it. Bad water can taste aweful but the best is just going to be neutral. We like the taste of acidic things for some reason. Not sure why. The cold water when hot is more a craving and if for some reason you can’t get ice cold water but you can soda. Even if your not a soda drinker you may guzzle the icey drink.

        • scintilla@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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          9 days ago

          This is just not true. When my wife’s family moved to my home state they all though that the water tasted “sweet”. Good tasting water definitely exists.

          • HubertManne@piefed.social
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            8 days ago

            If i moved there I would get it tested to find out why it had that flavor. Pure distilled water that is only h2o definitely does not.

        • Buffalox@lemmy.world
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          9 days ago

          Sad for you, but just because you can’t taste it doesn’t change the fact that water actually has taste.

          • HubertManne@piefed.social
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            8 days ago

            pure distilled water does not. if water with taste is water then great. I personally have a bad habit of drinking a particular flavor of water called soda.

  • Gerudo@lemm.ee
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    9 days ago

    Grew up on well water, it tasted funny. Most water I tried to drink was from water fountains, tasted like copper. First bottled water I drank was Deja Blue, and it tasted like hose water. So I thought all water tasted like ass.

    I didn’t get that water could taste good until I drank actual bottled spring water. Now I have nice water filters that make my tap taste just fine, and I know what brands of water to buy if I need to.

    • Feathercrown@lemmy.world
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      9 days ago

      Can confirm most public sources of water taste like garbage. Drinking fountains taste like liquid metal, city restaurant water tastes like chlorine, some people’s tap water is straight up gross. But good water is SO GOOD. Filtered water or bottled spring water are safe bets, but the best water is actually good tap water; the minerals enhance it imo.

  • over_clox@lemmy.world
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    9 days ago

    Where I’m at, the tap water not only tastes bad, it’ll also give you the flying shits for days, and beer is cheaper than bottled water…