Students stocking a shared fridge
If you want a ready-to-drink option without juice or sweeteners, plain sparkling water keeps the choice simple. Check the bottle size against your fridge space before buying a multipack.
Who is choosing a move-in drink?
Students looking for a flavoured alternative
Flavoured sparkling mineral water and sweeter no-added-sugar drinks have different formulations. S.Pellegrino says its Essenza line contains no sugars or sweeteners; Tesco’s Apple & Raspberry contains fruit juice and sucralose.
Students checking sugars and sweeteners separately
“No added sugar” does not answer either question on its own. Tesco lists 0.2g sugars per 100ml and sucralose for its Apple & Raspberry drink; M&S lists 6.6g sugars per 100g for its juice-based Juicy Apple & Elderflower drink.
What should you check before buying?
Start with the kind of drink you want, then read the ingredients and nutrition panel on the exact flavour and pack.
| Priority | What to check | Your needs |
|---|---|---|
| Sugars | Read “of which sugars” and its unit. Check for juice in the ingredients; compare figures on the same measurement basis where possible. | I want to know whether “no added sugar” still leaves sugars in the drink. Tesco lists 0.2g per 100ml for Apple & Raspberry, whereas M&S lists 6.6g per 100g for Juicy Apple & Elderflower. |
| Sweeteners and flavour | Check the ingredients for sweeteners and juice, or look for an explicit no-sweeteners statement for the exact product line. S.Pellegrino describes Essenza as having no sugars or sweeteners. | For flavour without sweeteners, I would check a line such as Essenza. If I prefer a sweeter fruit-style drink, I need to be comfortable with its listed ingredients. |
| Pack format | Compare bottle size and pack count with fridge space, shared-kitchen storage and what you can carry. | Smaller bottles would suit trips to campus; a larger bottle could suit a shared kitchen if there is room to store it. |
| Frequent fizz | Consider how often you drink fizzy beverages. The NHS associates carbonated drinks with dental erosion due to acidity, regardless of sugar or sweetener content. | I want a fizzy option, but I also want still water available rather than sipping a carbonated drink throughout the day. |
What is easy to overlook?
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Reading “no added sugar” as “no sugars”
A drink can contain sugars from its ingredients. M&S lists 6.6g sugars per 100g for its no-added-sugar Juicy Apple & Elderflower drink.
Read the sugars figure and ingredient list on the exact pack if avoiding sugars matters to you.
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Assuming fruit flavour means no sweetener
Tesco’s no-added-sugar Apple & Raspberry sparkling drink lists sucralose.
If you want to avoid sweeteners, check the exact flavour’s ingredients or choose a product explicitly described as having no sweeteners.
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Treating sugar-free fizz as tooth-neutral
The NHS associates carbonated drinks with dental erosion because of acidity, whether they contain sugar or sweeteners.
Keep still water available rather than relying on a fizzy drink for continuous sipping.
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Choosing a case before checking storage
Multipacks and larger bottles take up different amounts of space in a student room or shared kitchen.
Check the pack count, bottle size and available fridge space; smaller bottles may be easier to carry to campus.
Which product lines illustrate the choices?
These examples distinguish plain water, flavoured mineral water and juice-based drinks; the claims apply to the named lines or products, not every drink from each brand.
Highland Spring
The brand describes its sparkling water as water from Scotland’s Ochil Hills with nothing added but bubbles.
- A plain-water option if you do not want fruit flavour or sweeteners; Highland Spring lists 500ml, 1.5L and 6 × 1L formats.
- It does not provide a fruit flavour. Highland Spring reports a pH between 4 and 5 for its sparkling water.
Perrier
Perrier describes its original carbonated mineral water as containing no sugar and zero calories.
- An option for shoppers seeking plain carbonated mineral water rather than a sweetened drink.
- The NHS dental-acidity caution still applies to carbonated drinks.
S.Pellegrino
S.Pellegrino says its Essenza flavoured sparkling mineral-water line contains no sugars or sweeteners.
- Essenza offers flavour for someone avoiding both sugars and sweeteners.
- Check for the Essenza name: its formulation claim should not be assumed to apply to every S.Pellegrino drink.
Tesco
Tesco’s No Added Sugar Apple & Raspberry Sparkling Flavoured Water is a fruit-flavoured option sold as a 4 × 500ml pack.
- Its nutrition panel lists 0.2g sugars per 100ml.
- Its ingredients include fruit juice and sucralose, so it does not meet a no-sugars or no-sweeteners preference.
M&S
M&S describes Juicy Apple & Elderflower as a no-added-sugar, juice-based sparkling drink without artificial sweeteners.
- An option if you want a juice-forward drink and accept the sugars listed for it.
- Its formulation includes apple juice concentrate, and its nutrition panel lists 6.6g sugars per 100g; it is not interchangeable with plain sparkling water.
Plain sparkling water options on Joybuy
These plain sparkling-water packs suit the move-in choice between smaller bottles to carry and larger bottles for a shared kitchen. Check the exact pack if you need to confirm its ingredients or nutrition information; the NHS dental-acidity caution applies to fizzy drinks even when they contain no sugar.
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San Pellegrino Sparkling Natural Mineral Water, 6 × 0.5L
The six 0.5L bottles provide individual portions to take from a shared fridge or carry to campus. The product is identified as sparkling natural mineral water.
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Highland Spring Sparkling Spring Water, 8 × 500ml
This pack contains eight 500ml bottles for taking individually to class or keeping in a shared fridge. Highland Spring describes its sparkling-water line as having nothing added but bubbles.
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Buxton Sparkling, 8 × 500ml
Eight individual 500ml bottles offer a pack format for carrying a drink between accommodation and campus. Check the exact pack’s ingredients and nutrition panel if you need to confirm a no-sugars or no-sweeteners preference.
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Highland Spring Sparkling Spring Water, 6 × 1L
The six 1L bottles are a larger-bottle format for a shared kitchen if there is room to store them. Highland Spring describes its sparkling-water line as having nothing added but bubbles.
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San Pellegrino Sparkling Natural Mineral Water, 6 × 1L
This six-bottle pack uses 1L bottles rather than individual 500ml portions, making storage space worth checking before move-in. The product is identified as sparkling natural mineral water.
Common questions
Does “no added sugar” mean a sparkling drink has no sugars?
No. Tesco lists 0.2g sugars per 100ml for its no-added-sugar Apple & Raspberry drink, while M&S lists 6.6g sugars per 100g for its juice-based Juicy Apple & Elderflower drink. Read “of which sugars” and the ingredients on the exact pack.
Can a no-added-sugar drink contain sweeteners?
Yes. Tesco’s No Added Sugar Apple & Raspberry lists sucralose. If you prefer to avoid sweeteners, check the ingredients or choose a line explicitly described as having none; S.Pellegrino says this of Essenza.
Can sparkling water be part of an everyday drinks choice?
Yes. The NHS suggests sparkling water for people who do not like the taste of still water. If you drink fizzy beverages frequently, keep still water available too: the NHS also associates carbonated drinks with dental erosion due to acidity.
Does removing sugar remove the dental-acidity concern?
No. NHS guidance associates carbonated drinks with dental erosion because of their acid content, regardless of whether they contain sugar, lower-calorie sweeteners or no-calorie sweeteners.