TV snackers swapping a sweet fizzy drink
Plain sparkling water provides fizz without a sweet flavour. If you want a fruit-flavoured drink instead, check whether its sweetness comes with listed sweeteners or sugars from juice.
Who is each option for?
Flavour seekers avoiding sweeteners
Read the ingredients as well as the no-added-sugar claim. Tesco's Apple & Raspberry and Sainsbury's Apple & Elderflower examples list sweeteners; M&S says its juice-led Apple & Elderflower drink has no artificial sweeteners, but its nutrition panel lists 6.6 g sugars per 100 g.
Shoppers checking the sugars figure
If your aim is little or no listed sugar, use the nutrition panel rather than treating “no added sugar” as “no sugar”. Juice-containing drinks can carry a no-added-sugar description and still list sugars.
What should you check before choosing?
Start with the flavour you want alongside your snacks, then check the sugars figure and ingredients for the specific drink.
| Priority | What to check | Your needs |
|---|---|---|
| Listed sugars | Read “of which sugars” and its unit. Tesco Groceries lists 0.2 g per 100 ml for its Apple & Raspberry drink; Marks & Spencer lists 6.6 g per 100 g for its juice-led Apple & Elderflower drink. Those units differ, so do not compare the figures as though they share a basis. | I want to know how much sugar the drink lists, not just whether it says “no added sugar”. |
| Sweeteners | Check the ingredients list. Tesco Groceries lists sucralose in its Apple & Raspberry drink; Sainsbury's lists acesulfame K and sucralose in its Apple & Elderflower drink. | Fruit flavour appeals to me, but I want to decide separately whether I'm comfortable with sweeteners. |
| Flavour style | Distinguish plain water from flavoured water and juice-led sparkling drinks. Highland Spring describes its plain sparkling water as having nothing added but bubbles; Marks & Spencer describes its Apple & Elderflower drink as containing over 60% juice. | Do I want just the fizz with my snacks, or a fruit-flavoured drink? If I choose a juice-led option, I'll also check its sugars figure. |
| Serving size | Check the bottle or can size as well as the nutrition unit. Tesco's Apple & Raspberry drink comes in 500 ml bottles, while the San Pellegrino Zero Limonata example comes in 330 ml cans. | For a film or programme, I want to relate the label figures to the amount I expect to drink. |
Label mistakes to avoid
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Reading “no added sugar” as “no sugar”
Juice can contribute sugars to a drink described as having no added sugar. Marks & Spencer lists 6.6 g sugars per 100 g for its Juicy Apple & Elderflower Sparkling Water.
Check “of which sugars” on the nutrition panel when choosing between plain water, flavoured water and a juice-led drink.
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Assuming flavoured water has no sweeteners
Tesco's and Sainsbury's cited no-added-sugar flavoured drinks list sweeteners. A low sugars figure does not answer whether a drink contains them.
Read the ingredients list if avoiding sweeteners matters to you; choose a plain sparkling water if you would rather have fizz without a sweet flavour.
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Comparing unlike nutrition figures
A whole-bottle figure, a per-100-ml figure and a per-100-g figure describe different amounts. Pack sizes also differ between drinks.
Match the units before comparing sugars figures, then consider how much of the drink you expect to have during TV night.
Brand and product references
These examples show why the product name, ingredients and nutrition panel matter more than the brand name alone.
Highland Spring
Highland Spring describes its plain sparkling water as water with nothing added but bubbles.
- A plain-water option if you do not want a sweet flavour.
- Check the particular pack label rather than applying the description to every Highland Spring product.
Perrier
Perrier describes its plain carbonated mineral water as containing no sugar and zero calories.
- A plain mineral-water option for shoppers seeking fizz without sweetness.
- Check flavoured Perrier products individually; the plain-water description does not establish their ingredients.
Tesco
Tesco's No Added Sugar Apple & Raspberry Sparkling Flavoured Water is a fruit-flavoured soft drink.
- Tesco Groceries lists 0.2 g sugars per 100 ml for this product.
- Its ingredients include juice concentrate and sucralose, so it is not a plain or sweetener-free water.
Sainsbury's
Sainsbury's No Added Sugar Apple & Elderflower is a flavoured sparkling-water drink.
- Sainsbury's lists less than 0.5 g sugars per 100 ml for this product.
- Its ingredients list acesulfame K and sucralose.
San Pellegrino
The Zero Limonata example is a lemon soft drink, not plain sparkling mineral water.
- Tesco Groceries describes it as containing 10% lemon juice from concentrate and lists 0.3 g sugars per 100 ml.
- It contains sweeteners and carries a statement that it contains naturally occurring sugar.
M&S
M&S Juicy Apple & Elderflower Sparkling Water is a juice-led drink described as having no added sugar.
- Marks & Spencer states that it contains over 60% juice and no artificial sweeteners.
- Its nutrition information lists 6.6 g sugars per 100 g; do not treat its no-added-sugar description as a zero-sugar claim.
Plain sparkling water options on Joybuy
These plain sparkling-water multipacks suit a TV-night choice when you want fizz rather than a sweet-tasting flavoured drink. Check each product's current label if its ingredients or sugars figure are decisive for you.
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San Pellegrino Sparkling Natural Mineral Water, 6 × 500 ml
A plain sparkling mineral-water option for a TV-night drink when fruit flavour is not the priority. The pack contains six 500 ml bottles; check the label if a particular fizz level matters to you.
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Buxton Sparkling, 8 × 500 ml
A plain sparkling-water option if you want individual bottles alongside snacks. The pack contains eight 500 ml bottles; check the label if a particular fizz level matters to you.
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Highland Spring Sparkling Spring Water, 8 × 500 ml
A plain sparkling spring-water option if you would rather have bubbles than a sweet-tasting drink. The pack contains eight 500 ml bottles; check the label if a particular fizz level matters to you.
Frequently asked questions
Does “no added sugar” mean a sparkling drink contains no sugar?
No. A drink can contain sugars from juice without having sugar added to it. Marks & Spencer describes its Juicy Apple & Elderflower drink as having no added sugar, yet lists 6.6 g sugars per 100 g. Check the nutrition panel for the drink you are buying.
How can I avoid sweeteners as well as added sugar?
Plain sparkling water is a straightforward option when you want fizz without a sweet flavour. For a flavoured drink, inspect the ingredients: Tesco's cited Apple & Raspberry product lists sucralose, while Sainsbury's Apple & Elderflower product lists acesulfame K and sucralose.
Which sparkling drink should I choose with TV night snacks?
Choose plain sparkling water if bubbles without sweetness appeal to you. If you want fruit flavour, compare the sugars figure and ingredients before choosing: sweetener-containing flavoured water and juice-led sparkling drinks have different ingredient profiles, even when both say “no added sugar”.
Can I compare sugars figures across different pack sizes?
Yes, but compare figures expressed in the same unit rather than putting a whole-bottle value beside a per-100-ml value. Also note whether a label gives sugars per 100 ml or per 100 g; the cited M&S juice-led drink uses per 100 g. Then consider the amount you expect to drink.