Households swapping sugary fizzy drinks
If you like a sweet flavour, check a sugar-free flavoured drink’s nutrition panel and ingredients. If it is the fizz you want, plain sparkling water is a different option without a flavoured-drink formulation.
Who is each choice for?
Shoppers stocking the fridge
Compare the total volume, bottle size and storage space a multipack needs. Smaller bottles and larger household bottles serve different routines, even when both contain plain sparkling water.
Shoppers checking sweeteners or acidity
Read the ingredients to identify sweeteners and added acids in flavoured drinks. If you sip fizzy drinks frequently, bear in mind the NHS guidance linking carbonated drinks with dental erosion.
What should you check first?
Decide whether you want plain water or a flavoured drink, then check the label and choose a bottle format that fits your routine.
| Priority | What to check | Your needs |
|---|---|---|
| Sugars | Read the sugars figure per 100 ml and per serving. Check the full product description: “no added sugar” alone does not say whether a drink is sugar-free. | I want to swap a sugary fizzy drink, but still choose between plain fizz and a sweet-tasting alternative. |
| Ingredients | Check whether the product is plain carbonated water or a flavoured drink. Read the ingredients for sweeteners and acids; Sainsbury’s Lemon & Lime lists sucralose and citric acid, while M&S Lemon and Lime lists steviol glycosides and citric acid. | A sugar-free label is not enough if I want an unsweetened drink or need to identify a particular ingredient. |
| Fizzy-drink routine | Consider how often you sip it. The NHS associates carbonated drinks with dental erosion due to acid content, whether or not they contain sugar or lower- or no-calorie sweeteners. | For frequent sipping, I would rather keep plain still water to hand than assume a sugar-free fizzy drink has no dental-acidity trade-off. |
| Pack format | Check bottle volume, total pack volume and whether you can carry and store it. The Tesco category listing includes plain-water multipacks in both 1L and 2L bottles. | A larger pack might suit my household, provided the bottles fit where I plan to keep them. |
Common first-shop mix-ups
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Treating “sugar-free” and “no added sugar” as the same thing
Neither phrase tells you on its own whether a flavoured drink contains sweeteners or added acids. Sainsbury’s no-added-sugar Lemon & Lime drink, for example, lists both sucralose and citric acid.
Read the sugars declaration alongside the ingredients, then decide whether you want plain water or a flavoured drink.
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Assuming sugar-free fizz has no dental-acidity trade-off
The NHS associates carbonated drinks with dental erosion due to acid content regardless of whether they contain sugar or lower- or no-calorie sweeteners.
If you often sip a drink between meals, consider keeping plain still water available as well.
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Choosing a multipack by bottle count alone
Six 1L bottles and six 2L bottles take up different amounts of space and may suit different households.
Check both the individual bottle size and total volume before deciding what you can carry and store.
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Relying only on an online ingredient listing
Ingredients can change, which matters when you are avoiding a particular sweetener or other ingredient.
Check the label on the bottle or can you receive before drinking it.
Brand and own-label examples
These examples illustrate differences between plain sparkling water and flavoured drinks; check the label of the particular product you choose.
Highland Spring
A plain sparkling-water choice available in different bottle and multipack sizes.
- Highland Spring describes its sparkling water as having “nothing added but bubbles”.
- It is still carbonated, so the NHS dental-acidity guidance remains relevant.
San Pellegrino
Plain sparkling natural mineral water for shoppers choosing that style of drink.
- Joybuy’s 6x1L product page lists natural mineral water and carbon dioxide as ingredients, with 0 g sugars per 100 ml.
- Check bottle size when comparing it with other plain-water multipacks.
Perrier
Plain carbonated mineral water rather than a sweetened flavoured drink.
- Perrier describes its plain carbonated mineral water as having no sugar and zero calories.
- Those declarations do not remove the dental-acidity consideration associated with carbonated drinks in NHS guidance.
Tesco
Its sparkling-water range includes plain mineral-water multipacks and flavoured drinks.
- The Tesco category listing includes a plain British natural mineral water sparkling multipack in 6x2L bottles.
- A product’s place in the sparkling-water category does not tell you whether it is plain or flavoured; read its description and ingredients.
Sainsbury’s
Its Lemon & Lime No Added Sugar option is a flavoured sparkling drink, not plain sparkling water.
- The product ingredients identify its sweetener as sucralose.
- The same ingredients list includes citric acid, so read the full label rather than relying on “no added sugar”.
M&S
Its range includes both plain sparkling natural mineral water and a sugar-free flavoured option.
- M&S lists steviol glycosides and citric acid in its sugar-free Lemon and Lime sparkling water.
- The flavoured product and its plain Collection sparkling mineral water are different choices; check the label for the one you buy.
Plain sparkling water on Joybuy
These plain sparkling-water multipacks suit a first shop centred on unflavoured fizz. Compare their bottle sizes and total volumes with how you plan to store and use them.
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San Pellegrino Sparkling Natural Mineral Water 6x1L
For a household choosing plain fizz, Joybuy’s product page lists natural mineral water and carbon dioxide as ingredients and 0 g sugars per 100 ml. The pack contains six 1L bottles.
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San Pellegrino Sparkling Natural Mineral Water 6 x 0.5L
This plain sparkling mineral-water pack has six 0.5L bottles, a smaller individual bottle size than the 1L San Pellegrino pack shown here.
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Buxton Sparkling 8x500ml
For shoppers wanting several smaller bottles of plain fizz, this pack contains eight 500ml bottles, totalling 4L.
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Highland Spring Sparkling Spring Water 8x500ml
Choose this format if you want plain sparkling water in smaller bottles: the pack contains eight 500ml bottles. Check the bottle’s nutrition label if you need an exact sugars declaration.
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Highland Spring Sparkling Spring Water 6x1L
For a home pack of plain sparkling water, this contains six 1L bottles, totalling 6L. Check the bottle’s nutrition label if you need an exact sugars declaration.
Questions about sparkling drinks
Is plain sparkling water the same as a sugar-free flavoured drink?
No. Plain sparkling water can contain water and carbon dioxide, while a sugar-free flavoured drink can also contain sweeteners and acids. Highland Spring describes its plain sparkling water as having nothing added but bubbles; Sainsbury’s Lemon & Lime flavoured drink lists sucralose and citric acid.
Does “no added sugar” mean no sugar or sweeteners?
No. The wording alone does not establish either point. Read the nutrition panel for sugars and the ingredients for sweeteners: Sainsbury’s no-added-sugar Lemon & Lime drink lists sucralose, while M&S’s sugar-free Lemon and Lime drink lists steviol glycosides.
Are sugar-free fizzy drinks harmless for teeth?
No. The NHS associates carbonated drinks with dental erosion due to their acid content, regardless of whether they contain sugar or lower- or no-calorie sweeteners. If you want a drink to sip frequently, plain still water avoids choosing fizz for that routine.