Sports drinks, bottled water or tap water? What kind of fluids and how much do you drink? Here are the liquid results from our December-January 2007 SmartShape online survey.Take the current survey | Past survey results | Subscribe
Tap water a clear winner
Over three-quarters (82%) of our survey respondents drink more than a cup (250mL) of tap water each day. More than a half (59%) drink more than a litre and one-quarter (26%) gulp down more than 2 L every day.
Among other fluid options, tap water was the clear winner in terms of daily volume consumed. Here is a full list of fluids showing the percentages of people who regularly drink more than a cup a day:
82% - Tap water
50% - Bottled water
48% - Coffee
35% - Milk
28% - Green/herbal tea
16% - Black tea
13% - Diet cola
12% - Fruit juice
7% - Regular sports drinks
5% - `Lite' sports drinks / sports water
3% - Regular and diet soft drinks
2% - Regular cola drinks
Water to go
The figures for tap water make sense, given that 46% of survey respondents take a water bottle with them `every time' they leave home. Another 34% do this `most of the time'. Only 8% buy bottled water every day and another 23% buy it a few times a week. A further 30% pay for bottled water a few times a month.
Water on the run
Tap water was way out in front during exercise, with 93% choosing tap water as the drink most preferred during exercise. The sports drink and the no drinks were miles behind with 2.2% of people ticking both these boxes.
Fluids come naturally
Drinking may come naturally for survey participants, with just over half (53%) usually setting a daily fluid target. Of these people, the `2 L a day' target was most common goal.
Some people set a goal of 2 litres, while others said 8 glasses or even 4 x 600 mL bottles. As a tip, if you continually miss your 2 litre target, try the 3 bottle target as it may be more user friendly.-It just sounds simpler and you can keep a simple tally of bottles through the day.
Tips to remind yourself to drink
About a third (34%) of our survey said they usually needed to remind themselves to drink fluid during the day. Not surprisingly, the most common reminder to drink water is to leave a water bottle out. Here's how you put it:
- "I set goals of how much I need to drink by what time, e.g., 1/2 bottle (600mls) between breakfast and morning tea and another half between morning tea and lunch or even one whole bottle.”
- "I Leave glass next to sink to remind me to drink it every time I walk past it.”
- “I have 2 water bottles sitting at my desk (1200 ml) to drink as a minimum while at work.”
- “I leave the water bottle in sight.”
- “I Take my water bottle with me EVERYWHERE.”
- “I leave bottles out.”
- “My water bottle is always with me.”
The take-home message here is to keep up a constant visual reminder and stimulus to drink by keeping a water bottle within sight at all times. Just doing this is sure to boost your fluid intake.Check your fluids
How do your fluid habits compare with our survey? Take note of the all the drinks you consume tomorrow and find out. If you consume less then 2 L of non-caffeinated liquids, including water over a 24 hour period, leave some little reminders to drink more.
Who responded to the survey?
94 people of which 84% were female
A big thank you to all who completed the survey!
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