The taste of water

[Meethoss]

Just a general change of topic really, but something I've been wondering about lately

 

I've always said to people that I don't like the taste of water. They think I'm silly because "water doesn't have a taste" - I usually disagree with them and tell them that for something not to have a taste it would surely have to taste the same as your saliva and that water doesn't taste like that. Anyway, I'm usually fine with the taste of bottled or filtered water so the fact probably is that it's the limestone or other tastes that enter the tap water between the purification process (maybe it's the chemicals) and getting out of the tap.

 

Anyway, I was just wondering if anyone else has the same problem as me? I can drink the water if I really have to, like after I go running or something I'm usually too thirsty to care. But if I just pour a glass of water from the tap purely to drink it (say with tablets or whatever) then my reaction is to usually make a face of disgust afterwards

 

Also I rarely drink anything and can go an entire day with probably having one glass of fluid, although I now recognise this and try to remember to drink every so often (I'm not always successful and realise this at the end of the day).

[bid]

When my DS first went to residesi school he had to take bottled water with him until he got used to the taste of the water down in Zomerzet!

 

I think water definitely has a taste, which does vary from area to area, perhaps connected with the hardness or softness?

 

Bid

[JsMum]

 

 

Yes my son and I cant stand the taste of Tap Water, J couldnt drink from the drinks fountain at school either and was becoming dehydrated a lot, I drink plenty of herbal Teas so I dont get dehydrated anymore and I dont drink Tea and coffee anymore, I think with Tap Water there is a lot to do with soft/hard water, then chemicals, J says it tastes metalic, and he hates the tempreture of the water too, that is why he can drink Water from filtered water as its usually been in a fridge, we love volvic and other brands but the cheaper brands are similair to Tap water, J now drinks herbal tea so he is a bit better, but most of his drinks are flavoured drinks, and natural juices.

 

I boil my water first if I am to drink water and I have a filtered Kettle.

 

J has sensory difficulties such as taste and tempreture and Im sure its to do with his own sensory needs.

 

JsMUMXX

 

[Tally]

Water comes to us in metal pipes, so the water may take on a metallic taste from them. My mum always used to run the tap before pouring a glass of water as the pipes were made of lead and water that has been sitting in the lead pipes may have absorbed some of the lead. I don't think pipes are made from lead any more, but older houses may still have them. In any case, I still find it tastes better if the tap has run for a bit first.

 

I tend not to drink water if that's all that's available, and then end up dehydrated. I'm careful now to take plenty of drink out with me, especially as I would tend to buy unhealthy sugary drinks otherwise.

 

I started giving my cats filtered water and they drink it a lot more than water straight from the tap, so they can obviously detect a difference in odour or taste.

 

I can taste the difference with tap water in different areas, so it must have some kind of taste! As well as soft/hardness, different water authorities use a slightly different mix of chemicals to clean their water, so there are many factors which may alter the taste.

 

I drink juice watered down, and squash diluted far more than the instructions tell you. This is a good way to reduce the sugar content of your drinks as well, but I just prefer the taste this way.

 

Preparing a jug or bottle of drink at the start of the day might be a good way to remind yourself to drink more at regular intervals.

[Kazzen161]

 

Water definitely tastes different in different places. I suppose most people get used to the taste of the water where they live, and only notice when they go on holiday or move. I once had to buy bottled water to make tea while on holiday, as I could not bear the taste of the water.

 

When you keep goldfish, you have to leave the water to stand for 24 hours before you use it in their tank, to dechlorinate it. Have you tried doing that to see if it tastes any better?

[chris54]

One of the main influences of the taste of water is its source, what type of minerals it has, also if it is from wells or rivers. Where I use to live the taste of the water would change from day to day dependant on where the water was being pumped from. If there had been a lot of rain it would take on an earthy taste.

 

I know of two adjoining water works that use the same ground source one supplies bottled water, the other the mains supply. If you saw the colour of the water when it comes out of the ground you would never drinking it, but with filtering, the remove all the iron oxide, it ends up crystal clear. The only difference between the mains water and the bottled water it that the required standard of quality for the mains water is a lot higher than the bottled water.

 

There are a number of bottled water companies that get there water from the public supply, The tap.

 

I never drink bottled water, I will ask for a glass of tap water if I am out and want water to drink.

 

Overall, Tap water is of a higher standard than bottled water. I would say to anyone who does not like the taste of the tap water in their area is get yourself a water filter of some kind and help save the planet.

 

Some people worry, or don't like the taste of the chlorine that is use in water treatment, this is no different to using a mouth wash. There is also the controversy of fluoride in drinking water. Both of there can be removed with a good water filter.

 

All the reassures that go into bottling water and shipping it around the world is a disgrace.

 

PS Most water supply pipes are now plastic. If you are worried about lead in your water you can ask the local water company to test for it. There is no problem with copper or iron pipes.

Edited January 10, 2010 by chris54

[Meethoss]

Thanks for all your replies! I'm glad it's just not me then - people always think I'm weird. It's funny the things you notice that are (or at least maybe) caused by having AS whereas otherwise you think it's just you being different to those around you. I feel like I can't point those out to the people I know because they will just think I'm making things up or trying to make things up to kinda meet the criteria - I'm concerned myself about this (I've always been called a hypochondriac) and therefore always look back in my life to see if that's how things have always been (and I'm right at least 9 times out of ten).

 

Chris, I'm not really bothered about the content of what I drink, just that I need to take in more fluid and I don't want to hate the taste of what I'm drinking. I've been thinking about a water filter for a while but never done anything about it, I guess just cos I felt a bit silly. I think I really will get one now though. You make a good point about the bottled water and I generally don't buy it for that reason, I usually just put up with tap water when I have to but preferably (like I have all my life) drink juice, fizzy drinks (why the hell are called soft drinks? The bubbles make me think more that they are hard than soft!) and squash.

 

I've not really noticed that water tastes different depending on location - I usually avoid water so I guess it's something I wouldn't come across. I do agree though that hardness plays a factor (this is caused by the amount of limestone, if I recall correctly from geography).

 

JsMum - do you have AS as well or just your son? (Just trying to work out if it's more noticeable to people with it) I've always been a very fussy eater, I struggle with temperature and I've always complained about the tiniest of injuries (according to my parents).

 

Tally - I too have heard that cats prefer filtered water. When I was with my girlfriend she insisted we give them it but I don't buy it anymore so they just have tap water like me. I'm not sure if they've noticed the difference, but they definitely prefer running water.

 

Kazzen - haven't tried letting the water stand, but I figure if I just get a water filter thing it will do the job

[chris54]

Ill just add that when I go to a different area I will try the tap water to compare the taste, a bit like wine tasting.

 

And we should not forget that without water tasting, being different dependant on its source, we wouldn't have such a wide range of whiskys.

[JsMum]

JsMum - do you have AS as well or just your son? (Just trying to work out if it's more noticeable to people with it) I've always been a very fussy eater, I struggle with temperature and I've always complained about the tiniest of injuries (according to my parents).

 

Tally - I too have heard that cats prefer filtered water. When I was with my girlfriend she insisted we give them it but I don't buy it anymore so they just have tap water like me. I'm not sure if they've noticed the difference, but they definitely prefer running water.

 

 

I am not dx with AS, My son does not have AS either he has HFA/ASD and Sensory Integration Disorder plus other comorbids.

 

I am very sensitive to a lot of things, that I cant have Alcohol, chocolate, caffine and I cant cope with strong sunlight, strong smells such as purfumes and aftershaves, detergergents ect...I guess its just a personal thing, but I have tried like you to drink Tap Water and I hate it.

 

JsMumxx

 

 

 

 

[Sally44]

I've never been able to drink tap water. It smells and tastes different from area to area. But it basically has a chemical smell and taste, which is even worse over the last few years. I think fluoride was added some time ago. If I have to I can tolerate it if I run the tap for a while until it is really cold. But I get the same feeling drinking water as I do taking medicine.

Otherwise I drink bottled water if I had to. Apart from that I live on tea and G&T! I have no idea how other people drink 8 cups of water a day. They must be mad. Healthy, but mad.

I'm not on the spectrum, but I do have sensory issues, as do most of my family. My mother proudly tells the story of the time she wouldn't let us have milk at breakfast because it tasted funny, only to later find out via the TV that there had been a chemical leak at the factory and some of it (apparently not a dangerous amount), had got into the milk.

My son (ASD) is very sensitive to smells. He also won't drink water.

I keep mulling over whether to get something like a Brita water filter to see what the difference is.

[chris54]

Something I was wondering, people who only drink bottles water, do you make your tea and coffee with bottled water, and what about cooking?

 

It just occurred to me that I notice that tea will taste different dependant on the water.

[sonj186]

Being from roughly the same area as Chris i would assume our tap watrer is much the same, however i find it impossible to drink! i use a water filter for my kettle/juice etc but if im drinking just water it comes from a bottle. im not sure if its because we moved from the north of scotland where the water is nice and soft to lincs which has hard water but i even find that if i dont have bubbles in the bath it makes my eyes sting theres thast much chlorine in it!

 

sonj

[Mumble]

It just occurred to me that I notice that tea will taste different dependant on the water.

Tea (as in leaf tea / tea bags) sold in the supermarkets etc. is blended for the area it is sold based on water analysis to give a roughly similar tasting end product for that brand wherever you are in the country.

 

Therefore, if you buy your teabags in London and take them North to make tea, your tea will then not taste 'right' because you are mixing the wrong type of tea with the type of water (or vice versa).

 

I'm full of useless information...

 

[Meethoss]

Tea (as in leaf tea / tea bags) sold in the supermarkets etc. is blended for the area it is sold based on water analysis to give a roughly similar tasting end product for that brand wherever you are in the country.

 

Therefore, if you buy your teabags in London and take them North to make tea, your tea will then not taste 'right' because you are mixing the wrong type of tea with the type of water (or vice versa).

 

I'm full of useless information...

 

Haha, no way? That's mental! Never ever would have thought of that. Although I'm not a tea drinker either

[sesley]

I use bottled sparkly water for my son,because he thinks its lemonade and won't drink it as water,so i mix ribena in it.I think water has a taste of the local enviroment it comes from, thats why the Scottish whisky industry does not want flouride put in because it will affect the taste of the whisky,which is a different taste depending on what part of Scotland it has flowed through, our water is pumped from the local lochs which can flow over peat and other minerals, and is soft and does not need that calgon put in to washing machines to stop limescale,which we do not get here.

[chris54]

Being from roughly the same area as Chris i would assume our tap watrer is much the same, however i find it impossible to drink! i use a water filter for my kettle/juice etc but if im drinking just water it comes from a bottle. im not sure if its because we moved from the north of scotland where the water is nice and soft to lincs which has hard water but i even find that if i dont have bubbles in the bath it makes my eyes sting theres thast much chlorine in it!

 

sonj

 

The water can be very different in very near by places so don't assume anything. Cant say I have the problems you have.

The chlorine level in water is closely monitored to keep it at as low a level as possible. You will sometimes find that it is higher in more remote area as the water takes longer to get there and the chlorine breaks down with time, therefore it has to start off higher in order for it to still be effective by the time the water is used.

 

Tea (as in leaf tea / tea bags) sold in the supermarkets etc. is blended for the area it is sold based on water analysis to give a roughly similar tasting end product for that brand wherever you are in the country.

 

Therefore, if you buy your teabags in London and take them North to make tea, your tea will then not taste 'right' because you are mixing the wrong type of tea with the type of water (or vice versa).

 

I'm full of useless information...

 

That idea sounds great until you realise that water is moved from place to place and so the source of the water you get out of your tape, depending were you live can chance from day to day.

And as we all know Yorkshire tea really is grown in Yorkshire.

[Mumble]

That idea sounds great until you realise that water is moved from place to place and so the source of the water you get out of your tape, depending were you live can chance from day to day.

It varies, but not widely in comparison to variations around the country, so an average can be accounted for.

 

And as we all know Yorkshire tea really is grown in Yorkshire.

It's not, it comes from East Africa and Sri Lanka - see the Yorkshire Tea Website. It's only called Yorkshire tea because that's where they put it into the teabags and boxes. I don't think the weather would be right to grow tea in Yorkshire - particularly not at the moment.

 

[Meethoss]

Mumble, my guess is that Chris was being sarcastic with his last comment

 

As for where the water comes from, we all know you English gits flooded a Welsh town just to provide yourselves with drinking water!!!

[Mumble]

Mumble, my guess is that Chris was being sarcastic with his last comment

[chris54]

Apparently it would be quite viable to grow tea in this country, other for the fact that it is very labour intensive and would be uneconomical.

 

And that's got nothing to do with the taste of water.

[Windrunner]

I can't drink tap water either, and only bottled water at a stretch. You're right, it does have a taste, its just hard to decribe it to people who don't think it has one! In summer I get by with squash and make litres of koolaid if the father remembers to send me any and I'm none the worse for it

 

I have a similar thing with the taste of chicken. I don't like chicken but I love turkey although most of the people I know don't think there is a difference in taste between the two

[NobbyNobbs]

my one issue with Ks new nursery is that they insist she can only take water to drink. k wont drink water (and shes a stubborn thing and will choose to drink nothing at all over drink water). when i asked if that rule was absolute the response was 'some other kids might be allergic to squash, so we only allow water'. she said that she noticed k wasn't drinking from her beaker, but that she'd drank half a carton of milk so it was ok... she'd been there 5 hours!! if it carries on i'll have to have words about harming the health of one child for the benefit of another. i'm all for the no nuts rule because another child is allergic but i can't quite understand why k can't have squash and the mystery squash allergy sufferer can't just not drink from ks clearly marked beaker.

[Gordie]

Never mind the taste - it's the temperature of cold tap water at the moment that I'm finding unbearable! It's soooooooo cold when I wash my mouth out after cleaning my teeth! Horrendous! Worse than that toothache you get with ice-cream!

 

James

[Tally]

my one issue with Ks new nursery is that they insist she can only take water to drink. k wont drink water (and shes a stubborn thing and will choose to drink nothing at all over drink water). when i asked if that rule was absolute the response was 'some other kids might be allergic to squash, so we only allow water'. she said that she noticed k wasn't drinking from her beaker, but that she'd drank half a carton of milk so it was ok... she'd been there 5 hours!! if it carries on i'll have to have words about harming the health of one child for the benefit of another. i'm all for the no nuts rule because another child is allergic but i can't quite understand why k can't have squash and the mystery squash allergy sufferer can't just not drink from ks clearly marked beaker.

That's odd, you'd think a milk allergy would be more common that a squash allergy. Can you send her with squash in a coloured container and just hope they don't notice?

[got the tshirt]

my one issue with Ks new nursery is that they insist she can only take water to drink. k wont drink water (and shes a stubborn thing and will choose to drink nothing at all over drink water). when i asked if that rule was absolute the response was 'some other kids might be allergic to squash, so we only allow water'. she said that she noticed k wasn't drinking from her beaker, but that she'd drank half a carton of milk so it was ok... she'd been there 5 hours!! if it carries on i'll have to have words about harming the health of one child for the benefit of another. i'm all for the no nuts rule because another child is allergic but i can't quite understand why k can't have squash and the mystery squash allergy sufferer can't just not drink from ks clearly marked beaker.

 

Where I work we are supposed to have this rule, however we don't actually check what is in the cups and always make sure that the children are only drinking from their own cup. I agree with Tally and would use a coloured cup !! probably shouldn't encourage that kind of thing but I think dehydration is going to be an issue if your little one is there all day.

 

Just another thought could you give her squash with very few additives or even juice, that way if another child did drink it they would be less likely to have a reaction to it!!

Edited January 16, 2010 by got the tshirt

[chris54]

When I worked in child care the rule about only water or milk was to do with the sugar content of some drinks and its potential harmful effect on young teeth.

I think they may be getting a pit confused about this one.

[puffin]

Water in the UK has a definite chemical taste. I never noticed when I lived there but living now in another country that does not chlorinate water the chemical taste is definitely there and is pretty disgusting.