With my college roommates getting married next year, I have made it my bridesmaids’ duty to help the bride-to-be get in shape before her big day. We’ve been using our FitBit app to help each other stay motivated and exercise, but cutting back on calories consumed also has been an important part of my personal goal. However, this has been more challenging than I anticipated, as I often desire a mid-day refreshing kick of energy.

Increasing my bottled water consumption has been helping me to transition into a more healthful lifestyle, but I still need an energy boost. Luckily, an interesting enhanced water segment recently caught my attention. Although caffeinated waters aren’t new, the growth of the overall bottled water category and the increased consumer desire for enhanced, low-calorie natural products might be driving more launches into the segment.

Just a few months ago at NACS 2016, I noticed that several brands were showcasing their caffeinated waters or announcing new launches for 2017. For example, Hydrive will bring a zero-calorie caffeinated, flavored water to market in 2017. The non-carbonated lineup will be offered in four flavors: Citrus Burst, Black Cherry, Blue Raspberry and Triple Berry, and each 16-ounce bottle will contain 160 mg of caffeine with added
B vitamins, the company says.

Additionally, ávitae USA showcased the newest edition to its portfolio of caffeinated waters: ávitae Sparkling. The company now offers still and sparkling varieties, flavored and unflavored, as well as an option of 90 or 125 mg of caffeine.

With the fact that I am regularly drinking water, caffeinated water has been a best-of-both-worlds solution for me. As the bottled water category continues to grow, it will be interesting to see how enhanced waters continue to evolve to meet consumers’ growing needs.