Birch water is the latest “super thirst-quencher” you’ve got to have post-workout, and it’s been making a splash here. So what’s the hype?
Birch water is the latest “super thirst-quencher” you’ve got to have post-workout, and it’s been making a splash here. So what’s the hype?
GET YOUR FIX: You can get Tapped’s range of birch water at Redmart (https:// redmart.com) and Saladstop! stores.
Or rather, what you’re drinking is clear sap drawn from these trees. Birch trees – which grow in temperate forests in Nordic countries – are only tapped once a year in spring, when the sap is rising through the trunks. The process is carried out over a period of just two weeks. The sap is then pasteurised so it can be kept for longer and drunk all year round.
Kind of. Pure sap has a similar mouthfeel to water, but with a tinge of bitters weetness that’s similar to Japanese sake. It’s best drunk chilled. If that’s not your thing, Tapped, which distributes birch water here, also offers it flavoured with elderflower, apple and ginger, as well as bilberry and lingonberry.
Pure sap has diuretic effects, so it can relieve the discomfort of water retention, says dietitian Derrick Ong of Eat Right Nutrition Consultancy. It also contains xylitol – which reduces tooth decay by preventing cavitycausing bacteria – and saponins, which help lower cholesterol levels. Birch water also has less sugar than its coconut counterpart. “In contrast to coconut water which contains around 6g of sugar a cup, birch water has only 2-3g of sugar a cup,” says Derrick. Still, he notes that extensive studies have not been done on the benefits of birch water, so if you want to lower your cholesterol, for example, you’re better off seeing a doctor and eating better.
Seasonal extraction means trees are not harmed, or cut down.
THE ALTERNATIVE WATERS
If you want something other than regular H2O, these are legit alternatives. And yes, you can drink them every day.
