Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and moreStay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Helen Coffey’s recent piece on the rise of reusable water bottles has tapped into a surprisingly heated debate, getting Independent readers talking about everything from convenience and consumerism to social media’s role in shaping daily habits.Many agreed with Ian McEwan’s remark that the trend has become “deranged”, recalling a time when people simply drank from the tap and didn’t feel the need to carry a bottle everywhere. Some said today’s fixation reflects wider anxieties about health and self-improvement, with one reader describing it as “another symptom of our need to perform wellness”.Others defended the habit, arguing that staying hydrated is hardly harmful and that reusable bottles are a practical, eco-friendly alternative to single-use plastics. Several pointed out that workplace culture and long commutes make it harder to rely on “just waiting until you’re home for a drink”.A few commenters took aim at social media and influencer marketing for turning basic hydration into a competitive lifestyle trend, while others found humour in Coffey’s “Big Bertha” bottle, saying they too had developed “emotional support bottles” of their own.Overall, readers were divided between those who see the water bottle craze as a harmless quirk – and those who view it as another example of how consumer culture has gone too far.A modern menaceWater bottles and their close cousins, the soft drinks cans, are a modern menace. It’s depressing to see dog walkers in the local park unwilling to take their hounds for a 30-minute walk without being over-prepared for an unexpected drought.There are four humans in my household, none with medical issues requiring special care in their hydration. So far, only one of us has a deep fixation with water bottles. We thankfully live in a part of the world overflowing with taps and cups and are rarely more than minutes from the nearest one.When I look into our overstuffed kitchen cupboard, I can count around twelve 1–1.5 litre water bottles made from plastic, metal or glass. The children’s character-themed ones depress me particularly. There are also some extra tops associated with bottles that have long departed. I am unwilling to risk throwing them away lest it be noticed. It’s true that I may have used one twice in the last five years – but why so many?The teenage children, forced by their mother, reluctantly take one to school. Most evenings there are three for me to clean in the washing-up pile with a bottle brush that isn’t quite long enough to do the job thoroughly. Didn’t I read somewhere that these bottles can be a breeding ground for nasty bugs? I am heartily sick of them – they are usually returned full or almost full. I make a point of emptying the unused water into the balcony watering can.Even more importantly, the damage these things can do to a marriage is insidious! It’s hardly grounds alone for divorce, but if we ever do go there, this issue will certainly be near the top of the list.fistfulloffishesHydration habit gone too farI live in Australia and was diagnosed with a kidney issue 30 years ago, and so was advised to keep hydrated – such that I am now rarely without a 600ml bottle of water, but for good reason. My habit seems to have rubbed off on family and friends now, however, and I think we are all a bit overcautious and more in line with the current trend or obsession than actual need.ThinkingoftheweekendA modern accessoryA water bottle or other container for water has become what many seem to believe is a vital accessory of modern life – in the same way as their phone. People believe it’s a matter of survival.As a child, I had a cup of tea in the morning and maybe a drop of water out of my cupped hand if I was seriously thirsty before the tumbler of water with lunch.Today, if someone doesn’t walk into you with their nose in a phone or with their head thrown back drinking out of a water bottle, you’re lucky. Most children’s school bags have a pocket for a bottle.The market for bottled water is booming. There must be a good market for all these containers which distinguish between those for still and those for sparkling, as shops and supermarkets are full of them.I don’t carry a water bottle and don’t intend to start. Seeing old ladies getting them out of their handbags and taking a swig here and there doesn’t do it for me!How much of this sudden need to swig water every few minutes is necessity and how much is marketing?AmbigirlsA practical habitI’m from the age before “Gens”, and I didn’t know that having a metal water bottle is a “thing”. However, if I go out, I am very glad to have mine with me containing cool water from home, rather than having to fork out for a plastic bottle when I’m thirsty – with attendant rubbish to be discarded.ThoughtIsFreeHydration and hypocrisyThe big objection is all those billions of plastic disposable water bottles that litter the universe and are found in the stomachs of dead whales, etc.Public fountains were a Victorian social invention and gift. Nowadays, one looks in UK airports and elsewhere to find them hidden away in corners, far from the bottles sold for well over £1 – for water that costs 0.0001p.The carrying of them reminds me of a Winnicottian transitional object – the need to feel comforted by an actual object as one moves from infancy to childhood…LuckybeemeLearning to ‘rawdog’As a fifty-something (generally) non-water-bottle carrier who also finds the obsession a bit silly, I used to always insist on taking a bottle of water with me every time I ran. Until a few weeks ago, when I forgot to take it out with me.Experiencing mild panic, I almost turned back to fetch it but opted to push ahead and see if I would survive the ordeal.I didn’t die of thirst, pass out or even become remotely uncomfortable. In fact, I realised I hardly ever drank it – and when I did, most of it would go down my front! So I now “rawdog” (I think that’s the term?) it, and very much enjoy not hauling half a kilo of sloshing liquid around with me. I do enjoy chugging a large glass of ice-cold water when I get back home, though.MKirkColour-coded hydrationAt one of the NHS Trusts I worked at in the 2010s, there were small posters on the back of the loo doors (the female ones, anyway) showing different colours of wee and highlighting which was ideal (straw-coloured) up to seriously dehydrated (quite brown). The image has stuck in my head and if I notice mine is heading towards the dark side, I drink more.Thus, I always have a bottle of water with me. Eminently sensible and not remotely deranged.MoodyJackWater on the goSub-boomer with a water bottle here.They have their place, obviously. I wouldn’t go hill walking without one, but up until a couple of weeks ago this was invariably a battered old “disposable” ex-San Pellegrino bottle. I only made the switch since it started leaking.As for the rest, do what thou wilt. If spending fortunes every time a new fad emerges makes you happy, who am I to criticise? I, for one, don’t feel any less complete on my rambles because I don’t have the very latest in breathable fabric technology, a carbon fibre walking pole and an integrated hydration system.RickCLess than a penny from the tapAs a 51-year-old, I have an insulated metal bottle. I don’t often use it, but if I am thirsty I would rather use it than go into a shop and buy a drink in a plastic bottle.I can’t drink anything with caffeine or artificial sweetener in, which basically means that drink would be water anyway. Apart from the single-use plastic, I resent paying a quid for a bottle when it’s less than a penny from the tap.CosmosA marketing inventionI’ve said for ages it’s a marketing thing – like walking 6,000 steps sold pedometers. I object to social media pressure. Be a leader, not a follower, and live a little instead of needing strangers to govern your every move.MalouThere are worse habitsDrinking water is a lot better for you and the planet than drinking Coke or Pepsi, or other fizzy horrors in environmentally damaging plastic bottles – and if people want to carry around expensive bottles, so be it. There are far worse collective habits in society right now. Just remember to clean inside those bottles – mould soon collects.CoffeeSome of the comments have been edited for this article for brevity and clarity.Want to share your views? Simply register your details below. Once registered, you can comment on the day’s top stories for a chance to be featured. Alternatively, click ‘log in’ or ‘register’ in the top right corner to sign in or sign up.Make sure you adhere to our community guidelines, which can be found here. For a full guide on how to comment click here.
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‘A necessity or marketing?’ Readers divided on the rise of water bottles
