Is Ian McEwan right – has the water bottle trend gone ‘crazy’?

AAs I write these words, I am acutely aware of a gentle but looming presence on the table next to me. She is always at the edge of my vision: 1.5 liters – it would be fair to call her a “giant” , reusable plastic bottle I have nicknamed her “Big Bertha” because of her height and size. It started as a kind of joke, a fun way to encourage me to drink a little more H2O during the day. This is largely thanks to its “made in China, bought at Asda” design, which results in badly translated messages next to time stamps on one side. “Feeling high at 9am,” wrote one; “Focus on your goal at 11 a.m.,” says another. And, my personal favorite, “Hold the Challenge at 3pm”.

But what started as a trivial thing has become a way of life. Now I take Big Bertha with me everywhere, despite her unwieldy size. I get a little nervous if I don’t have access to it at any time during the day, and I get extremely disappointed in myself if I don’t manage to “rise to the challenge” and fully absorb its content within each allotted 16-hour period. If I forget him, there’s a good chance buy a disposable water bottle on the move. I have become a person who rarely thinks about thirst and have now come to accept that feeling mildly dry is nothing short of unbearable.

Perhaps, upon reflection, I am living proof Ian McEwan Right – and that’s the modern obsession water bottles Is “insane”. According to reports, the British Booker Prize-winning novelist and screenwriter made the comments at this year’s Cheltenham Literature Festival. WirePoints to a generational divide that has been hiding in plain sight for the past few years.

“Thirty years ago, no one had water bottles. You used to drink water from the tap when you reached home,” he said. “And suddenly we’re made to believe that you can’t go 10 minutes without being thirsty. It’s an insanity. Millions of plastic bottles everywhere, as if being thirsty was a terrible agony. This is just extreme. Just wait 10 minutes and go home and have a cup of tea.”

He is not wrong; The water bottle trend is actually an incredibly recent development, arguably started by the Millennial generation, but pioneered by Gen Z. As a kid, I don’t remember anyone having a water bottle – hydration wasn’t a big deal. And when you drank, it was from plastic glasses or glasses. Older generations still live and die by these rules in many cases (there’s even a popular post on the subreddit “BoomersBeingFools” that reads: “I recently found out that my dad doesn’t drink water at all. He’s almost 73 and lives his life on sweet tea and soda!”)

It’s hard to pinpoint exactly when we started becoming obsessed with the water bottle, but stratospheric growth Stanley Cup The trendy stainless steel flasks – which sell for a minimum of £40 a pop – provide an approximate timeline. The brand itself may be over a century old, but Signature “Quencher Tumbler” It didn’t come to the fore until 2016 and started gaining real traction among consumers around 2020, when the company started using influencers to promote its merchandise through social media campaigns. Then, in 2023, a star is officially born: A woman’s car caught fire, but her Stanley Cup remained with the ice intact, without melting. The video went viral; The brand’s revenue grew from approximately $73m in 2019 to approximately $750m that year.

Open Image in Gallery

Along with this sudden surge in popularity #watertalk movement Was also developing rapidly. This TikTok trend saw lifestyle girls in perfectly contoured leggings investing an alarming amount of time and money on their own hydration “routines” complete with expensive receptacles, different styles of ice cream, and more. Endlessly enhancing the taste of a simple cup of water,

Just like mobile phones became intrusive in the blink of an eye, before you knew it, a water bottle seemed to be permanently stuck to everyone’s hand. “How come we accepted this?” asked a surprised McEwan. “You see people walking down the street with bottles. If this were 1950, one would think, ‘What’s that guy doing with a water bottle?’ It’s such a small thing in a way, but it symbolizes how life can change without us really noticing.

Of course, there are many Benefits of drinking enough water – Although What is “enough” Even up for debate. Age, gender, climate and the amount of physical activity you do will all have an impact. The UK government’s EatWell guide recommends aiming to drink six to eight cups or glasses of fluids a day (a bit of a guide considering there’s no real indication of how big a glass should be). According to Bupa, adults need about 2 to 2.5 liters of fluid a day. In both cases, note the use of the word “fluid” – which means it doesn’t even have to be water. Tea, coffee, juice, milk and other drinks also count, while you can get some fluids from food like soups, fruits and vegetables. (That’s good news for people like Claudia Winkleman 😉 Cheat The presenter revealed that he hates water. on podcast: “I don’t like water or believe in it, I won’t drink it… I have never drank water on purpose.”)

According to the British Dietetic Association, drinking enough fluids lubricates our joints and eyes, helps our digestive system function and keeps our skin healthy. Meanwhile, becoming dehydrated can lead to headaches, constipation, and kidney stones. Obviously, adequate hydration is important, and drinking water on the go undoubtedly helps us meet our daily minimum.

But I also agree with McEwan. Like many other activities, social media has transformed this most mundane and mundane of human tasks, turning it from a chore to an interestingly attractive “lifestyle choice”, complete with matching accessories and status symbols. It’s not just water. Just look at the proliferation of compartmentalized boxes, organizational “systems” and label-making materials that have been promoted #cleantalkFor example – mere cleaning is no longer enough. These days, it has to become your entire personality. It’s all been a little, well…extra.

While Big Bertha will remain a part of my life until, say, someone gifts me a Stanley Cup, maybe I can try to relax a bit and leave her at home. Just sometimes. And perhaps the real “hold on” challenge lies in realizing that we won’t actually die if we wait until we reach the tap.