Europeans drink sparkling water because of a deep cultural habit rooted in centuries of bottling naturally carbonated mineral springs, a long tradition of associating mineral water with health, and widespread availability that made it a default table water in many countries. What strikes Americans as a quirky preference is, for most Europeans, simply what water tastes like.
Mineral Springs Started It All
Europe is dotted with naturally carbonated springs, places where underground water picks up carbon dioxide from volcanic activity or limestone geology before bubbling to the surface. Long before anyone manufactured sparkling water, towns like Spa in Belgium, Selters in Germany, and Karlovy Vary (Carlsbad) in the Czech Republic were shipping their naturally fizzy, mineral-rich water across the continent in bottles. The word “seltzer” itself comes from the German town of Selters.
By the 1700s, visiting these springs had become a fashionable social ritual for aristocrats and the upper classes. People traveled to “take the waters,” drinking and bathing in mineral springs that were believed to aid digestion, improve circulation, and treat a long list of ailments. This wasn’t fringe medicine. It was mainstream European healthcare for centuries, and it persisted well into the 20th century. That association between sparkling mineral water and wellness became embedded in European culture in a way that never happened in North America.
Tap Water Trust and Taste
In several European countries, bottled mineral water became the norm partly because people preferred it over what came out of the tap. Italy is a clear example. Italians have been drinking spring water since Roman times, and the country remains one of the world’s largest consumers of bottled water. Bottled mineral water in Europe has a legally distinct identity: it comes from a specific underground source, has a consistent mineral profile shaped by the local geology, and is considered microbiologically pure at the source. Tap water, by contrast, may come from surface water or treated groundwater and often contains chlorine or other disinfectants that affect taste.
This isn’t necessarily a safety issue. Most Western European tap water is perfectly safe. But the slight chemical taste of treated water pushed many consumers toward bottled mineral water, and once that bottle was on the table, sparkling versions became a natural choice. In Germany, ordering “Wasser” at a restaurant without specifying will often get you a bottle of sparkling. In France and Italy, restaurants routinely ask whether you want still or sparkling, treating both as equally normal options.
Minerals You Can Actually Taste
European sparkling waters aren’t just carbonated tap water. Many carry significant amounts of dissolved minerals, especially calcium and magnesium, picked up from the rock formations the water passes through. The variation is enormous. A study analyzing 182 bottled water brands across 10 European countries found up to a fivefold difference in average mineral concentrations between countries. In France and Switzerland, calcium levels ranged from about 10 mg/L to nearly 580 mg/L. At the high end, drinking two liters of that water would meet your entire daily calcium requirement.
These minerals give each water a distinct flavor. Some taste clean and light, others slightly salty or chalky. Europeans often develop preferences for specific brands the way Americans might prefer one coffee roast over another. The carbonation itself enhances these flavors, making the water feel more complex and satisfying than flat water. For many Europeans, still water tastes bland by comparison.
The Digestion Connection
One reason sparkling water became a mealtime staple is the longstanding belief that carbonation aids digestion. There’s some physiological basis for this. Carbonated water temporarily increases the volume inside your stomach by releasing gas. One study found that a 300 mL serving of carbonated water roughly doubled the total gastric volume compared to the same amount of still water. That distension can create a brief feeling of fullness and may stimulate the stomach to move food along.
The effect is short-lived, though. The carbon dioxide is either absorbed through the stomach lining or released through burping fairly quickly. And despite the temporary sensation of fullness, research shows that drinking sparkling water before a meal doesn’t actually change how many calories you eat. People consumed essentially the same amount of food regardless of whether they drank carbonated or flat water beforehand. So the digestive benefit is more about comfort and sensation than calorie control, but that pleasant post-meal feeling is real and helps explain why a bottle of sparkling water is a fixture at European dinner tables.
Is It Bad for Your Teeth?
If you’re wondering whether all that sparkling water is eroding European teeth, the answer is nuanced. Plain carbonated water is acidic, with a pH typically ranging from about 4.2 to 5.9. Tooth enamel begins to dissolve below a pH of 5.5, so some sparkling waters do fall into that zone. Studies confirm that teeth exposed to carbonated water show more enamel erosion than teeth exposed to still water.
But context matters. The erosive potential of plain sparkling water is far lower than that of sodas, citrus juices, or flavored sparkling waters with added citric acid. Saliva neutralizes acid in your mouth fairly quickly between sips. Drinking sparkling water with meals (as Europeans typically do) further reduces any effect because food stimulates saliva production. The risk is real but small for people drinking unflavored sparkling water at normal levels.
Carbonation and Appetite
One interesting wrinkle: carbon dioxide may affect hunger hormones. A study that tracked rats consuming carbonated beverages over roughly a year found they gained weight faster than rats drinking flat versions of the same beverages or plain water. The mechanism appeared to be ghrelin, the hormone that signals hunger. Carbonation triggered higher ghrelin levels, which led the rats to eat more. A parallel experiment with 20 healthy men showed the same ghrelin spike after drinking carbonated beverages.
This doesn’t mean sparkling water causes obesity. The effect was studied alongside caloric beverages, and it’s unclear how much it matters when the drink itself has zero calories. But it does suggest that the fizz in your water might subtly prime your appetite, which could be one reason sparkling water pairs so well with meals in European culture. It may genuinely make food feel more appealing.
Culture Reinforces the Habit
Ultimately, the biggest reason Europeans drink sparkling water is the same reason Americans drink iced water with meals: it’s what everyone around them does. German children grow up with “Sprudel” on the kitchen table. Italian families buy cases of “frizzante” at the supermarket the way American families buy milk. French cafés serve Perrier or Badoit without a second thought. Restaurant norms, family habits, and grocery store layouts all reinforce the preference generation after generation.
The sparkling water infrastructure in Europe is also far more developed. Supermarkets dedicate entire aisles to dozens of sparkling brands with different carbonation levels and mineral profiles. Many German households own countertop carbonation machines. Restaurants in Italy and France often charge the same for still and sparkling bottled water, removing any price incentive to choose one over the other. When a preference is this deeply built into daily life, it stops feeling like a choice and starts feeling like the obvious way to drink water.