Along with tap water and coffee, sparkling water is one of the most popular drinks in Germany. However, recent laboratory tests commissioned by Öko-Test show that some sparkling waters contain questionable ingredients. Should you avoid them in the future? Experts answer.

Mineral water should be as pure and natural as possible. But undesirable substances can also penetrate into the underground reservoirs from which the water comes. Although boron, nickel and uranium are natural substances, they can be harmful in certain quantities. Likewise, degradation products from pesticides that end up in the soil and ultimately in the water through agriculture.

Öko-Test examined 54 sparkling waters and found critical substances in 14 products. In the test, the laboratory findings led to a worse grade for the affected water. But are poorly rated sparkling waters really a health risk? Should you avoid the affected waters in the future? And could they have already harmed your health if you have been consuming one of the products for a long time?

In Germany, the Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, or BfR for short, is responsible for assessing mineral water. At the request of FOCUS online, BfR experts said: No, there is “no reason for concern”.

Read below about the results of Öko-Test and what the BfR experts have to say about it.

Proven by Öko-Test in the following products:

This is what Öko-Test writes: In both mineral waters, “laboratory analyzes revealed contamination with boron. According to the Federal Office for Risk Assessment (BfR), long-term studies in animals have shown developmental and reproductive toxic effects caused by boron compounds. For this reason, the BfR recommends that boron in mineral water be based on the limit value of the Drinking Water Ordinance (TrinkwV), which defines the legal requirements for tap water, and not on the significantly higher value stipulated in the Mineral Water Ordinance. We also follow this recommendation.”

This is what the BfR experts say: “From the BfR’s perspective, there is no reason for concern due to the reported levels of boron, nickel and uranium when consuming the respective mineral waters. […] The boron contents are 50 to 100 percent of the maximum amount of 1 mg/L that the BfR proposed in 2006.”

Proven by Öko-Test in the following product:

This is what Öko-Test writes: “In the Dreiser Sprudel, the laboratory measured nickel in levels that exceeded the limit set in the mineral water regulation by more than 50 percent. Although people do not absorb the majority of nickel through water, the trace element is widespread in nature and enters our bodies through many different foods.”

This is what the BfR experts say: “From the BfR’s perspective, there is no reason for concern due to the reported levels of boron, nickel and uranium when consuming the respective mineral waters. The nickel and uranium contents are 50 to 100 percent of the maximum levels in the mineral and table water regulations.”

Proven by Öko-Test in the following product:

This is what Öko-Test writes: The radioactive heavy metal uranium can “damage the liver and especially the kidneys, which is why, according to scientific recommendations, food should contain as little uranium as possible. Since the Bad Dürrheimer Classic is a mineral water with organic claim, to which consumers rightly place higher demands, we set the requirement value of the SGS Institute Fresenius for mineral water with organic quality of two micrograms of uranium per liter for the evaluation underlying. The uranium content measured in the laboratory accounts for more than half of this.”

This is what the BfR experts say: “From the BfR’s perspective, there is no reason for concern due to the reported levels of boron, nickel and uranium when consuming the respective mineral waters. The nickel and uranium contents are 50 to 100 percent of the maximum levels in the mineral and table water regulations.”

Proven by Öko-Test in the following product, among others:

This is what Öko-Test writes: “Although the detected metabolites do not pose an immediate health risk, they do exceed the orientation value for pesticides in the corresponding administrative regulations, which we at Ökotest also use to evaluate the degradation products.”

In “Justus Brunnen Spritzig” the testers found five different pesticide degradation products, three of them in elevated quantities and two in trace amounts. The test team also found pesticide degradation products in five other sparkling waters. You can find all 54 sparkling waters tested in the current issue of Öko-Test.

The Federal Institute for Risk Assessment criticises: “The publication does not contain any information about what was detected, nor about the number of samples, limits of detection or the concentrations measured. All we know is that pesticide degradation products were detected in nine products, mainly in trace amounts. In addition, Öko-Test uses a very low devaluation standard, which at 0.05 µg/L corresponds to only half of the permitted value of 0.1 µg/L for pesticides according to the Drinking Water Ordinance.

Finally, we would like to point out that the approval and approval procedures for plant protection products/active ingredients and biocides in the European Union are among the strictest in the world and ensure comprehensive protection of human health.”