Everyone’s Going Bananas for Birch Water
Photo: Corbis
Last year, coconut water was the miracle liquid, promising to cure everything from hangovers to cancer, burning calories while tasting delicious. Then maple water was the one thing you could drink to change your life. Or at the very least, your body. Now The Daily Mail reports that Brits are losing their minds for birch water.
Just what are they promising birch water can do? Basically everything. The report lists eczema, cellulite, arthritis, liver disease, the flu, dandruff, headaches, and even bronchitis among the ailments that the magic liquid can make disappear. The Mail writes, “[The] thin sweet-tasting liquid is high in macronutrients, electrolytes and potassium.” There’s also saponin in there, a chemical compound that allegedly lowers cholesterol and has anti-inflammatory effects.
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Hold up, says celebrity nutritionist Keri Glassman, founder of Nutritious Life. “It’s not a miracle water,” she says. (Is it ever?) “Water itself can do a lot of those things—like flushing toxins out of your body.” Glassman stresses that birch water’s not bad for you, and that the extra electrolytes, or any vitamins or minerals, can’t hurt (the chemical makeup of electrolytes makes them more hydrating than regular water). However, she says, “Your water shouldn’t have calories. Coconut water, for example, is great if you’re having it as part of a snack, but not just instead of water.” She does point out that a water alternative, be it coconut, maple, or birch, is a better choice than soda or Gatorade, but that you have to remember just how many calories they add to your diet. “You shouldn’t be drinking anything instead of water all day.”
Related: How Coconut Water Became the New “It” Drink
The good news? If you do want to drink birch water, you can harvest it from your own tree. “There is only one time of year to harvest the liquid—early spring…it can be collected by driving taps into the base of the trunk or by cutting off the end of one of the branches and attaching a bottle.” Or you can buy a case of Byarozavik Birch Water on Amazon, which bills itself as “A traditional beverage in Slavic countries for centuries.” Just make sure you follow it with a big glass of plain old water.
