Written by Mo, Foundi CSO, PhD · Updated 11 November 2026
Short answer: Change what water tastes like, how cold or hot it is, what you drink it from, and when it shows up in your day. Canada's Food Guide suggests fruit-and-herb water, carbonated water, drinking it hot or cold, and keeping a pitcher within reach. The CDC adds carrying a reusable bottle and having water with every meal. You don't need willpower or a sweetened product.
Not liking plain water is common, and it's fixable. Most of what works comes down to removing the reasons you don't reach for it.
Why is plain water hard to drink for some people?
Usually it's because water is easy to overlook, not because anything is wrong with you. It has no flavour, it's rarely in front of you at the right moment, and on a busy day thirst competes with everything else. The fixes below each target one of those: flavour, temperature, the container and timing.
How can you make water taste better without adding sugar?
Infuse it with fruit and herbs. Canada's Food Guide suggests adding fruits and herbs to hot or cold water, and gives combinations:
- blackberries + mint
- raspberries + cucumber
- strawberries + fresh basil
- chopped apples + a cinnamon stick
- pear slices + a drop of vanilla extract
The guide's tip for more flavour is to crush the berries, chop or tear the herbs, and cut fruit into cubes. The CDC suggests something even simpler: a wedge of lemon or lime.
Try fizz. Canada's Food Guide suggests carbonated water for people who like bubbles. Plain sparkling water counts the same as still.
What to avoid: Canada's Food Guide recommends limiting sugary drinks. If flavour is the barrier, start with fruit, herbs or bubbles rather than juice or sweetened drinks.
Does the temperature of water matter?
It matters for whether you'll drink it, yes. Canada's Food Guide suggests drinking water "hot or cold", and some people find warm water much easier in winter. The CDC suggests freezing water in freezer-safe bottles so you have ice-cold water all day. Pick whichever you'll actually finish.
Does the bottle you use make a difference?
A container you like, kept in sight, removes a step. Both the CDC and Canada's Food Guide suggest carrying a reusable water bottle. At home, Canada's Food Guide suggests a pitcher of water in the fridge or on the table for easy access.
Small set-up ideas:
- Keep the bottle in the same spot every day: next to the keyboard, in the car's cup holder, by the kettle.
- Choose a size you can finish by lunch, so the refill becomes its own cue.
- Use a glass or cup you enjoy at meals.
How do you remember to drink when you're not thirsty?
Attach water to things you already do, instead of waiting for thirst. For most healthy adults, thirst plus drinking with meals is enough day to day, according to the National Academies. But on busy days the meal drink is often what gets skipped.
Both the CDC and Canada's Food Guide suggest drinking water with meals and asking for water when eating out. Beyond meals, link a glass to the kettle in the morning, the start of your workday, and a fixed afternoon break. (The full four-anchor version is in A daily hydration routine that survives a busy workday.)
Habits built this way take time. In a University College London study of daily eating, drinking and activity habits, reaching near-maximum automaticity took anywhere from 18 to 254 days. Missing a single day didn't derail it (Lally et al., 2010).
If you rarely feel thirsty and that's new or worries you, ask a pharmacist or doctor; that's a different question from habit.
Do other drinks and foods count?
Yes, so you may be closer than you think. Canada's Food Guide lists unsweetened coffee and teas, lower-fat white milk and unsweetened fortified plant-based beverages as healthy drink choices. The National Academies' reference values count water from all drinks and food, and food supplied about a fifth of it in their survey.
(See Your plate contributes water, too.)
A one-week plan to try
| Day | One change |
|---|---|
| 1 | Put a full bottle where your hand rests at work |
| 2 | Glass of water while the kettle or coffee runs |
| 3 | Make a fruit-and-herb pitcher (pick a combination from the list above) |
| 4 | Water with lunch and dinner, at the table, not after |
| 5 | Try it the other temperature: warm if you usually drink it cold, iced if you drink it warm |
| 6 | Ask for water when eating out |
| 7 | Keep the two changes that felt easiest; drop the rest |
Common questions
How can I drink more water if I hate the taste? Flavour it without sugar: fruit and herbs (Canada's Food Guide suggests combinations like strawberries and basil), a wedge of lemon or lime (CDC), or carbonated water. Changing the temperature also helps many people.
How do I drink more water when I'm not thirsty? Link it to routines, such as meals, the morning kettle and a set afternoon break, instead of waiting for thirst. If a lack of thirst is new or worrying, ask a pharmacist or doctor.
How can I drink more water throughout the day? Carry a reusable bottle, keep it in the same visible spot, and refill it at fixed times, like lunch and mid-afternoon.
Does sparkling water count? Yes. Canada's Food Guide suggests carbonated water as an option for people who like some fizz.
Is flavoured water as good as plain water? Water flavoured with fruit or herbs is still water. Sweetened flavoured drinks are a different category, and Canada's Food Guide recommends limiting sugary drinks.
Sources
- Health Canada. Make water your drink of choice (Canada's Food Guide; modified 23 Apr 2026). https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/food-guide/explore/healthy-eating-recommendations/make-water-drink-choice.html. Accessed 9 Nov 2026.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About Water and Healthier Drinks (reviewed 5 Mar 2026). https://www.cdc.gov/healthy-weight-growth/water-healthy-drinks/index.html. Accessed 9 Nov 2026.
- Institute of Medicine (National Academies). Dietary Reference Intakes for Water, Potassium, Sodium, Chloride, and Sulfate (2005), ch. 4 "Water". https://www.nationalacademies.org/read/10925/chapter/6. Accessed 9 Nov 2026.
- Lally P, van Jaarsveld CHM, Potts HWW, Wardle J. How are habits formed: Modelling habit formation in the real world. European Journal of Social Psychology. 2010;40(6):998–1009. https://doi.org/10.1002/ejsp.674. Accessed 9 Nov 2026.
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