Due to the influence of the media, it seems like a new water bottle is trending every week. Starting years back, the trend has varied from Camelbacks to Swells to Hydro Flasks to Stanley cups. In Cresskill, a variety of water bottles are seen on desks. Are CHS students influenced by the trends online? And do new water bottles affect the amount of water drunk? What about the appeal of having a straw?
Yuli Melamud carries a Hydro Flask at school and a Stanley cup for home. “I just see them around the most.” She’s not influenced by the trends on TikTok, but rather by what she sees at school. “I don’t think it’s necessarily people promoting it, it’s just the more you see it the more you wanna get it.” She also utilizes the straws from her water bottles, which Stanley cups and some Hydro Flasks have. “When I don’t have the straw, I usually just keep my water bottle open.” Yuli believes straws “[make] drinking water more enjoyable.”
The brand of Shir Zipori’s water bottle is Hydrapeak. She got it last year and wasn’t influenced by social media at all. She says, “My mom just randomly got it for herself and I took it. I can put the straw down and up: very hygienic.” Even though her bottle is not in the list of trends, she still follows the accessibility of having a straw. She tries to drink five bottles total and often has to refill it during school. When questioned about the trends, Shir says, “No, I like what I have. I didn’t get a Stanley cup, which is definitely the trend. I think it doesn’t matter what brand it is, as long as it doesn’t leak.”
Leo Rael, another senior at CHS, recently got a new Owala water bottle and is satisfied with his purchase. “I’m currently using a 24 ounce stainless steel Owala bottle in the color canyon falcon and I bought it this weekend for my birthday,” he says. Leo has been seeing Tik Toks of the bottle for almost a year and only purchased it after people told him of its benefits. The Owala is famous for having two ways to drink it: you can tilt it up like a normal bottle, and you can also sip from a straw. “I think this bottle specifically…I feel like I just drink it faster because it’s easy.” He used to have a Hydro Flask and a Britta filter bottle. However, his upgrade makes him want to drink more water. Leo provides some insight as to why water bottles always seem to trend: “Just generally buying things in general makes you feel better, but then also this is a hydration item and dehydration makes you feel really bad.”
