Dietician Weighs in on TikTok’s ‘Sexy Water’ Trend

As the ‘sexy water’ trend gains steam on TikTok, a dietician tells Healthnews whether it’s worth trying.

TikTok is full of new health and wellness trends, and one of the latest to pop up on the platform is the “sexy water” trend — which involves adding additional ingredients to your water to make it more exciting to drink.

Beyond making water more flavorful or interesting, the trend also includes adding powders and supplements that support "beauty," such as those targeting hair, skin, and nails.

While the trend of adding additional ingredients to water has been going around for some time, creator Kelly Grace Mae coined the ‘sexy water’ term. Mae made her first sexy water video in October of last year, calling it a way to “romanticize your water in the morning” and “make it feel less mundane.”

She typically starts off with filtered water from her reverse osmosis machine, then adds a variety of fruits and veggies as well as supplements and powders, including collagen and electrolytes, among others.

A dietician weighs in on the benefits

“There can definitely be health benefits to adding to your water, especially if it gets you to drink more,” Taylor Grasso, a registered dietitian and TikTok content creator, tells Healthnews.

Grasso says she typically recommends 60-80 oz. of water per day for the average individual and up to 120 oz. for a very active individual that might be sweating a lot. If this trend helps people get there, then it can certainly be a positive thing.

Beneficial things that you can add to your water, according to Grasso, include fruits and vegetables for a change of flavor, such as strawberries, blueberries, cucumber, oranges, lemons, limes, etc.

“If you are someone who is actively sweating, electrolytes might be a great option to replenish and rehydrate you,” she says.

Grasso also sometimes recommends that her clients add frozen fruit as ice cubes and pour sparkling water on the top to make water more interesting and get them to drink more. And yes, sparkling water still counts for hydration, she says.

The potential downsides of the TikTok trend

Adding ingredients that contain lots of sugar to your water, however, isn’t necessarily a healthy choice, which is something to keep in mind when choosing what to put in your “sexy water.”

Grasso, however, says her main concern isn’t adding “unhealthy” ingredients but rather things that might cost you a lot and not do a whole lot for you.

Many of the powders and supplements that are being added are not third-party tested, she says, and they’re also very expensive.

“They're not necessarily going to harm you, but might be harming your wallet without a lot of benefit,” she says.

She says some of these powders may also congeal and become clumpy in water, as Mae has mentioned in her videos. If you’re adamant about consuming these ingredients, Grasso suggests adding them to a smoothie instead to avoid this outcome.

Overall, despite these minor downsides, Grasso says she believes the trend is a positive one: “I love that people are finding fun ways to drink more water.”