Shopper Picks up Dasani Water Bottle And Noticed 3 Odd Words on the Label: 'So They Have Been...'

With summer around the corner, when the desire for pure distilled water tugs at our flesh, a water bottle feels like a luxury. But little do we realize that it is also something that could hide an olio of ingredients that the water might have picked up as it traveled through rivers, lakes, ponds, and springs before getting pumped at the bottling plant. Usually, people think the water is sanctified of all contaminants before getting packed in the bottles. But one guy’s video is making people rethink their bottled water, specifically DASANI water. In a TikTok video, The Gamez Family (@thegamezfamilyy) shared a shocking discovery he made while buying a bottle of DASANI water.

“The shocking truth about salt water in Dasani bottles,” the TikTok user wrote in the video’s caption. The video shows this man standing in front of an aisle stocked with DASANI water bottles. He picks up a bottle from one of the shelves featuring blue-and-white packaging. “Now without salt,” a label reads in big, bold letters. He zooms in on the camera. “So they have been giving us salt water this whole time,” the man wrote in the video’s overlay. The label was marked with an asterisk, most likely “to differentiate specifically sodium chloride and no other salts,” as one viewer, @smh_spam_666, interpreted.

The water he is referring to is actually an updated version of DASANI bottled water. Announcing this update in an April 2024 press release, the Coca-Cola Company described that the company was tweaking its bottle design and removing salt based on consumer feedback. “DASANI is also tweaking its formulation in response to consumer feedback, by removing sodium chloride (salt) for a clean, crisp taste loyal fans are sure to love. The previous formula contained a dietarily insignificant level of salt, a mineral and electrolyte originally added for taste,” they said in the press release. On Instagram, TapScore reported that the salt content had changed from 2.22 ppm in 2022 to 0.97 ppm in 2024.

In early 2024, the graphic designers of DASANI also changed the packaging design of the bottle, giving it a lighter “celeste blue” color palette and a wave inspired by the “S” in the DASANI script, the company said. They supercharged their viral marketing campaign “Life Happens Between Sips” to promote the new taste, look, and feel of DASANI bottles. But despite the tweaks, many consumers reported feeling disappointed.

Although the guy in this TikTok video seemed unaware of the fact that DASANI’s old bottles came with salty water, most people on the internet were. For the past few years, tons of conspiracy theories have pockmarked the threads of social media, about DASANI water. Even after they changed its composition, people weren’t too keen on drinking it. “Dasani is easily the worst-tasting water on the planet. Hands down,” an engineer, @dkhundley, wrote in a December 2024 tweet. On Reddit, people likened the taste of DASANI water to “plastic,” “metal,” “pool water,” “disgusting and dry,” “wishing well water,” “swamp monsters,” “chalk,” and “liquid dust,” to name a few.

Meanwhile, the aforementioned TikTok video received mixed reactions from people. Some slammed DASANI for deliberately selling water that makes them thirstier, others said salt was just an electrolyte added to the bottles for hydration. “That’s why it makes you more thirsty,” said @angel.med18. TikTok user @alex jumped in and exclaimed, “How did people not know that’s the only reason I don’t drink it!” Contrary to these people, @itszhimo said, “Salt is an electrolyte.” @garfield explained, “Salt is a vital part of electrolytes. Salt helps your body absorb water better.” With this, the controversy continues to circulate around the web.

You can follow The Gamez Family (@thegamezfamilyy) on TikTok for trendy news and lifestyle stories.