The name “WaterTok” probably conjures up a variety of images: a life lived by the ocean, perhaps, or someone who makes a living out at sea. Unfortunately, this is TikTok, so the reality is far less idyllic. WaterTok refers to a TikTok trend where users dedicate themselves to concocting ever more elaborate water-based beverages. In recent weeks, these videos have spilled across the rest of the internet to Twitter, with media coverage in Fast Company, Rolling Stone, Time, and Eater—raising endless questions and leaving many confused people in their wake.

WaterTok users, the majority of whom are American women, share videos of their recipes for creating flavored water using powder mixes and flavored syrups traditionally associated with coffee. The flavored water hashtag has 337 million views on TikTok, while the watertok hashtag has only 136 million—users didn’t start using it on their videos until this month, when the outside world started paying attention to their posts. There are a few core users who post “waters of the day” videos regularly, including @taytayymarie, who has 390,000 followers, and @shelbyhobbs2001, who has 63,000 followers. 

One of WaterTok’s most prolific posters is Tonya Spanglo, known on TikTok as @takingmylifebackat42, who started making flavored water creations after struggling to meet her required daily water intake following weight-loss surgery. “I just have never been a water drinker, ever,” Spanglo explained to Fast Company in an article about the trend. “The protein goal I didn’t have a problem with. Vitamins, the exercise daily, no problem. The water, I could not meet my water goal.” Inspired by a post-surgery handbook that suggested using sugar-free flavorings in water, Spanglo started experimenting. Today she has an audience of over 790,000 followers, with whom she shares recipes for drinks like “‘cotton candy watermelon water”’ (32 oz water, 3 pumps of sugar-free cotton candy syrup, and watermelon-flavored Jolly Rancher powdered mix) and “‘pink wedding cake water”’ (32 oz water, 2 pumps of sugar-free coconut syrup, 2 pumps of sugar-free vanilla almond syrup, and strawberry-flavored Starburst mix). 

Product placement is almost as much a part of WaterTok as the water recipes themselves. Spanglo and other WaterTok creators offer their followers discount codes for Skinny Mixes, a syrup manufacturer that has capitalized on WaterTok’s virality by partnering with creators. Upon visiting Skinny Mixes’ website you’re greeted with the hashtag #WaterGoals and the subheading, “Hit your daily water goals with our best-selling VIRAL water flavors!” Skinny Mixes founder and president Jordan Engelhardt told Fast Company, “We can’t keep the products in stock. We can’t keep them at retail. We can’t keep them on our website. So, it’s been obviously wonderful for our company.”

Skinny Mixes isn’t the only brand making bank thanks to WaterTok; Stanley cups are almost as crucial a component of the drinks as the ingredients themselves. The tumblers, produced by American drinkware company Stanley, have been trendy with younger Americans on TikTok for a while now, edging VSCO girl Hydroflasks out of the spotlight. 

But like any trend, WaterTok is not without controversy. In the comments of nearly every WaterTok video—and in mentions of anyone who posts a WaterTok video to Twitter—critics ask how these drinks could reasonably be considered water once they’re mixed with multiple syrups and flavors. Others suggest WaterTok users have simply reinvented Kool-Aid. Lens writer Ryan Broderick referred to the drinks as “virgin jungle juice,” while writer Ashley Reese created a nickname for flavored water fans who took issue with her suggestion that people might as well just drink fruit juice: “Hummingbird Twitter.” WaterTokers don’t appear to be letting the critics get to them—Spanglo posted a video earlier this month joking that she’s “too busy peeing all day” to care about what people think of her drinks.

There have been a few theories about what has caused the sudden emergence of WaterTok, and what’s driving its most popular creators. Broderick outlines a few, including the possibility of the trend having origins in Utah soda shop culture or that it’s a weight-loss or weight-management tool (Spanglo’s back story lends credence to this theory, and experts have voiced concerns about the disordered habits WaterTokers might encourage). 

Ultimately, however, I think it’s simply a niche trend suddenly breaking free from its confines. Stanley cups have been popular for a while, as have satisfying videos of people stocking their pantries or fridges (in this case, users restock their “water bars”). WaterTok videos allow people to tap into both of these things, as well as the visual and auditory appeal of watching someone make colorful drinks. In addition, the nature of algorithms across TikTok and Twitter mean that even negative engagement boosts WaterTok, furthering its reach. Right now, it seems like WaterTok is taking over. In reality, it’s just another TikTok trend that will be forgotten in six months—save for a core user base of people who really, really, really dislike the taste of plain water.