I
Thought Bottled
Water Was Healthy
You
Mean it's Just as Bad
as Tap?
What people don't realize
is that many times the bottled beverage is no purer than the water coming from
the kitchen tap - it just tastes better! Here is the scoop on bottled water:
- Expensive: The California
Assembly Office of Research did a study on bottled water in 1985
that showed consumers paying up to one thousand times the cost of tap water
for bottled water.
- Inconvenient: People who
use bottled water regularly tend to have lots of bottles around underfoot --
empty containers or new jugs waiting to be used. These people usually hoard
the "clean" water for special purposes, i.e. coffee, beverages,
rather than use it freely whenever needed. There is always the problem of
having too many bottles on hand because they are not used fast enough, or
not enough bottles because the water is being consumed more quickly.
- No laws requiring it to be purer than tap water: In 1991, the U.S.
House Energy and Commerce Commission did a study on bottled water
with the following findings:
- 25% of
"gourmet" waters (i.e. Evian, Perrier, et al) draw from the same
sources as cities!!
- 31% exceed tap water
limits for microbiological contaminants!
- 25% could not document
their water sources!
- Any bottled water sold
strictly within state borders is not subject to regulation by the Food and
Drug Administration!
Bottled Water:
Bottled water enjoys a booming business lately
due to all of the water problems covered before. People drink it because of the
improved taste, and that allows them to drink more water. The bottled water
industry is required to test for the same group of contaminants as the public
water utilities. The public water utilities are allowed to have a minimum
contaminant level - bottled water companies are also allowed to sell water with
a minimum level of contamination (bacteria, algae, dirt, lead, etc.). When the
water tastes better, the public perceives it as purer.
The University of Delaware found
that of the 37 popular mineral waters, at least 24 were out of line with at
least one of the 31 standards set for drinking water! The California
Assembly Office of Research study (1985) also did random samplings of
bottled waters sold in California (name brands such as Alhambra, Black Mountain,
Sparkletts, etc.) and found numerous reported contamination problems, such as
finding various chemicals, insects, algaes, bacteria, fingernails and even
chewing gum!
Because of the nature of the bottling and handling
process, it is difficult to avoid casual contamination from different points in
the process. Air that bubbles up into home drinking water dispensers is laden
with bacteria and dust that contaminates the water each time. Bottled water
companies recommend keeping the water out of direct sunlight and even supply
covers for the bottles because the algae, etc. that was not filtered out
completely will start to grow in the bottle with warmth and light (remember the
greenish scum?)!
| |
|
