Is Bottled Water Safe?

Many people drink bottled water because they think it's safer and healthier than tap water

. But this isn't necessarily so.

Billions of dollars are spent on advertising campaigns to give consumers the perception that bottled water comes from pristine mountain springs or pure underground aquifers. The truth is that bottled water is often little more than tap water in a bottle. There are no government standards that require bottled water to be any better, purer or safer than tap water.

Bottled water, because it's defined as a "food" under federal regulations, is regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), while tap water is regulated under much stricter standards by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Companies that sell bottled water do not have to divulge to consumers the water's source, how the water has been purified, and what

chemical pollutants the water may contain. A report released in July 2009 by the General Accountability Office (GAO) found that the FDA has little power to regulate the safety of bottled water, and that even states with the power to regulate it concentrate more on tap water.

You also need to be aware of the fact that all plastic bottles leach plastic byproducts, like phthalates and BPA, into the water. The longer water sits in a plastic container, the more contaminated the water will become.

The reality of bottled water is that you pay from $1 to $4 a gallon for the perception of higher quality, when in fact the quality of bottled water is at best an unknown.

Another issue to consider when it comes to bottled water is the environmental impact. 86% of plastic water bottles used in the United States end up in landfills, taking up to 1,000 years to biodegrade. And large amounts of fossil fuel are used to manufacture, transport and refrigerate bottled water.

So what do you do if you decide to cut back on or stop drinking bottled water, drink more tap water? Even though it's more strictly regulated than bottled water, tap water still contains trace amounts of toxins, and there's also the risk of lead and bacterial contamination. And tap water can oftentimes taste and smell bad.

A water filter is the only way to ensure that the water you drink is clean and free of contaminants. It's an economical, convenient and environmentally friendly way of getting truly healthy water that tastes great. I've been using a water filter for several years, and I highly recommend using one.

by: Jim Plummer

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