Bottled Water Facts

Is bottled water safe and healthy? Here are the bottled water facts that you need to know.

Bottled water companies spend millions of dollars on advertising campaigns to give consumers the perception that bottled water comes from unspoiled mountain springs or pristine 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 companies 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. Bottled water companies are also not required to demonstrate the quality of their water.

A July 2009 report issued by the General Accountability Office found that the Food and Drug Administration 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.

The reality is that many of the contaminants found in tap water have also been found in bottled water. Also, all plastic bottles leach plastic byproducts into the water. The longer water sits in a plastic container, the more contaminated it becomes.

With bottled water, 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 that needs to be considered is bottled water's harmful environmental impact. Large amounts of oil are used each year to produce and transport bottled water, and it takes three times the amount of water to produce the bottle as it does to fill it. Also, most plastic water bottles used in the U.S. end up in landfills.

So what do you do if you want to experience the many health benefits of water but you don't want to rely on bottled water?

Tap water is not the answer, as there are health risks associated with tap water. For more information on tap water, visit the Tap Water Facts page.

The only way to ensure that your drinking water is safe and healthy is to use a water filter. The home water filtration industry is heavily regulated, and manufacturers of water filtration products must do extensive testing and reporting to prove that their products are effective at providing clean water. Manufacturers are required to supply "Performance Data Sheets," which list all of the contaminants a product is certified to remove and to what degree.

Using a water filter is a convenient, economical and environmentally friendly way of getting clean, healthy, great tasting water. I've been using a water filter for many years, and I highly recommend using one. It's one of the best things you can do for your health.

In conclusion, I hope that these bottled water facts have given you a good understanding of the potential health and environmental risks of bottled water.