|
Last update: May 2008
Bottled Water & Water Filters
Bottled? Nalgene? In 1980, we drank almost no bottled water. Today, nearly a third of beverages we buy are bottled waters. What's the best method to drink clean water? Here are some points to consider:
Single-Use Plastic Water Bottled
- Don't PET plastics leach? Most are safe (as of a 1999 study, the most recent independent study conducted), but the study concluded that across 103 brands, bottled water was no safer than tap water for bacterial contamination and chemicals such as arsenic. Most are safe for one use, but many begin to leach potential carcinogens in used more than once. Washing them doesn't help--in fact, it often makes the situation worse as PET bottles were not designed to withstand most detergents. If you do wash, SIGG and stainless-steel are considered safe for dishwashers. Tops aren't cleaned well by dishwashers, though: wash it all by hand with mild soap or a baking soda/white vinegar solution.
- Environmental Costs. In the US alone, more than 1.5 million barrels of oil are used to create our annual demand for water bottled. About 2.7 million tons of plastic are used to bottle water worldwide each year. Compared to tap water which comes from an existing infrastructure, bottled water is transported by trucks, boat, train, and plane. In this sense, bottled water costs more than gasoline!
- Landfills. The Container Recycling Institute estimates that 86% of single-use PET water bottles are not recycled. More, about 40% of the recycled bottles are exported for recycling, shipped as far away as China.
- Regulations. Bottled water is one of the least-regulated industries in the US. Upwards of 60% sold in the US is exempt from any federal regulations because it is packaged and sold in the same state. The EPA regulates tap water and the FDA enforces less strict regulations for bottled water.
- Water source. Incredibly, 25-40% of bottled water is just tap water. This includes Aquafina (Pepsi) and Dasani (Coca-Cola).
Enhanced Waters (Nutrition Action, June 2008)
- Relaxing Waters: VitaminWater B-Relaxed Jackfruit Gwava: no studies which suggest that its vitamins will affect mood at all; no jackfruit or gwava in the ingredients; BUT 125 calories per bottle. SoBe Life Water Calm Your Life has the same problem and 100 calories/bottle.
- Immunity Waters: Dasani Plus adds zinc and vitamin E (neither of which do anything for immune systems) to a bottle of dyed and artificially-sweetened water; Fruit2O, SoBe Life Water Shield, VitaminWater Defense, and others--all nonsense, backed by no studies or evidence.
- Fiber Waters: According to the US gov't, maltodextrin is a fiber (though water soluble)--quite different from fibers we consumer from grain!--and there are no studies which suggest it does anything. There are studies which caution against the artificial sweeteners which are added, though.
- Antioxidant Waters: More nonsense. No studies link antioxidents to disease resistance. None. Snapple's Antioxidant Water contains water, sugar, citric acid, natural flavors, fruit and vegetable juices for color, modified corn starch (see my Blog on this), grape seed extract, and a few vitamins and minerals. How do these help?
- Invigorating Energy Waters: Simple--they're all spiked with caffeine, sometimes as much as a cup of coffee (50 to 120 mg). And be careful: Propel's 20 oz bottle lists caffeine content for one serving, which is 8 oz.! And don't be fooled by the Dasani and SoBe ingredient guarana: it's a seed rich in caffeine, but calling it guarana avoids the requirement to say so.
- Life Waters: What does this mean, anyway? Some have an active ingredient called taurine. One study (and there's only one reliable one) produced mixed results for taurine doses of 20 grams a day. SoBe offers 25 milligrams in a bottle. Ginseng is often listed in others. Six recent studies of ginseng in the UK (200-400 mg doses) also produced mixed results. The waters often don't tell how much ginseng is in each bottle.
- Essential Waters: VitaminWater Essential Orange + Orange claims that its a good substitute for an orange or orange juice, but it's essentially distilled water, sugar, gum, and flavors at 125 calories/bottle. No protein or phytochemicals which we would normally get from fruit.
Multi-Use Plastic Water Bottles
- Nalgene and similar bottles, unfortunately, contain BPA, a chemical which acts like estrogen. A 2005 study showed a possible connection between BPA and breast cancer. Again, washing in the dishwasher (and additional simple wear and tear) causes chemicals to leach. This leaching increases as the plastic ages.
Best Choices
- Glass. If you can carry it easily (pouch or sling) and aren't likely to break it, it's the best choice.
- Stainless Steel. Klean Kanteen works well, but not for hot drinks. New Wave Enviro Products has several choices, and the old stand-by Thermos bottles work well with the stainless steel interior. √
- Aluminum with Liners. SIGG bottles have an aluminum exterior and an internal impermeable alloy liner. www.reusablebags.com.
Water Filters
- Water filters for the home have no leaching plastics, have little environmental impact, save landfills, and avoid the scams of bottled water.
- Tap water itself, depending upon which study you read, is fairly safe. The EPA says that 90% of water systems meet standards. However, NRDC studies have shown that the pipe systems from 19 big US cities have contaminants, including fuel, arsenic, lead, fecal waste, and chemicals from water treatment. Physicians for Social Responsibility estimates that 900,000 get sick and as many as 900 die each year from contaminated water. Even so, tap water is as safe as bottled water.
- Test your water. Your water company should send you a Consumer Confidence Report to tell you the source of your tap water. You can get a test our your water at www.epa.gov/safewater/labs
- Find the correct type of filter:
- If your water seems to meet EPA levels, maybe just a simply carbon/KDF adsorption filter (See, for instance, www.thewaterexchange.net)
- If you have only 1-2 contaminants, a countertop model will work. Different types at www.nsf.org/certified/dwtu.
- If you have serious problems, a multi-stage whole house filter may be needed ( www.gaiam.com or www.rainsoft.com ). √
- Filters should be NSF certified. Those with "UL Water Quality" or the Water Quality Association Gold Seal are additional qualified.
- The filters for these systems are almost impossible to recycle, but it's better than the bottled plastic waters. We need to stop drinking bottled water and demand that filter companies recycle.
|