The Ugly Facts About Bottled Water

A lot of bottle water is just plain tap water.  Lots of marketing is done to give the illusion that it comes from a natural and pure spring, but that is just not the case.   For example, Aquasana and Dasani are just processed tap water.  Tap water, NOT spring water.

From Earth-Policy.org:

With sales growing by 10 percent each year, far faster than any other beverage, bottled water now appears to be the drink of choice for many Americans—they swallow more of it than milk, juice, beer, coffee, or tea.

It is usually packaged in single-serving plastic bottles made with fossil fuels. Just manufacturing the 29 billion plastic bottles used for water in the United States each year requires the equivalent of more than 17 million barrels of crude oil.

Estimates for the energy used for pumping and processing, transportation, and refrigeration, brings the annual fossil fuel footprint of bottled water consumption in the United States to over 50 million barrels of oil equivalent—enough to run 3 million cars for one year. If everyone drank as much bottled water as Americans do, the world would need the equivalent of more than 1 billion barrels of oil to produce close to 650 billion individual bottles.

From Container-Recyling.Org:

Americans buy an estimated 28 billion single-serving (1 liter or less) plastic water bottles each year. More than eight out of ten end up in a landfill or incinerator. Hundreds of millions end up as litter on roads and beaches or in streams and other waterways. Taxpayers pay hundreds millions of dollars each year in disposal and litter cleanup costs.

Less than 20% of water bottles are recycled each year.  These bottles are typically made from PET plastic, a petroleum (fossil fuel) based material.

40% of the bottled water sold in the United States is tap water anyway.  And, only 40% of bottled water is even regulated by the FDA.

Tap water costs about a penny a gallon and bottled waters costs up to $10 a gallon.

From ABCNEWS.COM:

“20/20″ took five bottles of national brands of bottled water and a sample of tap water from a drinking fountain in the middle of New York City and sent them to microbiologist Aaron Margolin of the University of New Hampshire to test for bacteria that can make you sick, like e. coli. “There was actually no difference between the New York City tap water and the bottled waters that we evaluated,” he said.

The sad truth is that we are all being defrauded by companies selling bottled water.  They are raking in millions, while we are all falsely believing that bottled water is better for us.  The fact is that a lot of bottled water is even LESS pure than water coming straight from the tap.  And, by perpetuating the on-going consumption of bottled water, we are all contributing to environmental pollution, the growing need for more fossil fuels to make the bottles, and this is all just so wasteful for no good reason.

The only other reason people (myself included) have used so much bottled water is convenience.  Let me tell you something, I bought a refillable water bottle (metal, not plastic) and I carry it with me everywhere I go.  I simple refill it with filtered water all day long.  Now I don’t spend anywhere near what I did on bottled water, and I feel a LOT better about the water that I am drinking, and the impact on the environment.  It is so easy to make such a simple change and choose to stop buying bottled water.  Get a filter (even an inexpensive one!) and a bottle, and stop this growing problem.  If you’re looking for a top-rated, easy to install drinking water filter, I recommend you visit Aquasana. They have been making and selling home water filters for years, and best of all, their award winning filters are not the most expensive brands on the market.

If you need any more convincing about the impacts of bottled water on our environment, take a look at this video.

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words (845 water bottles wasted every second!):

If you’d like to learn more, read any one of the helpful resources and articles listed below.

References (Sources of Information Used in this Article):

http://blogs.edf.org/climate411/2008/03/26/bottled_water/

http://www.earth-policy.org/Updates/2007/Update68.htm

http://www.earth-policy.org/Updates/2007/Update68_data2.htm#table5

http://www.pacinst.org/topics/integrity_of_science/case_studies/bottled_water_factsheet.pdf

http://www.container-recycling.org/plasfact/bottledwater.htm

http://www.container-recycling.org/assets/pdfs/reports/2007-waterwater.pdf 

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/03/pharmaceuticals-in-water.php

AP probe found traces of meds in water supplies of 41 million Americans

Here’s a scary thought: there could be trace amounts of endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDC) and pharmaceutically active compounds and personal care products (PPCP) making their way into our drinking water.  These chemicals have already been discovered in surface and ground water and have been linked to ecological problems, even at trace levels of concentration.  Water treatment facilities attempt to remove impurities from our water, but these systems were never originally designed to deal with these modern threats.  Think about it, this wasn’t even a concern a hundred years ago when the world wasn’t overrun with chemicals and pharmaceutical products. 
 
What’s even scarier is that the regulations for measuring such contaminants and removing them from our water haven’t been completely defined and updated.  In other words, we don’t even know yet what compounds are harmful, and what measure of minute concentrations will actually cause toxicity, so there are no regulations yet on how much of it is acceptable in our water supply.

Regulatory issues won’t be tackled for years to come, but the EPA isn’t waiting for more study results before taking action. The EPA is educating the public and funding pharmaceutical programs by concerned groups and state and local government agencies.

There are numerous studies and projects underway now to identify the implications of such water contaminants to human health.  The general consensus is that any contaminants are in such low trace amounts that they are “unlikely” to cause harm in the human body.  Unlikely?  That isn’t good enough for me to feel secure drinking and cooking with this water, and it probably isn’t good enough for you and your family either. 

Many studies have shown that our conventional water treatment plants do not completely remove many EDCs and PPCPs.  The following drugs in the water supply have been detected:  antibiotics and antidepressants, hormone pills, tranquilizers, pain killers, cancer medication, and many more.  These substances can originally come from waste from industrial and farm uses, as well as from humans and farm animals.  Consider that “about 40 percent of US produced antibiotics are fed to livestock as growth enhancers.” (Source: University of Arizona).  More frightening quotes:

A vast array of pharmaceuticals — including antibiotics, anti-convulsants, mood stabilizers and sex hormones — have been found in the drinking water supplies of at least 41 million Americans, an Associated Press investigation shows.

If you’d like to read more on this issue, please visit these websites and resources:

Pharmaceuticals Lurking in US Drinking Water

Pharmaceuticals in our Water Supply, University of Arizona

Pharmaceuticals in Our Water Supply Are Causing Bizarre Mutations to Wildlife

Advanced water treatment systems such as filtration with activated carbon or reverse osmosis, are viable systems for the removal of many trace contaminants.  However, more research needs to be done to make sure no harmful levels of these contaminants remain in our water.

Reverse osmosis filtration is extremely effective at removing particulates from water.  However, when it comes to home water use, it isn’t ideal because it also removes the helpful minerals that are present in natural water.  These minerals are good for your health and also make water taste better.  You’re better off with a combination filtration system that purifies your water without removing the good qualities of the water.

Whether you’re worried about drugs in your water, or any other water quality concern, you need to make sure you are using a good water filter for your family.  Educate yourself about the different types of water filter systems that are most effective and find the right solution so you can be confident that your family is drinking clean, pure, healthy water.

One of the downsides to using distilled water, or water from a reverse osmosis system, is that all  the good properties of the water–the minerals–have been inadvertently stripped out along with the bad stuff.  Reverse osmosis water is not the best water for drinking quality and cooking.

In fact, water that has been filtered with reverse osmosis is often acidic (pH is less than 7), and acidic water is known to be bad for you, especially the longer you drink it.  A body with an acidic pH is more prone to diseases of all types, including cancer.

When you’re evaluating a water filter system, read the product performance sheet to get guidelines on performance Many times this data sheet will also list the costs per gallon for filtered water, and the filter replacement costs.  This makes it rather easy for you to determine which filter is the right one for you, and at what cost.  Usually, a chart is provided that lists all of the contaminants that each filter will remove, and what percentage.  This makes it a lot easier to pick the right filter for the water quality and price range that you require.

Also check independent consumer reviews of products to get information and opinions on customer satisfaction with water filters. One of the highest rated brands for several years in a row is the Aquasana water filters. Best of all, the Aquasana brand isn’t even the most expensive brand. So you can get a great water filter, and healthy water for less money.

Consumer Digest Best Buy

Click one of the images below to learn more about the different types of home water filters available, or just visit the Aquasana website for more information.

Aquasana Under Counter Filtration	Aquasana Countertop Filtration
Aquasana Shower Filter	Aquasana Whole House Filter

Reverse osmosis equipment is a type of filtration system that is common for purifying water. If you’re looking for cleaner, healthier water you’ve probably looked into reverse osmosis filtration for your home. However there are some important facts about reverse osmosis that you must learn because it isn’t the best fit for home drinking water.

Reverse osmosis works by forcing water through a fine membrane filter, and then forcing the water back through again, which filters out contaminants. Reverse osmosis is one of the best filters for removing particulates from water, which makes it good for industrial and commercial use. Reverse osmosis uses hyper filtration to remove bacteria and other contaminants. Reverse osmosis uses the reversal of water flow through a filter membrane to the opposite side of the membrane. This osmotic pressure through the filter resulting in purified water on the other end.

There is nothing wrong with a reverse osmosis system for filtering water for some uses. And while reverse osmosis is undeniably extremely effective at water filtration, in fact– it works a little too well—at least when it comes to water for drinking and cooking. Let me explain why you need to be concerned.

Pure, natural water contains calcium‚ potassium, and magnesium; some important nutrients for healthy bodies. But, because reverse osmosis filters so much out of the water, it also strips out the minerals in the water along with all the bad stuff. This means you end up with “dead”, lifeless water that doesn’t even taste all that great. Reverse osmosis water truly isn’t the best drinking water. If you’re looking for a home faucet filter, there are better options to choose from.

And, reverse osmosis requires a lot of pressure to work—water is forced with great pressure through the filter to get good results, and it is a very slow process, as well. It can take a whole day to filter 15 gallons of water in some systems.

Most people don’t realize that reverse osmosis systems actually waste several gallons of water for each gallon of water that is purified. In other words, a reverse osmosis system goes through 2-4 gallons of untreated water in order to produce one gallon of purified water. Water is in short supply in many areas of the world, not to mention expensive, so if you think about it, this is very wasteful!

The purified water from a reverse osmosis system is usually of a more acidic pH than ground water, which also is not good for your health, and certainly not advised to be consumed over the long term. A neutral pH is 7. Lower levels are more acidic, and higher levels are more alkaline. Water that has a lower pH is acidic, soft, and corrosive. Many municipalities will require treatments of waste water from reverse osmosis systems in order to make the water less acidic. This is because it is known that acid water corrodes water pipes. Acid water pipe corrosion can cause lead, copper, iron, and other metals to leach into the water.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) lists pH as one of the secondary “contaminants” for public water systems, but only regulates pH levels between 6.5 and 8.5. So, even if your water from reverse osmosis is more acidic, they won’t do much about it. You need to look out for your own health. If you’re concerned, you can purchase testing kits to measure water pH, and there are water pH additives to treat your water and make it more alkaline. But wouldn’t you rather just have more balanced water to start with?

In summary, reverse osmosis is a great system for filtering water, but for home drinking water use, it is more expensive, slower, and more wasteful than other filtration systems, and you end up with water quality that is lacking minerals and not really fit for drinking.

Now that you’re informed, let’s discuss what type of home water filtration system is the right one for you. Reverse osmosis systems cost hundreds of dollars, but you’ll be relieved to know that you can get a better home drinking water filtration system for a lot less money.

You’ll want to find a home water filter system that uses both carbon filtration, as well as micron filtration to remove particulates. Searching for reviews on-line, it’s clear that one of the highest rated drinking water filters is made by Aquasana. Their water filters have been voted “Best Buy” by Consumers Digest magazine for several years running. Their water filters take advantage of carbon filtration, ion exchange and sub-micron filtration.

Get a good home water filter so you can rest assured that your family is drinking pure, health water. Use reverse osmosis equipment filtering systems where it makes sense, but it’s a better choice to select a different type of filter system for your home drinking and cooking water.

Visit Aquasana’s website now (Click here) and find out Consumer’s Digest selected it as #1, and why tens of thousands of other educated consumers consider Aquasana to be the best water filter at any price.

Aquasana Under Counter Filtration	Aquasana Countertop Filtration
Aquasana Shower Filter	Aquasana Whole House Filter

Reverse osmosis filtration systems cost hundreds of dollars, so you would think they would provide the best water quality, correct? Actually, the truth is, no—they are not the best option for drinking water. Reverse osmosis works by forcing water through a fine membrane filter, and then forcing the water back through again, which filters out contaminants. Reverse osmosis is one of the best filters for removing particulates from water, which makes it good for industrial and commercial use.

It is a very effective filtration system, but there are some drawbacks. The most important drawback is that reverse osmosis faucets actually filter out helpful minerals and elements. Natural water contains calcium‚ potassium, and magnesium: important nutrients that our bodies need. Because these valuable nutrients are stripped out, water from a reverse osmosis faucet doesn’t taste good! When drinking water is essentially over-filtered using a reverse osmosis filter, you end up with water that isn’t ideal for drinking.

Secondly, you may not realize that reverse osmosis water filters actually waste 2-4 gallons of water for each gallon of water purified. This means it takes several gallons of untreated water in order to produce one gallon of purified water with reverse osmosis. This is very wasteful!

One other potential problem with reverse osmosis water is that the pH level of the water can be acidic. Acidic water is bad for your health and there are many studies linking to acidic pH to a host of medical conditions from general fatigue, aches and pains, to arthritis and even cancer. Some municipalities actually require that reverse osmosis water is treated to adjust the pH levels, because otherwise the water is corrosive to pipes.

Does this sound like the kind of water you want to be ingesting into your body? Probably not. Not all reverse osmosis systems significantly adjust the pH of water, so you can test the pH of your water to see if this is an issue with your home water source. Still, better to be safe than sorry when it comes to something that can impact your health!

Now that you understand why reverse osmosis filtered water isn’t the best water for your home water faucet, you can find the right home water faucet filter. Believe it or not, a much less expensive filtration system is a better option for drinking water.

You’ll want to use a system that uses carbon filtration, as well as micron filtration to remove particulates. One of the highest rated drinking water filters is made by Aquasana. Their water filter uses a combination of carbon filtration, ion exchange and sub-micron filtration to produce truly healthy great tasting water right from your kitchen tap. This faucet water filter removes contaminants from your drinking water such as lead, chlorine, VOCs, cysts (parasites) and other harmful contaminants. More importantly, it leaves in the natural trace minerals that are healthy and taste great! It costs far less to install and operate than a reverse osmosis system, and the cost per gallon is lower. You’ll waste less water, save money, and best of all, you’ll feel good knowing you are providing your family with healthy drinking water!

Visit Aquasana’s website now (Click here) and find out why tens of thousands of other educated consumers, consider Aquasana to be the best water filter system at any price. Get healthy drinking water for your family today.

As consumers and educated citizens, we’ve witnessed the huge trend of people turning towards natural health — the rise of the organic food moment, the backlash against pesticides, the booming of local farmer’s markets, and so forth – and now, we’re starting to wake up to the most important thing we can do for our health: drinking pure water.

The sad reality is, though, in an era of rising health consciousness, our drinking water purity is declining. Some comprehensive studies are now showing that there are over 2,100 toxins in our drinking water. These toxins include: chlorine, lead, chemicals that get into the water supply from large farming run offs, and corporate pollution.

All of this stuff may be found in your tap water.

People think they are protecting themselves by drinking bottled water. But bottled water may be the biggest scam of all. Bottled water may be no more pure than tap water. This is because there are simply no government standards that require bottled water be any better. Even the FDA states: “Companies that market bottled water as being safer than tap water are defrauding the American public.”

Don’t you find it amazing that bottled water, ounce for ounce, can cost more than gasoline? And, if you’re an environmentally conscious sort of person, you should also consider this statement: “It [the purchase of bottled water] causes millions of plastic bottles to be manufactured, transported and then disposed of in U.S. landfills, it’s killing our planet, and for no good reason…” - Eric Olsen, Natural Resources Defense Council.

So, what’s the solution if you want to protect the health of you and your family, and that of the planet? The answer is the use of a home water filtration system.  But not just any filtration system. You see, there are significant differences between products. And more expensive does not necessarily mean better.

Let’s consider a few points:

The best selling systems out there right now are so-called “reverse osmosis” or “distillation.” These are actually not the optimal choice because although they can do a pretty good job of removing contaminants, they also remove the beneficial minerals that are vital for our health. Our bodies evolved to drink water with important minerals such as calcium, magnesium, potassium, and more. Nowhere on earth was de-mineralized water appear naturally.

Many systems to not employ multi-filtration. This effectively means that some of the worst toxic offenders are not filtered out, and you may still be drinking some of that bad stuff you are trying to avoid.

Many of us don’t consider the purity of the water that we cook food with, or the water we shower or bathe in. Remember: when you shower, the warm water opens up the pores of your skin and all of that water penetrates into it. Pure water is very beneficial for the skin and hydrates it. If you suffer from dryness, or any skin condition or disorder, it’s even more important that you are bathing in purified water.

Now, there are many well know brands and companies out there that produce good, decent products. But dollar for dollar, there is none better than Aquasana). They have been voted “Best Buy” by Consumer Digest magazine five years running now.

And, because we are all on a budget, they have products for all budget ranges.

1. They sell products just for filtering shower water. Just a couple of the testimonials about this product include:

“The benefits are immediate and very noticeable!”  - Dr. Alan Pressman/Health Talk Radio

“It’s like showering in natural spring water!”  - Jonathan Antin/Celebrity Hair Stylist, Host of Reality Show “Blow-Out” 

2. They sell water filters just for individual faucets, such as your kitchen faucet.

3. They sell individual glass bottle filters you can take anywhere that replace plastic bottled water.

4. And, of course, they sell a top rated whole house water purifier and filter.

Visit their site now (Click here) and find out why I, and tens of thousands of other educated consumers, consider Aquasana to be not only the best dollar for dollar buy, but the best products over all regardless of price.

Aquasana Under Counter Filtration	Aquasana Countertop Filtration
Aquasana Shower Filter	Aquasana Whole House Filter