| It's probably fair to say that most people | | | | cases. The flaw in this logic is that there is no |
| recognise the need to drink plenty of water in | | | | hard evidence that bottled water is any better |
| order to stay healthy, avoid dehydration and to | | | | for your health than plain old tap water. |
| function efficiently. The exact amount of water | | | | Tap water in North America and Europe is |
| you need will differ depending upon your body | | | | perfectly safe to drink and is subject to stringent |
| mass, size, climatic conditions and the level of | | | | quality control checks. Bottled water has been |
| physical activity in which you are engaged. | | | | found to contain traces of uranium and estrogen |
| However, most medical authorities currently | | | | chemicals. Many of the chemicals which can be |
| suggest that you should be drinking between six | | | | found in bottled water actually "leech" from the |
| and eight large glasses of water every day. | | | | plastic (PET) of the bottles. It has also been |
| This medical advice has been one of the key | | | | established that many bottled waters contain, |
| factors used in the marketing campaigns of | | | | along with other minerals, salt - which is not very |
| bottled water suppliers to promote their product. | | | | good for hypertension sufferers. |
| The bottled water market is a fairly recent | | | | The only conceivable reason that you might want |
| development - but it is huge. Sales of bottled | | | | to drink bottled water would be the taste. |
| water have more than doubled in the period | | | | However, in blind taste tests most consumers are |
| between 1997 and 2005 - more than 200 billion | | | | unable to tell the difference between bottled |
| bottles of water are sold globally each year. | | | | water and tap water. Of course, if you live in a |
| That's a huge number of empty plastic bottles | | | | hard water area, or if you really don't like the |
| being discarded. Some - a little under a quarter | | | | taste of the water from your tap (possibly due |
| according to current estimates - are recycled. The | | | | to chlorine which water suppliers often use to kill |
| rest end up as landfill. The environmental impact is | | | | bacteria) you might want to look at other |
| significant. It has been estimated that if all those | | | | alternatives. |
| empty bottles were to be lined up end to end | | | | You might consider a home filtration system of |
| that they would cover a distance which was | | | | some kind. This would not only be better for your |
| enough to get to the moon and back - 56 times! | | | | health but also better for the environment - and it |
| The carbon emissions produced both in the | | | | would save you a fair bit of money compared |
| production of the bottles and their subsequent | | | | with using bottled water. You can get whole |
| transportation to their final destination is also a | | | | house filtration systems, filters which are |
| cause for concern. It's an astonishing fact that the | | | | mounted directly onto taps, under sink filters and |
| production of the bottles requires three times | | | | even very cheap and simple jug filters. Any one |
| more water than they will contain when they are | | | | of these solutions will filter out contaminants and |
| shipped. | | | | pollutants, give you better tasting water and |
| Bottled water is, to put it mildly, an environmental | | | | counter the effects of water hardness in a |
| disaster. Of course, you may be more concerned | | | | cost-effective and environmentally friendly |
| with your own health than that of the planet's - | | | | manner. |
| which may be perfectly understandable in certain | | | | |