Saturday, March 14, 2009

Bottled Water Same Quality as Tap Water, Says Study

By Phyllis Wheeler

Bottled water and tap water have the same level of chemical contaminants, according to an October, 2008, study.

The study, conducted by the Environmental Working Group, a Washington, DC, activist group, looked at 10 bottled water brands purchased in nine states and the District of Columbia. It found 38 chemical pollutants altogether, with an average of 8 contaminants in each brand. Four brands were also contaminated with bacteria.(http://www.ewg.org/reports/bottledwater)

Two of the brands, Walmart's and Giant's store brands, were chemically indistinguishable from tap water, containing chlorine disinfectant byproducts. Giant's brand also contained fluoride. These levels of chlorine byproducts exceeded the safety standards set by the bottled water industry and the state of California.

The tests, conducted at the University of Iowa Hygienic Laboratory, revealed a variety of pollutants like caffeine and Tylenol, arsenic, radioactive isotopes, fertilizer residues nitrate and ammonia, and various other chemicals used as solvents, plasticizers, propellants, and so on.

Researchers added a test, to check the possible carcinogenic effect of estrogen-mimicking chemicals in the plastic bottles themselves. Breast-cancer cells in petri dishes flourished in one case, growing 78 percent more with one of the bottled water brands than with the control.

Americans are spending an average of $3.79 per gallon for bottled water, and drinking 9 billion gallons of it per year. The perception is that the bottled water is safer. But this study shows that it isn't. In fact, the laws governing it don't require it to be better. The EPA sets tap water standards, and then the FDA bases its bottled water standards on the EPA's tap water standards (www.epa.gov/ogwdw/faq/faq.html).

You can make a wise decision by spending just 8 cents per gallon on a home water filter, which you can install at your kitchen sink. It can provide you with clean pure water, which you can put in safe containers of your choice.

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