Dazed and Confused – Stupidity in the News: Bottled vs Tap Water
“I read the news today, oh boy” is the opening line from the Beatles song “A Day in the Life”. But yesterday it went well beyond “oh boy” when I was left dazed and confused by the stupidity in the news.
I mean there are some days when I read articles in the news and I just sit shaking my head mainly due to all the negativity. Yesterday’s shaking however, is an example of stupidity centering on an issue continuing to persist because of the news and questionable advertising.
The story from lovely old England was partly about the bottled water companies trying to wage war against tap water dues to falling sales.
Now I realize the story was merely reporting the state of bottled water industry trying to regain lost sales through advertising and marketing but sheesh!
The piece noted one of the tactics used by the bottled water industry was to attack the degrading water quality of municipal tap water.
Although some municipal water systems may have degraded water quality, those systems (at least in this country) are constantly monitored (not the case for the bottled water industry in most instances) and still have to make minimum water quality standards as set by the Safe Water Drinking Act (again here in the U.S.).
Does that really warrant spending $5.00 to $8.00 per gallon (even more in some places) for bottled water versus a few cents per gallon (unfiltered) and maybe up to $0.25 per gallon (if filtered) from our tap?
Not in my mind!
A few other issues with bottled water include:
- Greater than 25% of bottled water providers here in the U.S. are not from remote “pristine” springs but are actually filtered municipal water;
- There are many cases where bottled water quality has been determined to be degraded;
- Bottled water companies also process the water prior to bottling;
- Tap water is delivered via an existing piping system usually driven by gravity; bottled water has to be packaged and shipped to end user (often with several intermediate stops);
- Bottle water comes in bottles (usually plastic, sometimes glass) with most of them being discarded as trash; &
- It takes extra energy and resources to make the bottles (most of which end up as trash) and ship them as noted above.
So please ….. GIVE ME A BREAK!
In what alternate reality does anyone think bottled water is better than tap water? (Assuming not in an under-developed country of course) ….
Only in the alternate reality of the news, advertising and marketing.
To really get clean water it must be processed at the point of getting it…the faucet. I have a water purifier and bottle my own water.
Grace Anderson’s last blog post..Resveratrol,…In The News Again
Hi Grace,
Thanks for visiting and commenting … I completely agree and that is exactly what we do. We have decent water here though there is the slight odor of chlorine plus elevated THM compounds. Filtering makes all the difference with taste and provides the extra piece of mind plus we don’t end up with a barrel full of plastic bottles to deal with.
Best always,
Jim H.
Hi 5 folks – I get the best of both worlds I use the empty bottles from the water Ive bought and refil them with tap water – then I harmonize and magnetize this water to make it better to drink – another tip is place a few bottles around your workspace at home or in the real world job so it reminds you to drink plenty of water I can not overemphasis the fact that water is so good for you – especially working on these computer electromagnetic stress machines and that folks is a Fact – Not an Opinion! – lol
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Another point the bottled water folks don’t mention is that, depending on the materials used, the plastic from the bottle may seep into the water. This is a well documented truth and in addition to questionable water, we just might be having a drink of chemicals that we can’t even pronounce and that our poor bodies can’t handle. The only way to know what we’re ingesting is to educate ourselves. Yes, lots of tap water isn’t great but we have power at the source of its entry into our lives: our homes. Water quality is definitely a concern but paying inflated prices for water in plastic bottles definitely isn’t the answer.
Sydney Johnston’s last blog post..Popular Migraine Remedies: The Dangers You Don’t Hear About
It’s interesting debate isn’t it. There are many people that have filters on their kitchen taps to mirror some bottled waters, there are also homes with their own water coolers like those at the office.
Where I lived in NZ we had to purchase bottled water due to drought conditions and the tap water had to be boiled twice before we could use it for a cup of tea or coffee.
I do think the people today are more aware of recycling and a lot of water companies use recycled bottles for their water.
Maybe in the US you are luckier than other countries in that your quality regimes are a lot stricter, therefore you don’t rely as heavily on bottled water like some of us do in other countries.
Julie McClelland’s last blog post..Life with Limu Plus
We are so blessed to live in a country where they take tap water quality seriously. So many people do not realize that bottled water companies don’t have the same type of control or monitoring as that of regular tap water (thanks for pointing that out). Plastic water bottles have a shelf life and after that date they start to degrade and “contaminate” the “natural spring $8 a gallon water” that was purchased.
I’ll stick to the water that comes out of my faucet, thank you very much.
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I have mixed feelings about this. First, in my home, we have had filtered water with a reverse osmosis system for many years. I prefer this water above any other because I think that it is pure and safe and it tastes good. However, I believe in drinking lots of water every day, and minimal other drinks, and so bottled water does have its place outside the home where you are purchasing drinks.
We do usually have a case of water around because we promote drinking water to our children over almost any other beverage. It is usually grabbed on the way out the door to drink outside the home (for convenience and the cost is so much lower buying by the case). We do bottle our own as well but with teenagers I want them to have the option of a bottle ready to go so they make that choice over a sugary drink.
Hello All!
First off … wow, thanks for all the great comments … I really appreciate you stopping by to share your views!
@Vicki … I understand the dilemma and admit when we travel on long trips, we purchase a case of bottled water for the convenience. On the other hand, we do use a point of use filtration system at home and rarely have bottled water around the house (but then again all our kids are now up and gone too!).
@Biocutisblog … we are very blessed to live in the country we do and mostly have the luxury of using point of use systems to address the minimal contamination (again in most areas) in our water.
@Julie … I did throw out the caveat about less developed countries and I should have also added those areas experiencing other water issues such as droughts. There are definitely times when bottled water is a “god-send”; I was mainly addressing the tone of the article I read and the frustration it awoke in me.
@Sydney … again I agree in concept. I am more concerned with leaching of chemicals (such as BPA) into water being consumed by young people (especially baby) due to lower tolerance and a significantly longer period they risk being exposed to them (given lifespan considerations).
@Phillip … I hear you! I have done the same thing when we had more bottles floating around the house!
Jim, we fell for the bottled water myth for many years when we lived in the Phoenix, AZ area. After all, it is rather hot. Now, we filter our water. We do buy some bottled water when it is on sale. But only to re-use the bottles for our filtered water.
Also, this is a subject worth discussing. Most likely, we all should drink more water. It is essential for healthy body function. Thank you for the great article.
The key point here is most people allow companies of all industries to define “reality” for them. This is just one more example of why critical thinking skills are important to every individual in all facets of life.
I appreciate you,
Bill Tessore
I have been looking looking around for this kind of information. Will you post some more in future? I’ll be grateful if you will.
It’s hard to argue against common sense, and yet people continue to do it. Bottled water offers virtually no advantage to filtering your tap water and transporting it in reusable (and BPA-free) containers.
The irony is that something like 40% of bottled water manufacturers take as their source — wait for it — municipal tap water.
It’s funny, when bottled water first jumped onto the scene, soda manufacturers saw it as a threat to their livelihood. So what did they do? They embraced the industry, and now brands like Dasani and Aquafina constitute a huge part of Coke and Pepsi’s sales.
As more and more people become aware of how clean their tap water really is (and how much cleaner it can be through filtration), it will be interesting to see how the bottled water industry reacts.
Sadly, I’m envisioning some special faucet filters branded with Aquafina or Dasani, which claim to make your tap water taste like those specific waters. And you know what? People would pay good money for it.
Now that will leave you shaking your head indeed.