The truth behind the battle of the bottle
Whether it is because they believe it is more healthy, has fewer contaminants or should be better purified, many people choose to purchase bottled water rather than drink from the tap.
According to Brian Nummer, an Extension food safety specialist in the nutrition and food science department, those people might just be wasting their money.
“One of the things about bottled water is people think that it is guaranteed free of any potential contaminate,” Nummer said. “They have the same or close to the same as tap water. Some people think that [bottled water] is ultra-purified. That’s just not the case.”
Tawni Hill, a junior majoring civil engineering, said she drinks tap water because it’s less expensive.
“I drink water out of the water fountain,” Hill said. “It’s not as heavy. Why carry around water when it’s all around you in the form of drinking fountains?”
People like Hill have no need to worry, Nummer said, since tap water is perfectly healthy in most cases. Every municipality has to monitor their water once, sometimes twice a day, for a long list of chemicals and bacteria. Occasionally, there will be a notice to boil the water because a virus has been found, but generally, tap water is just as healthy, he said.
But that doesn’t stop the United States from leading the world in bottled water intake, with almost 7 billion gallons consumed every year, according to the Beverage Marketing Corporation.
The choice to drink bottled water is effected by cost, convenience and even fluoride. With one 20-ounce bottle costing anywhere from 25 cents to a few dollars, buying water in a bottle is going to cost a lot more than sticking a cup under the tap. Of course, a hiker will tell you he can’t take his kitchen sink up a mountain, while a dentist may say the fluoride in municipal drinking water is a must to keep teeth strong and healthy.
Nummer pointed out that bottled water could just be some company putting tap water into a bottle. The label on the bottle will note if there is any form of purification, but not all companies do – it can be straight from a tap, he said.
Regulations are broad regarding what can be in the bottled water. Although the Food and Drug Administration and the Environmental Protection Agency regulate it, it’s up to the bottler to see that they have tests done, he said.
Many people avoid added costs and hassle by getting their water out of the kitchen sink.
“If it came out a different color, I would worry about it,” Hill said. “If it’s clear, I’m fine.”
Some worry about tap water when it appears cloudy after it has come out of a faucet, but Nummer said that foggy look is simply caused by air. If it never clears away, it is hardness in the water, which he said is also perfectly safe, though “not very good for hairstyles.”
Hill said the water she drinks often tastes different, even if it is from a bottle.
“If it’s really gross I don’t drink it,” she said, “but for the most part, I drink water from the tap.”
Hill said she figures she just has to trust the city her water is coming from, noting she would worry a lot more if she were in a foreign country.
“Water is water,” Hill said. “Either way, it hydrates you, and that’s good. I’ve never gotten sick from tap water, so I don’t worry about it.”
Bottled water is the second leading beverage consumed by Americans today, after carbonated soft drinks, according to the Beverage Marketing Corporation. The industry is growing, but that isn’t going to stop people from refilling their bottles in their kitchen sinks.
-hollyadams@cc.usu.edu