Bottled or Tap Water?

[Diana Young, RD, LD/N, CDE]

http://www.latimes.com/features/health/la-he-nutrition13-2008oct13,...

Which do you drink?

[Eve]

I keep bottled water on hand for emergencies. I also buy a bottle occasionally when I'm out and need something to drink. I've always been aware of the impact to my budget. I try to be frugal and intelligent about how I spend my money. I didn't know until recently that bottled water was not held to high standards, although I suspected that might be the case.

[David]

I usually drink Bottled, but am not averse to tap when I need to. Your article makes me even more inclined to do so.

[Susana]

What kind of bottled water are we talking about? According to the FDA, there are four types. See attached PDF file.

I drink only spring water that buy in a gallon. After that, I put it in thermos (no plastic involved) and carry it all the time with me. If I add ice (made with spring water as well), it could stay cold for more than a day. So there in only one big bottle to recycle and avoid more plastic contact.

I heard San Jose has lead in tap water so I also use the spring water to cook rice, for example but not when the water is discarded.

[Andrew Scott]

I don't have much of a choice here in Indonesia, I'm 100% on bottled. But I have been tempted to drink the tap water a few times, because I have heard you can lose up to 15lbs by drinking it!! ha ha :-)

[Lisa Newton]

I just thought I'd add this little bit of news to the discussion:

Bottled water has contaminants too, study finds

Tests on leading brands of bottled water turned up a variety of contaminants often found in tap water, according to a study released Wednesday by an environmental advocacy group.

The findings challenge the popular impression — and marketing pitch — that bottled water is purer than tap water, the researchers say.

However, all the brands met federal health standards for drinking water. Two violated a California state standard, the study said.

For the rest of the article: Bottled water has contaminants too, study finds

[Joe S]

I drink straight up tap water for a couple reasons. First it just seems like a waste of money. I've seen water tests for our community and there was no red flags so why spend money on something I can get out of my sink for a fraction of the cost. Second I used to buy cases of bottled water until I started thinking about what a waste of resources and energy it is to create those plastic bottles. If I am on a road trip sure I might get a bottle of water but I'm not going to buy a case of it to drink at my house.

[James Hubbard, M.D., M.P.H.]

I actually blogged on that today. I find good news in the study. Almost all U.S. bottled and tap water is safe. Take your pick. Go for taste, preference and cost. My wife hates the chlorine taste of tap. I like it just fine.

[JJ]

At home, I would boil water before I drink it. Outdoor I would rely on bottled water.

[TR Hughes]

Living in the desert I have to say that drinking from the tap is something that I would not do. When I first moved here I was planning on getting a RO system and finally did so about 3 weeks after the move...during that time though my husband found it very comical that i bought gallons upon gallons of bottled water for the dogs...once during that time in a crunch while waiting for service techs to come to the house I ran out and had to give the puppies Fiji Water we had for ourselves...do what you gotta do...for ourselves and the dogs' health. But, I can now say that I am the proud owner of a great RO system and I do keep some bottles in the fridge that I refill from the RO Tap...

TR Hughes

[Lance]

I prefer our tap water. The rest of my family drinks water we get from a local spring. We keep some bottled water on hand for occassions where we have guests over - it's easist to give that to them.