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Water is essential to life. The right kind of water, that is. We know that drinking tap water is hazardous to your health. City water typically contains chlorine, chloramines and fluoride, and often contains pesticides, arsenic, lead and other harmful organic chemicals. Who knows what lurks in well water that is not treated at all.

People are listening to cautions raised about drinking tap water, as evidenced by the tremendous rise in the consumption of bottled water despite its costing 1000 times the price of tap water. Marketing campaigns have capitalized on these concerns, leading us to believe that all bottled water is superior to tap water. This is probably true in many cases, but some bottled water is no different than that coming from the tap.

There have been many times I have bought bottled water and it tastes just like I had gotten it from the tap. The reason is there are few standards regulating the quality of bottled water.

The astronomical difference in the price between the two is partly due to the costs of manufacturing the plastic containers for bottled water and the expense of transporting it by truck to stores. These expenses alone cannot justify the high prices, especially if the water is not even purified.

There are also other health concerns to bottled water. Since the bottles are made of plastic, toxic chemicals are released into the environment during their manufacture and disposal, and toxins are released into the water itself, especially if the plastic is cloudy. If you must drink water in plastic containers, buy it in bottles made of clear plastic, which is less toxic.

If you consume bottled water, make sure the label says it has been filtered by reverse osmosis and also sanitized by ozonation. Another option is to consume water from a spring source that you know for certain is clean. But how can you be certain? You can't be certain with bottled water.

In my opinion, bottled water is not the best solution to the problem of toxic tap water. You can be the most certain your water is clean, have less plastic toxicity, save money and help protect the environment by getting a good filter for an unlimited supply of clean water at home.

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