Why Is Bottled Water Better Than Tap Water

Many people think that bottled water is safer and better than tap water. However, do they know that bottled water is tap water in a plastic bottle? Tap water is actually proven to be better than bottled water, for a number of reasons; it is safe for your health, it is better for the environment, it is filtered more than bottled water, and bottled water is very costly. There is no evidence to prove that bottled water is any safer than tap water. In fact, an estimated 25% or more of bottled water is really just tap water in a bottle—sometimes further treated, sometimes not.

The chemicals added to bottled water and its plastic can be harmful to our health. In 1999, the NRDC (Natural Resource Defense Council) tested over 1,000 bottles of 103 different brands of water and found that at least one sample of a third of the brands contained chemical or bacterial contaminants, such as carcinogens, which is a substance that can cause cancer. Some brands …show more content…
In Canada, local water supplies are inspected every day, while bottled-water plants are checked just once every three years. In addition, water-bottling plants are required to test for coliform bacteria just once a week, whereas most municipal water systems test for it several times a day. More than 25% of the bottled water consumed by Canadians is nothing more than filtered tap water. Municipal water systems are subject to the Safe Drinking Water Act, and local water is constantly and thoroughly tested for harmful substances. The municipal water is filtered and treated with alum and chlorine to remove harmful microorganisms and assist in ensuring a safe water supply. Toronto tests its water every four to six hours and checks for more than 300 possible chemical contaminants. Tap water from a municipal source also contains fluoride, a mineral important for your teeth. Clearly, tap water is filtered much more than bottled water, and is inspected all the