US Bottled water contains 240,000 nanoplastics per litre, study finds

Health & Diet Health & Diet: In The News
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The problem of bottled water contaminated by microplastics, tiny pieces of plastic between 5mm and 1 micrometre small, has been known about for years. However, US scientists have now discovered on average 240,000 even smaller particles — known as nanoplastics — in every litre of bottled water they tested.

Researchers behind the study said they were limiting their use of plastic bottled water, but were not calling on other people to stop. “I’m not really asking people to stop drinking bottled water, because that could lead to huge health issues,” such as dehydration, said Dr Beizhan Yan at Columbia University, New York.

Dr Heather Leslie, an independent plastic particles expert, said it was tricky to say if people should stop drinking bottled water due to the new study. “It’s about deciding if it’s right for you,” she told The Times. It was scientifically plausible but unproven that the particles could cause inflammation in our bodies, she said and recommended a precautionary approach.

“Nanoplastic contamination of our drinking water is a case of convenient plastic packaging technology biting us back. By the time the toxicology of nanoplastic exposure at this level is fully elucidated, practically every human body on the planet will have been dealing with it for decades,” she said.

More than 70 per cent of people in Britain are already using refillable bottles rather than single-use plastic ones, according to the Refill campaign run by the environmental group City to Sea.

I’ve always thought that drinking bottled water was a fad marketed cleverly and developed into a $300 billion industry. I’ve stuck to tap water.

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Yeah but bottled water is still purer than tap water, probably.

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Some people’s tap water isn’t very clean. My tap water is fairly clean but it smells of chemicals. I filter my drinking water. It smells better after filtering.

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Tap water undergoes more treatment than bottled water

Basic water treatment for tap water, according to lecturer in water chemistry at the Cranfield Water Institute Dr Emma Gosling, “removes the particles, the organics (eg. decaying vegetation) and microorganisms,” while advanced water treatment “removes all those things, but it will also remove micro pollutants such as pesticides.”

Chlorine has a crucial role to play in the treatment of tap water. It not only removes harmful bacteria at the treatment centre, but a residual amount of it will also do the same for the pipes that the water is carried through.

Meanwhile, bottled waters do get treated, but there is a difference between mineral and spring. Both need to come from a natural underground water source that is protected from pollution, and both types of bottled water need to be free from parasites and bacteria but mineral water must retain its “original purity” from source to bottle, whereas spring water can undergo any form of treatment.

Bottled water is around 1,000 times more expensive than tap water

While health benefits might be a nuanced conversation, there’s not much treading water where price comparison is concerned. With everyday branded bottled water ranging from 60p to £2 a litre, and tap water costing around 0.19p a litre according to Dr Gosling’s own bill, the price multiple between the two ranges from more than 300 times to 1,000 times. “We are paying for the convenience of the package when we buy bottled water, and possibly the taste,” says Dr Gosling.

Just to be clear, tap and bottled water are both safe to drink

Isla knew that tap water goes through a lot of cleaning processes so her hunch was that it would be cleaner than bottled water. Because bottled water – particularly mineral water – has to maintain its original purity and essentially be bottled at source, Greg wondered this too. “But,” says Greg, “an expert told me that in tests, three quarters of bottled water samples had less bacteria than tap water. The bottom line here – because I don’t want anyone to worry about this – is there are strict safety standards that both tap water and bottled water have to meet. So, they’re both safe to drink.”

Bottled water may have a small health benefit… but it’s close

And finally, on the key question of whether bottled water is healthier than tap, if you look at the labels for most bottled waters you will see that they contain various minerals. These are minerals that have come from the rocks that the water has passed through. Different water passes through different types of rock, and some bottled water have more minerals than others, which affects the taste.

There is some thought, Greg explains, that some of these minerals – like calcium and magnesium – could be good for you. So bottled water may have a small health benefit. However, some tap water has just as many minerals as some bottled waters, and – as Dr Gosling pointed out – if you eat a good diet of fruit and vegetables, you’re going to get a lot more minerals from that than the water that you drink.

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I’m content with both bottled and tap water. I prefer bottled water if I’m making up a refreshing cordial to drink and tap water doesn’t come fizzy :wink:

Living in Sussex our aquifers are chalk so we probably have the hardest water in the country, must descale the kettle :+1:

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No ones saying. But I’m sticking to tap water, and I drink lots of it nowadays.

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I’ve always drank tap water, although like Chilli it’s very hard round here (what would you expect from Yorkshire water?) Kettle needs regular descaling even using a filter jug to fill it.
I have tasted some very dodgy water offered on road races…
:face_vomiting:

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Ours is a hard water area but I don’t often drink it straight from the tap. Usually make tea, coffee or add some juice to flavour it. I buy a bottled flavoured drink when on a day out. Might have nanoplastics in it. Doesn’t seem to have any ill effects …or if it has, it’s taking its time for them to show.

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Never drink water with less than 7.5% abv, kills all germs dead!!

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Do we actually need to kill all germs dead Spitty? By germs, do you mean bacteria?
There is good and bad bacteria. We would surely die without the good stuff…
:coffin:

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The first 10 years of my life all our water was hand pumped from a well in our back yard untreated. I am now 86 years old. I only drink tap water.

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Exposure to most bacteria is apparently good for the immune system, you are living proof scott. I’m surprised you had the covid vaccines.

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We also used our milk untreated from our cow. No electricity so no fridge or freezer. Grocer van called once a week for our groceries.

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I suspect life expectancy will be coming down in the future scott. Too much medication and cleanliness creating a sterile world.