The Wednesday Wetness

Best Life, New Study Uncovers the "Potential Risks" of Bottled Water and Why You Should Drink Tap Instead "Did you know that bottled water and tap water aren't regulated in the same way?" Why, yes, I did.

Published in the journal BMJ Global Health, the new study concludes that "misunderstandings about the safety and potential risks of bottled and tap water persist." The biggest misunderstanding may be that bottled water (BW) isn't regulated in the same way as tap water, which is overseen by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Bottled water is under the jurisdiction of the Food & Drug Administration (FDA).

For their part, the FDA says they ensure "the quality standards for bottled water are compatible with EPA standards for public drinking water."

However, according to the study, bottled water manufacturers "face no obligation to disclose the presence of microbial or chemical contaminants. They do not need to demonstrate that their products meet specific quality standards or adhere to stringent inspection protocols."

The EPA, on the other hand, must adhere to the 1974 Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA), which sets legal limits on over 90 drinking water contaminants. Municipal water systems must then report their water quality to the EPA.

In recent years, much of the discussion surrounding bottled water centers on microplastics. "Plastic contamination is ubiquitous in BW, with reports suggesting a wide-ranging presence spanning from 10% to 78% of BW samples," the study authors note. 

The data on the potential harmfulness of microplastics is less than convincing.