Tap water vs bottled water. – Which is better for your wellbeing?
It is the age-old question that we have been asking ourselves over time. Which water should we drink, tap, or bottled? Why has this question become so important to us? Tap water has a reputation and sadly, it is, or has not always been a good one. Why did we feel the need to move to bottled water?
Let’s see if we can answer some of these questions.
Why is water so important?
Water provides us with the basic compounds to have blood, digestive juices and other biological processes within our body.
Why is water so important to us? The human brain and heart are composed of 73% water, the lungs are made up of 83%, the skin contains 64% and even our bones have water at 31%.
So aside from water being an integral part of our cellular makeup, it is extremely important for a variety of everyday tasks. These tasks include:
- Regulating our internal body temperature, by sweating and respiration
- Carbohydrates and proteins that we eat through our foods are metabolised and transported by water in the bloodstream.
- It assists in flushing away waste products.
- It protects our brain and spinal cord.
- It helps to form saliva.
- It aids in joint lubrication.
- It aids with digestion.
- It helps to prevent dehydration.
Tap water is the most accessible way to obtain water. You just need to walk to your tap in you home, turn it on and there you go, drinking water. However, this was not always the case. Roughly 40 years ago, the government was under pressure to improve the drinking quality of water, as many people were becoming ill through tap water. This may be the origin for our obsession with the question, which water is best.
Often when we travel to foreign destinations, we may be advised against using tap water. Our bodies are not used to the number of contaminants within the water. The water is not toxic, but the contaminants may be too high for our bodies to absorb and digest. This may then result in a vomiting or diarrhoea virus. This makes us turn to bottled water as a necessity.
The UK invested heavily in its water works. We now boast a very high water quality percentage of 99.95%. Even more than the USA on 92% and Australia on 93%.
So how healthy is tap water? According to the World Health Organisation (WHO) drinking tap water of 90% + provides a significant source of magnesium and calcium. Why are these important, well, magnesium provides us with supporting and improving our muscle and nerve functions as well as improving our energy levels. While calcium, is also important for muscles to move and for nerves to carry messages between your brain and every other part of your body.
So according to WHO, the UK tap water is more than good enough to drink. It offers exactly the type of quality we need for our bodies to function. Why do we not like drinking it straight from the tap? Well, this may have something to do with the hardiness of the water in our areas.
Perhaps the taste of hard water is not what we prefer, perhaps this is why we moved to bottle water? Some people even turned to filter jugs, to soften the water. Filter jugs perhaps offer a good alternative. These help to remove some of the contaminants in the tap water. This is done by activated carbon, meaning that it attracts the contaminant molecules, and they adhere to the carbon. The large surface area of the carbon acts like a sponge that absorbs contaminants as tap water passes through. These filters remove: metals like lead, copper, and mercury.
A study was conducted that looked at the mineral contents of both tap water and of bottled water. This is what they found – Have a look at the tables below.
Another plus on tap waters side is that it is cheaper and far better for the environment. Bottled water can end up being very expensive, especially if you are buying large quantities on a weekly basis. Where do all the plastic bottles go? Some of us are very studious and responsible about recycling, but sadly the oceans and rivers are paying the price for those who are not. Microscopic plastic particles have already made there way into our food chain. Decades of plastic being dumped on the side of roads.
The concentration of minerals in bottled water is not always better than tap water. WHO has even gone as far as recommending either bottle or tap water to help the intake of minerals for areas where patients lack a varied diet of fruit vegetable or meat.
Like tap water, bottled water also has a downside. This is mainly in the form of the chemicals being released from bottles particularly in warmer climates. Small amounts of plastics can disrupt our endocrine system – the system responsible for releasing hormones into our blood stream. They help to control mood, health and development, sexual function, reproduction and sleep.
So this brings us back to the question – which is best for us? Tap or bottled water?
The short answer to this, is either.
Each induvial can weigh up the pros and cons.
Bottled water has the convenience of being able to walk into any shop, anywhere in the world and knowing that the bottle will be contain the right amount of minerals your body needs to stay hydrated and not become ill.
The downside is the environmental impact, as it takes decades for plastic to dissolve naturally. It also has a big impact and is a threat to animal life.
Tap water is convenient in that every household in the developed world has access to water in the comfort of their homes. We know from the research that tap water in the UK is of a very high quality. It is cheaper to drink tap water than spending money on bottled water.
The question is what do you prefer? What will your choice be, as it comes down to each individuals taste.
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