For hundreds of years man had been drinking tap water until one fine day he started doubting it for chemical contamination, harmful minerals and other impurities. He feared that this would cause health problems with long-lasting side effects. With the fear of tap water came the omnipresent bottled water.

Bottled water gained the love and respect of the entire world, with its ‘clean’, ‘pure’ and ‘perfect’ labels. Moreover, its portability made it a favorite with the masses. In this melee, nobody bothered to doubt its claims. A recent study has shown that in reality, tap water is much better than bottled water in many aspects.

Environmental Working Group (EWG) conducted a research on close to 200 bottled water and found out some startling truths. Jane Houlihan, Sr. Vice President for Research, EWG, discussed the findings in a congressional oversight hearing, to help them in formulating a governmental regulation on bottled water.

Out of the 188 bottled water investigated, only two disclosed the three basic facts concerning the water bottled by them. These facts are
1. The source of water
2. Purification method
3. The chemical contaminants present in the bottled water

These three facts may seem insignificant, but when you look at the larger picture of people spending millions of dollars on bottled water every year, it assumes huge proportions. The people spend this money in the firm belief that they are getting safe and healthy drinking water. However, actually, we do not even know the source of water or what process it undergoes during the purification process.

The case is completely different for tap water. The Safe Water Drinking Act forces the country’s 52,000 tap water suppliers to adhere to strict standards and test the water supplied.

The U.S. Senate is planning to pass a bill making it compulsory for the manufacturers to display the three basic informations on the labels. Until this comes into effect, it is up to the consumer to ensure that he/she is drinking safe water.

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