“Plastic containers have a code printed on them– a number from 1 to 7– and a classification of the plastic itself. In this case we’re on the lookout for #3s and #7s with the letters PVC and PC (respectively) underneath.”  This probably includes the large bottle of water supplying water for your office, and probably also the smaller bottles being used for bottled water and soda, I might add. (The Nalgene people and their competitors have pretty much cleaned up their acts, for newer bottles.)

Of course, the next thing to worry about is that BPA is in canned food cans, as a liner. So try to avoid eating food from cans–buy food held in  glass containers, when possible.

“The bad news is, unlike take-out containers and sports bottles, there’s no way to know if your pre-packaged food is being infused with synthetic estrogen. And though the FDA has finally admitted that BPA isn’t a tasty, healthy additive (or whatever the hell they used to think), and may actually be a danger, there are no plans as of yet to ban the chemical or require manufacturers to disclose its use.

“The water cooler is easy. Here goes… DRINK TAP WATER.”

The author then recommends that you get a filter, just like the filtered tap water you used to buy in plastic bottles.  He comments that the water filter doesn’t remove BPA.

I’d like to point out that there’s no BPA to remove, if the water hasn’t been in a BPA-containing bottle.

Consider getting a Multi-Pure home water filter, the best product out there with a proven record and golden guarantees, costing you just 8 cents per gallon. And take a look at the EcoMatters Daily article here: http://ecomattersdaily.com/2010/02/bisphenol-a-its-the-new-asbestos-and-its-everywhere/

The council graded the 19 cities on three items:

• Is source water protected from pollutants?
• Is the piping system well maintained?
• Are treatment facilities modern and effective?

Various cities did well in some areas but poorly in others. For example,

• Atlanta has poorly maintained piping.
• Albuquerque and San Francisco have poor treatment systems.
• Fresno does not protect its water source.

In general, the study found plenty of worrisome contaminant levels, though little that was technically out of bounds. The problem, said the study authors, was that the quality standards are weak, and systems are antiquated. For example, ” cancer-causing arsenic is currently present in the drinking water of 22 million Americans at average levels of 5 ppb” (parts per billion). That level is well below the EPA’s new standard for arsenic at 10 ppb. Yet it is still dangerous.

Sscientists now know that there is no safe level of arsenic in drinking water,” said the study authors.  And for the plenty of contaminants that are not yet regulated, many municipal water systems allowed contamination higher than the EPA’s “level of concern.”

Overall, the study found excess levels of these contaminants:

• Lead from corroded piping
• Disease-causing organisms
• By-products of chlorine treatment such as trihalomethanes and haloacetic acids. These can cause cancer and reproductive problems.
• Arsenic which causes a variety of problems including cancer.
• Toxic chemicals including radon and the rocket fuel perchlorate.

Study authors expressed concern for infants, pregnant women, and those with compromised immune systems. They also called for comprehensive improvements in the nation’s water supply systems.

If you find all this worrisome, consider getting a home water filter that gives you purer, healthier water.

The Environmental Working Group of Washington, DC, purchased 10 bottled water brands in nine states and the District of Columbia.  A lab found traces of 38 pollutants, averaging eight pollutants per brand.  In addition, four of the brands showed bacterial contamination (http://www.ewg.org/reports/bottledwater).

The study found that two brands contained water which is chemically identical to tap water. These brands were the store brands for Giant’s and Walmart. Both brands yielded chlorine disinfection byproducts at levels too high for bottled water industry standards and standards set by California. In addition, Giant’s brand yielded some fluoride.

The lab at the University of Iowa found pollutants ranging from caffeine and Tylenol to arsenic, radioactive isotopes, ammonia and nitrate (fertilizer residues), and solvents, propellants, plasticizers, and others.

Concerned about estrogen-disrupting and cancer-promoting chemicals from plastic bottles, the researchers also conducted tests to see whether the bottled water brands spurred growth of breast cancer cells. They found one brand spurred a 78 percent increase in growth of breast cancer cells compared to the control sample.

Bottled water isn’t necessarily any safer than water from the tap.  The laws governing it are based on tap water standards, after all. The EPA’s tap water standards form the basis for the FDA’s bottled water standards, the EPA points out (www.epa.gov/ogwdw/faq/faq.html). But that’s not the perception by many Americans, who are drinking 9 billion gallons of bottled water per year, spending an average of $3.79 per gallon for it.

The wise choice isn’t spending money on bottled water, you’ll agree!  Instead, you can find a solution that provides you with clean, purified water at your kitchen sink or icemaker.  A home water filter you install at your sink can give your family lots of pure water, in containers you choose that don’t leach harmful chemicals.

Bottled water is wastes your money. A home water filter can protect your family and do it for little money–get safe healthy for just 8 cents per gallon, at your kitchen sink. Your body needs water with certain trace minerals, so select a triple carbon-filter system that keeps those in and takes out harmful bacteria, minerals, chemicals and chlorine residues.