For most Americans , sound off about the quality of their drinking weewee is like Bill Gates complain about the timber of leather seats on his private super C – you ’ve get it better than most , so exclude up .
But while our water supply is an infinite upgrade from untreated sewage , it ’s sure not perfect , and not just innational - word - make situations like the tragedy in Flint , Michigan . In fact , it can be dangerous ; a newstudy from the Environmental Working Group(EWG ) found alarming layer of chromium-6 ( the carcinogenic " Erin Brockovich " chemical ) in drinking water that almost 200 million Americans drink , from all 50 land . Chromium-6 is far from the only water pollutant . Our water can control deviate degree of other contaminant such as arsenic , tip , and mercury .
What are you supposed to do ? You knowdrinking wateris an essential healthy habit , linked to everything fromlosing weighttohelping fatigue . So you demand a lot of it , but get the practiced stuff might not be as simple as buying the fanciest - depend bottle at the grocery store store . For entrant , bottled water is n’t necessarily any better for you , and it comes at a extortionate fiscal and environmental cost – Americans spent$11.8 billion on bottled waterin 2012 , and drop away more than60 million of those plastic bottlesa day .
Oren Aks/Thrillist/Edler von Rabenstein/Shutterstock
So what ’s the best way to check you ’re drink the healthiest water potential ?
It all starts with your source
Most contaminant , like chromium-6 , hit the water provision as waste merchandise from fabrication or agriculture , which is why some areas may have more contaminated H2O than others . Flint , for example , had decade upon decennary of automobile - diligence gunk leak into its river – and that does n’t even report for the old piping transporting it to residents ' faucets !
" One of the most important way to get the unclouded strike piss is to ensure that the root water , upstream from the water utility , is not being contaminated by agricultural waste , industrial pollution , or human body process , " say David Andrews , PhD and EWG elderly scientist .
It ’s important to stay on top of your metropolis ’s contamination level , and which chemicals and other toxicant you have to worry about – you may do this by calling up your local water authority ( it IS public information , after all , as long as you ’re prepared to wait for distinctive bureaucratic delay ) , or you may check out the termination of theEWG ’s independent examination .
Be wary of what’s in your bottled water
Fresh stream water squeezed from volcanic ash in a South Pacific archipelago untouched by humans for K of years before the bottle company arrive suresoundslike it would be the cleanest , adept option , but in reality , bottled water system is sometimesjust filter tap waterdressed up in a fancier outfit .
It ’s also not as closely monitored as the clobber coming from your sink . Bottled water is regulated by the FDA , which does n’t need water bottle manufacturer to disclose science lab testing – theEWG find 38 contaminantsin 10 pop mark . Drinking water , on the other hand , is monitored by the EPA , which has regulation for more than90 contaminant in drinking water , and must stick to cleanse water banner under theSafe Drinking Water Act .
Not surprisingly , the EWG recommend filtered hydrant over bottled water , which you may do yourself . The whoremonger most pop bottled H2O company pull is that they ’re doing exactly that , and sell it to you at a huge markup . So if your bottle says something like , " Filtered water , " " Purified water , " or " treat water , " and includes some plug about state - of - the - artistic creation filtration technologies , what you ’re imbibe is the filtered pat water of a huge bottling facility .
Find a filter that eliminates most of the bad stuff
So you love filtered water is the best option , but not all H2O filter are make adequate . Some areused mostly to get rid of Cl and zincto make tap body of water odor and taste better , but not of necessity any other harmful chemicals . Make indisputable you pick a water system pitcher or filtration system of rules that dispatch the most harmful contamination ; the EWG has ahandy guide here .
" In your home , an cheap carbon filter built into a water supply pitcherful or set up under your swallow hole will bump off or reduce a all-inclusive range of common water contaminant , " Andrews says . " Before you purchase a H2O filter , you should always verify what pollutants are removed . " This work a whole lot more sense to do once you already have a list of the contaminants in your particular supplying – how can you corrupt a filter if you do n’t know what you ’re filtering ?
Whatever you choose , make certain you change it out on a regular basis ; old filters can harbour bacteria , and wo n’t sour as effectively .
Stay away from BPA containers
By now , you ’re well aware of thedangers get by bisphenol A(BPA ) , a carcinogen that mimics estrogen , is an endocrine disruptor , and is found in lots of hard charge plate ( plastic # 7 ) . You ’re not ? What ’s wrong with you ? ! All that synthetic estrogen must have gone to your head .
BPA can screw with your hormones , and it can also leach out of plastic into your water . You do n’t want that . If you decide to use a filtered twirler system , check that the fictile pitcher is BPA - free , although in an ideal macrocosm , you ’d steer clear of plastic container on the whole – it turn out thatthe permutation for BPA are n’t any better , and might be even worse when it comes to your internal secretion system .
Also , don’t reprocess charge plate water bottles ; not only can they contain bacteria , but other plastic chemicals can be broken down and loose in the water the more they ’re refilled . This make plastic bottleful an unsustainable water pick no matter how you slice up it – either you ’re tossing away loads of plastic and money , or you ’re nurse down chemical substance in that knobbed old bottle . Your best bet is to go with a glass or stainless - steel vessel , in all likelihood the latter if you tend to wager rocky with your bottle .
There’s a gold standard, but it’s pricey
If inverse osmosis sounds super mellow - technical school , it ’s because it is . The complex filtration system check that water go through a five- or six - step process before it hits your mouth , which cast your shrimpy little pitcher filter to pity . It ’s expensive , no doubt – a few hundred dollars at the bare minimum – but put in and using a reverse osmosis organization will give you the safe body of water .
" A turnaround - osmosis filter arrangement that includes C filtration will give you the cleanest water potential at base and will reduce or remove most water contaminants include arsenic , hexavalent chromium , and perchlorate , " Andrews adds .
And you may even get a verso = osmosis system for your integral family , so every sink and faucet pass off the skillful , safest percolate water for cooking , bathe , and even brush your teeth . Can you really put a price on that ? ( you’re able to – itcosts a brace grand . )
So , to get the best , cleanest drinking pee , you involve to install a black eye - osmosis system , and drink exclusively out of glass or unstained - steel containers . Your next best choice is acarbon filtration systemthat lead over your spigot – it ’s importantly cheaper , and easy to utilize .
Sign up herefor our day-to-day Thrillist email , and get your fix of the best in food for thought / drink / sport .
