Troubled water

There's an increased thirst for bottled water due the tap water incidence that shakes the confidence in tap water. In 1993 cryptosporidium outbreak (cryptosporidium- a parasite from animal waste) entered Milwaukee's water supply and killed more than 50 people, sent 4,400 people to the hospital and sickened many hundreds of people." The U.S Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has standards for some 80 contaminants in public drinking water and maintains that the U.S. enjoys some of the safest water in the world. Since 1999, Federal law has required local water utilities to send "consumer confidence reports" to their customers each year. The reports detail ongoing laboratory testing, name system trouble spots, and outline measures being taken to fix problems.

If you haven't received one, contact your local water department, call the Safe Drinking water Hot-line at (800) 426-4791, or visit .
The bottled-water industry falls under the jurisdiction of the FDA, which has borrowed from the EPA's standards for tap water. Other bodies use their own model code to inspects water includes The international Bottled Water Association, The industry's trade group and their standard is said to be stricter than the FDA's. 85% of companies that produce bottled water gets inspections at the processing plants annually by an independent nonprofit group.

some water contaminant:-
Arsenic is a poisonous element in the earth's crust, arsenic can enter water naturally or through factory runoff, animal - feed additives, herbicides, and refineries. Water systems that depend on underground sources are especially at risk for arsenic. The current standard allows 50 parts per billion (ppb) in tap water and bottled water dating as far back as 1940s. The EPA has proposed lowering arsenic limit to 5ppb but the final limit has not been decided. Whatever the outcome of the proposed limit becomes is what FDA will probably use to set a similar standard for bottled water. This meaning that there's still some amount of arsenic found in our water by the current standard, this is something troubling because Arsenic can affect our health. Long-term exposure to even low concentrations may cause lung, skin, and bladder cancer as well as diseases of the blood vessels, liver and other organs.

Trihalomethanes (THMS) are produced when chlorinated chemicals used for disinfection combines with organic matter in water supplies, some cities use chlorine a lot more in their water during warm whether therefore causing a fluctuating level from day to day or season to season. It is now 100ppb for tap water and bottled water. Chlorination is used to kill harmful germs in our water but it can also cause harm to our health.
THMS health effect:- If consumed over a long period of time, it could increase the risk of bladder and rectal cancers and miscarriage. Be careful drinking or jumping into highly chlorinated swimming pools.

Fluoride is a naturally occurring element that is often added to municipal water to prevent tooth decay, but i wonder why it goes on our toothpaste contains fluoride and fluoride can cause damage to our body and wear down our tooth enamels. The FDA allows 0.8 to 2.4 parts per million (ppm) in our water. The American Dental Association says the optimal level is 0.7 to 1.2ppm.
Health effect: Can discolor or mottle tooth enamel and cause damage to the tissues/organs in our body.

Plastic components:
Bisphenol-A (BPA) is the building block of polycarbonate and can leach into water or food. There no set limits for BPA . In a testing of eight to ten 5-gallon polycarbonate jugs, it was found that about 0.5ppb to 11ppb of Bisphenol-A leached into water. Bisphenol-A affects our health negatively, it a known carcinogen (cancer-causing chemical). Also BPA mimics the hormone estrogen in animal studies and judging from animal research it would most likely affect a developing fetuses.

Heterotrophic Plate (HPC) tallies a mix of bacteria in the water. HPC is counted as "colony-forming units per millimeter," or cfu/ml, however there are no official standard set. only a guideline of 500 cfu/ml or less
In a test, two brands of eight we checked had at least one bottle over the guideline. Those were waters that the National Resources Defense Council had found no problems with in its study. Two waters in which NRDC had found high HPC were free of it in the test; suggesting inconsistencies and this problem is sporadic.
Health effects: The germs counted are not necessarily harmful, but large numbers of them may point to poor sanitation practices.