Drink Tap Water instead of Bottled Water Essay Example

Drink Tap Water instead of Bottled Water Essay Example Drink Tap Water instead of Bottled Water Paper Drink Tap Water instead of Bottled Water Paper Water is one of the most important natural resources in the world and it’s the major constituents of living matter where it serves different functions. This unique natural resources is very important to mankind in the sense that our existence depend largely on it availability. As important as this compound of hydrogen and oxygen may seem to us, its quality also matters to our existence. Water comes in different forms so as its usage. There are several means by which water can be supplied to various homes and industry for various purposes. One major way by which this supply is being achieved is via pumping of water to the consumer through a faucet known as tap, hence the term â€Å"tap water†. Other means by which water for consumption are supplied to the consumers is via bottled water, sachet waters, and water in large containers. TAP AND BOTTLED WATER Several benefits can be derived from each means of supply but tap water still remains the best sources of water supply for safe consumption and other domestic use even though there are several beliefs in regards to the use of bottled water as the best source of water for consumption (Wald et al, 2008). Researches has shown that dangers of using bottled water as major sources of water consumption outweighs its benefits, hence there is a need to enlighten the populace on why we ought to choose tap water over bottled water as a major sources of water for our consumption. Several environmental issues must also be considered in regards to our choice between tap and bottled water. WHY CHOOSE TAP WATER There are several benefits that are associated with the use of tap water compare to bottled water, this will be discuss under the following subheadings; health, economic and environmental aspects Health aspects A question we ought to ask ourselves before purchasing some bottled water is that â€Å"why should I pay more for a product whose quality is worse than water that flows from the faucet of my house†. Although the answer to the question might not be pointed to us immediately probably because we’ve not fall victim or experience the menace of health problems associated with bottled water, there is a need for us to know that this is no more a fiction but a reality. There is a lot of health issues accompanying the use of bottled and tap water 1. Tap water contains chlorine which is antimicrobial in nature; hence helps eliminate bacteria that may be in the water. Tap water is always tested for presence of microorganism which can cause gastrointestinal problems before being diseminated. Bottled water doesn’t contain chlorine hence a higher load of bacteria and the manufacturer don’t usually test for the presence of microorganism that cause gastrointestinal diseases. 2. There are guidelines that monitor the presence of Escherichia coli bacteria while there are no such guidelines in the FDA standards that check this in bottled water, hence a higher probability of developing the disease whenever it’s present in the bottled water. Purity and safety standards in regards to bottled water production and distribution is less stringent compare to that of the tap water simply because standard check is not always done on the products before it being distributed but this is not so in the case of tap water where it must be check against the standard before any distribution 3. Tap water must meet some health standards such as the absence of important toxic or carcinogenic chemicals or substance such as phthalate but this is not so in bottled water. This chemical has been found to have potential to leak from the plastics container used in bottled hence a higher risk of developing cancer later in life due to the accumulation of the chemical in the body. 4. Fluoridation of tap water can easily be done to provide people especially children with regulated amount of fluoride which helps in bone and teeth development. This also prevent against some dental disease such as dental caries because of the effect of the fluoride in teeth mineralisation. Bottled water is not fluoridated hence people that consume it are more prone to development of dental caries 5. Tap water contains other minerals which have been found to be very important for our growth. These minerals are also absorb from the gastrointestinal tract easily compare those from the food. The most important minerals found in Tap water are iodine, magnesium, chlorides and bicarbonates, iron and sulphates. Magnesium is best known to be an important element that helps maintain our immune system, ease tension within the muscles and helps lowered blood pressure. Chlorides and bicarbonates apart from being antibacterial in nature also aids digestive processes and helps keep our pH level within the normal range. Iron is very important to us, simply because it helps in the transportation of oxygen from the lungs to the other parts of the body while sulphate helps us to detoxify all ingested toxic substances. Iodine is one of the most important of all the elements simply because it helps prevent goitre and also aid thyroid function in the elderly. Environmental aspects There are several environmental issues surrounding the use of bottled water compare to tap water in recent times. One of the most important environmental issues in this regards is the issues of waste. Bottled water has been found to create unnecessary waste in form of empty plastic bottles, though these bottles can be recycled majority of them don’t eventually get recycled. Bottles used in bottled water are made from petroleum by-products, the inability to recycle most of them eventually lead to extreme or higher production rate from the petroleum resources ultimately leading to excessive rate of depletion of these non renewable natural resources. Bottled water also does not degrade easily creating a lot of space and landfill. Burning of these plastic used in bottled water will results in the release of petrochemicals substances which are dangerous to our health and are also responsible for the rapid depletion of the protective ozone layer, hence an increase greenhouse effect and global warming. The use of tap water will help reduce all these hazards associated with the disposal of bottled water and also help balance the ecosystem. Tap water can also help protect against the effect of fire outbreak when we make use of it in our community. The use of Tap water as a form of protection from fire outbreak has been considered to be one of the primary aims of water supply systems (CDC, 2007). This is because the system in which the water is being supplied through the faucet provides sufficient volume of water at high pressure which is one of the properties that gives it the ability to quench fire. Overall effect of environmental influence of bottled water is that it affects our planet negatively and do us harm. Economic aspect The increase use of Tap water will provide support for our economy simply because business or housing developments usually do not succeed without a safe and sustainable source of water supply. Considering the enormous potential benefits associated with the use of Tap water, it is critical to businesses’ day to day operations and activities. Most entrepreneur and employers usually consider the availability and the quality of water supply in a particular region before construction of their business construction of the company or facilities. It is also the main supply of water during the period of drought and even to those communities in the arid areas. Bottled water is always expensive and can even be considered to be for individuals in the middle and the upper strata in the society. The use of Tap water helps saves cost purchasing bottled water. Considering the economic cost associated with the use of bottled water, it can never be used for other purposes in which we use Tap water for such as washing of clothes, watering our lawns, and some other purposes in which we use water for. Tap water can also be consider one of the most important basic social amenity must have to be considered as a developed or developing community in the sense that it help reduce mortality rates, provide economic diversity, and increase productivity in the areas of industrialization and agriculture Conclusion Considering the health benefits, the economical and the environmental aspect of Tap water, it is very important that the use of Tap water is very important to our public health protection and quality of life. Bottled water offers no special benefits than tap water, then why should we pay more for something that put us at higher risk than the water flowing out of the faucets in our various homes. References Belew, B. (2009). â€Å"The truth-tap water is better than bottled water and better for the environment†. Greenpacks. Retrieved August 3, 2009 from greenpacks. org/2009/07/22/the-truth-tap-water-is-better-than-bottled-water-and-better-for-the-environment/ CDC, (2007). â€Å"Health on Tap: the value of Tap water†. Centres for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved August 2, 2009 from www. cdc. gov Petersen, B. (2003). â€Å"Iodine containing macromolecules in tap water and their importance for iodine intake and thyroid dysfunctions†. Projekt. Retrieved August 3, 2009 from http://vbn. aau. dk/research/iodine_containing_macromolecules_in_tap_water_and_their_importance_for_iodine_intake_and_thyroid_dysfunctions(15671)/ Owen, J. (2006). â€Å"Bottled Water Isnt Healthier Than Tap, Report Reveals†. National geographic news. Retrieved August 3, 2009 from http://news. nationalgeographic. com/news/2006/02/0224_060224_bottled_water. html Wald et al, (2008). â€Å"Health belief about bottled water: a qualitative study†. BMC Public health. Retrieved August 2, 2009 from biomedcentral. com/1471-2458/9/196 Water Quality Association (2009). â€Å"The bottled water dilemma†. Aqua Purity Plus Retrieved August 3, 2009 from aquapurityplus. com/water_dilemma. pdf