Bottled water is typically marketed as pure and carefully controlled, but according to Powers Health, there is uncertainty surrounding a range of chemical compounds that may be present in the water.
This particularly applies to so-called disinfection byproducts, also known as DBPs, which are formed when water is treated to eliminate bacteria.
Water treatment is necessary to prevent serious diseases.
At the same time, the process can lead to the formation of chemical residues that researchers suspect may be harmful to human health.
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Several of these substances are currently not regulated by authorities.
Results from the study
The research, published in the scientific journal Water Research, examined ten popular brands of bottled water.
However, the study does not specify which exact brands were included.
The researchers tested the samples for 64 different DBPs and found these substances in all samples.
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The levels were, however, lower than those typically found in tap water.
Susan Richardson of the University of South Carolina, who contributed to the study, explains that prior to this research, there was very little data available on many of the unregulated substances.
The key finding
A closer look at the results reveals clear differences between types of water.
Spring water generally contained fewer DBPs than bottled water produced from treated tap water.
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Two supermarket brands stood out for having significantly higher toxicity than the others.
An unregulated substance, dibromoacetonitrile, was also detected in low concentrations.
Natalie Exum from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health warns that unregulated substances are difficult to assess because their health effects have not been fully studied.
The study does not conclude that bottled water is more dangerous than tap water.
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According to Powers Health, Susan Richardson advises against switching water types unless there are known contamination issues, while also highlighting the environmental burden caused by plastic bottles.
Kilder: Powers Health, and Water Research.
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