Recently, the safety of water bottles has been under scrutiny. We all know that it is essential to use water bottles that are safe. However, most do not fall under that category. Safety now has levels of degrees and while we may only be talking about minor levels of chemicals in the long term, when we are talking about young children and babies, this issue must be not be underestimated. It is not difficult to assume that as a society, we will soon come to realize that a number of items created from plastics, etc have the potential to harm us.
Let us first take a good look at the commonest form of bottle for storing water. This kind of water bottle is the one that all store-bought bottled water is found in. However, it is unsafe. Have you ever purchased one of these water bottles at a gas station or store? These bottles also house soda too.
There is a reason why these water bottles are unsafe. It is because they are composed from polyethylene terephthalate, also referred to as PET. This is a plastic which in itself is not necessarily harmful. However, given time, it is able to break down and when it does, leaches something named Bis(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate, also known as DEHP, and it is this which is the cause of the problem. DEHP is a suspected carcinogen and this means that it may lead to the development of cancer.
It is believed that this chemical can get into the drink that the bottle contains and this is especially apparent when bottles are re-used. In fact, a large number of people re-use their bottles to save money. Old bottles often feature cracks and bacteria are able to breed in the cracks in the bottles. This is hardly safe!
Whilst learning about which water bottles are and are not safe, I discovered that the water bottles used by athletes may not be safe either. These are composed from polycarbonate. This is the same material used to create baby bottles. Polycarbonate may leach BPA, a synthetic hormone.
I began to believe that safe water bottles simply did not exist. Then I was told about the stainless steel water bottle. These bottles are the bottles to try if you want to remain safe from potentially poisonous plastic bottles and carcinogens. With the stainless steel water bottle, no leaching of chemicals occurs. For this reason, the stainless steel water bottle seems to be the best type of water bottle available to date. Of course, you could try aluminum however you would have to ensure that a bottle of this kind featured a protective lining. It has been reassuring to find out that safe water bottles are available.
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