What is considered pure drinking water?
The sales of water in bottles in the US have grown greatly in the last years, mostly because of a result of the growing concerns of the safety of our drinking water. This growth has been mostly caused by the marketing that has been mostly to customers of bottled water about the safety. Obviously, this marketing has been hugely successful as people continue to pay over 10,000 times the amount they would pay for municipal faucet water, while actually most bottled water on the US market is not any cleaner/safety than most faucet water.
In a 4 year study released from National Resources Defense Council has just been published. This study was the results of tests on more than 1,000 bottles of over 100 brands of bottled water. While most of the water test was found to be of highest quality, there were some contaminated brands. Over 1/3 of the water test had levels of pollutions which included organic synthetic chemicals, arsenic and bacteria.
These important findings on water standards were not enough to assure the public of safety or purity. On the national standards, the Food and Drug Administration is the agency designed to monitor the bottled water, but the rules of the FDA completely disregarded water packaged or sold within same states. This amounts for over 65% of bottled water. Approximately 1 of every 5 states does not regulate these bottled waters. The FDA exempts carbonate water and seltzer, and over half of these states require carbonate waters to meet their only state’s standards which leave a great deal of bottled water being under no standards.
When these bottles of water are regulated by the FDA’s rules, the standards applied to them are not the same testing and fewer rules for purity than those applied to regular municipal water supplies. An example of this, bottled water is tested less frequently than city water for chemical and bacteria pollutants. Another example, rules for pollution with fecal coliform and E. coil are also not the same. There are also few if no requirements on bottled water being tested nor disinfected for parasites like giardia or cryptosporidium. But the regulations for large municipal faucet water supplies from surface waters reservoirs are different for parasites.
In fact, nearly ¼ of bottled water is actually bottled water from a municipal water supply, according to industry and government information with some estimates going as high as over 40%. Some bottles are allowed to label their product as “spring water” even if it is pumped through a well and treated with chemicals. The FDA, around 1995, issued rules for labeling so as to stop misleading claims, but these rules still do not stop all labeling practices that are misleading.
The following recommendations were made by the NRDC for the safety improvement of water bottling:
• FDA guidelines for contaminants should have strict limits set.
• FDA’s regulation must be applied to all water bottled and nationally distributed as well as sold within a state whether it is carbonate or not. Standards should be the same as municipal faucet water supplies.
• Bottlers must be required to name all water sources, as well as types of treatments – which are now required by all municipal water supplies.
• 1 cent a bottle should be a fee initiated to fund all testing, rules programs and the enforcement of these standards at state and national levels.
All US citizens who buy water in bottles need to know this water is safe. The best solution to all water problems would be to make certain that clean, safe water comes from our faucets. Bottled water and municipal water both need to be pure water, good for drinking by all consumers.
Pure Drinking Water
In some parts of the world pure drinking water is unavailable, and many people still die from diseases such as cholera as a result of water pollution. Water becomes polluted when waste matter from sewage systems, chemical plants, bacteria and algae get into the water. Rain water runoff from agricultural lands and mining operations also make their way into lakes and rivers, thus polluting them. Because of this, water is collected in special treatment facilities and treated to purify it and make it potable.
The water that comes into our homes has been specially processed for use by human beings. However, despite purification, tap water may still contain lead and other toxic substances. Drugs and even sewage waste have been found in some metropolitan water supplies. As a result, municipal agencies are warning customers to take steps to purify their drinking water or to buy bottled water for drinking.
Distilled water is a form of purified water from which the minerals have been removed by condensation. This water is bottled and sold for use as drinking water. However, experts claim that this water should not be consumed by humans since all the necessary minerals-calcium, magnesium and potassium-have been removed. Water distillers argue that the water is fine because only 5% of our daily requirement of these minerals comes from water. The rest is taken from the food we eat, therefore if we eat a balanced diet, we should not have a deficiency in these minerals.
In an attempt to supply the public with a more healthy type of water, many companies market water filtration products which are purported to remove impurities by a process of reverse osmosis. This process removes substances such as salts, metals and minerals. It is also said to be successful with asbestos and many taste, color and odor-producing chemicals. Reverse osmosis gets rid of most contaminants and is cost effective, however it is a slow process, and does not eliminate bacteria and viruses. For this, UV filters are needed.
Even distilled water which is supposedly the purest type of water still contains some bacteria. Aquahydrate is a system that uses two cycles of reverse osmosis to remove impurities and special UV light filters to get rid of bacteria. This type of water also boasts of having increased pH and trace minerals to make it the best water for human consumption.
PURE DRINKING WATER
In order to maintain a healthy body, we need to keep it hydrated and observe proper nutrition. Water has undergone many stages of purification since the early days, however in many parts of the world potable water is either unavailable or severely limited. For those of us fortunate enough to have access to clean drinking water, we should try to ensure that the water we drink is the purest we can obtain.
Pepsi color is going natural with release of Pepsi Raw
Natural drinks, including water with added flavor or sports drinks with added vitamins, seems to be the newest trend in healthy eating and a simple Google search will let you know just how many companies are jumping into this new money making market.
Tracking of the healthy eating trend and its popularity by two-thirds of all consumers shows how this has created the large, fast-growing market for natural food and drink products. As consumers’ attitudes and beliefs change, market experts examine how this latest market trend will create winners and losers over the next several years.
Consumers’ interest in health is up, with around 80% of US and European consumers reporting that they are concerned about food and health issues and two-thirds have reported taking steps to eat healthier in the past year. Eating fresh food is the key that is most important to approximately 90% of consumers.
Increasing consumer interest in fresh food has not been matched by more new products. Actually while 7% of new products have been marketed as fresh in 2000, this fell to around 4% in 2006. But since “fresh” is important to so many consumers, there are many ways of developing “fresh” products in the future.
The latest member of the fresh food trend is the one that is moving only one way and that is UP. This includes flavor mixes for your own bottled water, bottled water with added carbonation or flavor as well as drinks with vitamins added.
Now even the big cola companies are diving into the natural product market. Pepsi Raw is the latest carbonated soft drink from Pepsi. Pepsi Raw is marketed as a soft drink with no artificial additives. If you prefer cola drinks, you may want to try this new drink will be introduced first in the UK only.
UK pubs and clubs have staff members who are being trained on how to serve the drink as a mixer. If Pepsi Raw is accepted in its test areas, then the drink will make its way further around the world. Reportedly, Coca Cola will be is also working on a non-artificial soda of it own.
The flavor of Pepsi Raw is fruitier and is being marketed as a refreshing drink on its own and also as a mixer for alcohol. So, the release of this drink in the pubs and clubs is important to see if the drink will gain acceptance as an alternative mixer. Unlike the artificial-chemicals of Pepsi, Pepsi Raw does not have the artificial colors, higher sugar content or acidic chemicals that are common in the regular Pepsi cola.
Because of less carbonation, this new natural has a little less fizz as regular Pepsi. And the natural Pepsi Raw contains 9 fewer calories. This is the first new Pepsi product in a decade and if it is successful, then Pepsi will be another major company in this new business market. And it is certain that Coca Cola will be following right behind.
MAKE WATER
Imagine you are one of the participants on the program Survivor. You are dropped off in a desert place with an empty bottle and a few other necessities in your backpack. No water. What are you going to do? Several innovative ideas come to mind. You could try digging deep enough until you find water, but this in its natural state will contain harmful substances; you could cut a cactus plant and drink the juice (it may be bitter); or you could pray for rain. Maybe you are not in the desert, but in a modern civilized home and pure drinking water is unavailable. Fortunately, for most of us, this is not the case, but we may wish to enhance the taste or the purity of our drinking water.
If the quality of your tap water is under question, you might try boiling it before drinking. This is the most basic method for removing impurities. Adding two drops of bleach to a quart of clean water is said to kill off harmful bacteria and render water safe for drinking. If you can spare a little more cash, you may want to add a filter to your faucet or you can even purchase a pitcher that has a filter attached to purify your water. To purify water throughout the house you can invest in a home filtration system. This greatly improves the taste and quality of the drinking water, making it safe for cooking and bathing as well. Failing this, one can always use bottled water for drinking.
A variety of drinking water is now flooding the market and our homes, giving the consumer a whole new array of choices. There is plain, carbonated or seltzer water as well as sports drinks which contain electrolytes and sweeteners. Seltzer, first used as a digestive aid, is now the drink of choice for some people for quenching their thirst or for mixing with other drinks. Seltzer is carbonated water which is water with carbon dioxide dissolved in it. It forms the basis for sodas, wines, beer and other fizzy drinks.
MAKE WATER
Homemade seltzer is easy to make, inexpensive and best of all can be made exactly the way you like it. Little fizz or more fizz, sweet or bland, flavored or unflavored, the choice is all yours. To make seltzer at home all you need is a seltzer bottle, which resembles a thermos bottle, and a charger. These are only good for a single use, but there are other systems out there that allow you to reuse the bottles and come with easy-to-follow how to instructions. They are also less inexpensive than the store-bought varieties. You can add your own flavors like lemon, strawberry, peach or lime from allfreightfree.com to make your water more healthy.
How to make home made flavored water
If you have a problem getting your kids to drink water you should learn how to make home made flavored water. Today it is a known fact that one should drink at least eight glasses of water daily to flush out the toxins from the body. Therefore make it easier for your children and yourself to drink water by making flavored water at home.
This flavored water is not only refreshing but delicious enough to tempt the whole family into drinking glasses of it every day. The best part of flavored water is that you can make it at home and it is not expensive and it is one of the best ways to stay hydrated.
A most popular home made flavored water drink is cucumber flavored water. All you have to do is wash the cucumber and cut thin slices which can be added to iced water. Crushed mint leaves also give your drinking water a refreshing taste. In the same way you can use a little crushed ginger with honey that surely adds a “zing” to your water. Lemongrass and other herbs like parsley add aroma as well as give your water a hint of green.
What makes home made flavored water all the more interesting and delicious is that you can use anything from strawberries, blueberries and plums to grapes to give your water the natural flavors you desire. If you find buying flavored water very expensive you can also instead buy flavored drops that cost much less. The variety of flavored drops range from Banana cream and cinnamon to coffee bean and Irish cream. Just a few drops of the flavor you desire should be added to the water and mixed. These flavored drops instantly dissolve and can be used to make shakes and smoothies too. The good news is that these drops are also Gluten-free and do not contain any animal products much to the relief of vegetarians and diet conscious folk.
If flavored water is drunk then it automatically increases ones water intake. Flavored drops do not contain any fats, sweeteners and calories and you can enjoy home made flavored water at any time just by adding the flavor of your choice to iced water. Flavored water also contains natural herbs and minerals that make it tasty. Children love flavors like vanilla, chocolate mint, strawberry and chocolate butter crunch.
Make some innovative flavored drinks at home by using fresh water that is either canned or bottled. Sodas or seltzer can help you get more fizz in your drink. There are plenty of choices and options. You can add lemon or fresh lime juice to your water or even try grape juice. Coffee syrup can be extremely refreshing and invigorating. As you can see, the list is never ending and you can grab a glass of your favorite flavored drink at any time.
Healthy drink
It seems that today, our children and families are not getting the healthy drink or drinks they need. The constant drinking of soda pop by our kids is believed by many to be one of the reasons if not the biggest reason for the high rate of obesity in the United States today.
In order to change this problem in our country, we need to consider making and teaching different lifestyles for our families. And in the area of healthy diets this begins with healthy drinks. This means changing to water, milk and natural juices.
Water is the best drink to begin with, and that means you must provide some education to your family about why water is important to a healthy diet and what water does for your body. There are many resources on the internet to help you do this. Next, be sure that you give your family many choices.
• Water. Flat or fizzy, flavored or plain, this is the beginning of any healthy diet change for your family. There are also many reusable water bottles to provide for your kids. They come in every shape, size and color. For younger kids, make a game of going to the store to buy water bottles.
• Milk. Low-fat and fat-free milk are good choices as milk contains calcium and protein and can prevent many health problems later in life.
• 100% fruit juice. Fruit juice is abundant with vitamins.
• Vegetable juice. Vegetable juice is low calorie and also full of vitamins and nutrients.
But overall, water is the healthiest drink so do all you can to make water more appealing to your family. There are many bottled waters currently on the market including spring water, sparkling waters, mineral water and many of these come enhanced with flavors. Just check the labels to make sure there isn’t a lot of sugar or calories. A large assortment of calorie free flavors to flavor sparkling water to great taste is sold at https://allfreightfree.com
Also, any lifestyle changes for good health must include daily exercise. This means turning the television, and computers off, and doing things as a family outside. Try taking walks in the evenings for a good start. Encourage your children to take part in sports at school and encourage your schools to add recess and physical education back into the school’s daily curriculum.
But most of all begin this lifestyle change with healthy diets and that means healthy drink choices with water being the best of the healthy drinks.
Healthy diet water
A healthy diet should begin with plenty of water. Even if you don’t drink a lot of water during the day, you are getting some water in any of the beverages you drink and some of the foods you eat.
But this article is about drinking more water and eating more foods that contain a lot of water. In other words, I want you to make a lifestyle change for healthy living.
The more water you drink, the better you are going to feel. It’s just that simple. If your weight is what it should be for a person of your age, then you should be drinking 8 eight-ounce glasses of water a day.
Now, you may be a lot like me and think that water from the faucet has no taste but there are wonderful tasting brands or types of water on the market. There are also flavored and unflavored, so read the labels if you need to watch your calories and just try some of the different bottles of drinking waters and you will find one that you truly love. Try some of the mineral waters, or seltzer waters if you like bubbles or that “fizzy” taste. Water from a spring source has a great taste and sparkling waters can be flavored for a change of pace. A large assortment of calorie free flavors to flavor sparkling water to great taste is sold at https://allfreightfree.com
There are also many fruit juices and vegetable juices that can be added to your diet which have plenty of vitamins and nutrients as well as water. Also add foods with water to your diet, such as soups and stews and more fruits and vegetables.
Drink some water before you eat as often hunger pains are really a sign that you are just thirsty. This can cut down on a lot of snacking when you really are not hungry but just getting dehydrated. Also try drinking water before you do eat a meal. You will feel fuller, so you probably won’t eat as much.
If you live in a hot climate with high humidity or if you are exercising a lot – then you need to increase your fluids so you don’t get dehydrated. This summer has been especially brutally hot in the US and many people are getting sick from dehydration.
If you are feeling tired during the day, have a glass of water. It will snap your brain right back to alertness and is a good tip to try before you go into a late afternoon meeting at the office.
If you live in a city you might not feel that your municipal water supply is really safe and you might not want to spend money on bottled waters. Try using one of the many types of water filters that are currently on the market. You will feel safer about your water and can add pieces of fruit for flavor. There are also reusable water bottles on the market; in every size that you might want. This is a cheaper way to have homemade flavored bottled water for less than buying individual bottles would be at the store.
These are just a few suggestions to have a healthy diet with plenty of water. This is a lifestyle change that will be very beneficial for you in so many ways and will help to keep your body healthy and fit.
What makes water healthy? Chemicals in our water supply
We know that water is essential to life and to the health of our bodies. We know that in order to prevent our bodies from becoming dehydrated we should drink at least 6 to 8 glasses of water a day. The world is made up of approximately 70 percent water, however not all of that water is available for human consumption. Over the years, man has taken steps to harness and purify this commodity, but still we hear reports even in developed countries like the US that our drinking water supply is not perfect. Contaminants, chemicals and other toxic substances are present in most of the water supply that even municipal companies are urging consumers to use bottled water or in some cases boil water before drinking. But even that is not always a viable option.
Healthy water is water that hydrates the body and helps fight diseases from attacking the body. Therefore, what substances should or should not be present in our H2O to make it fit for drinking? One article cites a correlation between drinking soft water, i.e. water that has had certain minerals removed, like calcium carbonate and magnesium, and deaths from cardiovascular disease. However, both the American Heart Association and the American Journal of Epidemiology state that there is no evidence to prove that drinking soft water results in these deaths.
Chlorination in water is another controversial subject. Chlorine is added to the public water supply to help remove pollutants. It gives water a characteristic flavor and taste. Chlorine has been blamed for causing cancer, heart disease and stroke. Studies have been conducted which show that chlorine may be linked to birth defects in infants, and a risk of leukemia, liver and bladder cancer in adults who have been exposed to chlorination.
Fluoride is a chemical added to water to help fight tooth decay. The recommended daily dosage of fluoride for humans is 1 mg. In higher amounts, fluoride can be toxic. The practice of adding fluoride to the public water supply has been endorsed by the American Dental Association and the World Health Organization among others, however activists claim that this practice is unethical and goes against a person’s constitutional rights since the public has no say in this matter, neither can the supplier control the dose for each individual. In addition, fluoride in drinking water has been blamed for a host of conditions, from weakening of bones and cancer to the lowering of IQ in children.
Despite the fact that many countries have embraced the practice of fluoridation (the United States included) a study conducted by the National Institute of Dental Research showed no significance difference in tooth decay among children who have been exposed to fluoride and those who have not. In the end, pure drinking water with no additives may considered be the most healthy.
People around the world are dying daily because they can not get water
Water, the staff of life and considered a basic human right, is the cause of a daily crisis faced by more than one billion of the world’s most underprivileged people. This crisis threatens life and puts large segments of people vulnerable to chronic disease, poverty and unsafe living conditions.
Water caused disease cause the most death of infants in under developed countries. Diarrhea causes over 1.8 million deaths of children each year. Access to safe water is the major reason in the survival of children under five years of age. Almost half of all people in these countries are suffering with health problems related to water. The yearly number of deaths from water related disease is over six times the total number of dead from violence or armed conflict.
Enough clean water is the foundation for all other community development. Sanitation and lack of water is an impediment to education for children across the world. This leads to hundreds of millions of lost school days each year. Safe water is necessary for economic growth. In some parts of the world, there is violent conflict every day over the supply, sources and shortage of enough water.
The lack of clean water causes cycles of disadvantage which affect millions of people with illnesses and lost education opportunities during childhood which leads to poverty in adulthood and these cycles continue for generations.
There are several organizations that are dedicated to providing clean water to some of these countries to help solve this massive problem. They do everything from shipping bottles of water to organizing trips of people to go and help dig wells.
It is believed that close to half of all people in developing countries are suffering from health problems caused by no or unsafe drinking water.
In developing nations, one-third of all deaths are children under the age of five, compared to less than 1 percent in developed nations. The leading cause of this death is the 5 billion cases of diarrhea suffered by children. Approximately 1.8 million of these children die each year as a direct result of chronic diarrhea. This averages to 4,900 deaths of children every day because of insufficient or unclean drinking water. I want to say this again because I want you to read it again – 4,900 babies die every day because of no clean drinking water!
This water crisis is a crisis of mainly the poor. Approximately two-thirds of people, who have no access to clean water, survive on less than two dollars a day and one-third live on less than one dollar a day. Some are poor because they lack water, while others lack water because they are poor. But the statistics prove a two-way relationship between water deprivation and poverty.
Water is essential for personal needs such as vegetable gardens, food preparations and laundry services. In most cases, local small businesses have no rights to the water they use and this makes the businesses vulnerable to larger economic as well as local politics for water usage.
The worse crisis in the world today, is to get water to the billions of people who so desperately need it.
Drinking water and weight loss go together
As most food contains some water, if one doesn’t drink enough water, you may have a craving to eat more food to keep yourself hydrated. However, that is not exactly a good way to lose weight as you gain calories by eating more. So drinking more water can help stop overeating and help you lose weight and lose it faster.
All bodily functions or processes require plenty of water. A completely hydrated body enables a person’s body to work quickly and more efficiently. Some experts believe that water makes your metabolism burn calories at least 3% faster and even more if you also exercise regularly.
Most people need to drink eight 8-ounce glasses of water daily. If you are on a weight loss diet it is important to drink more water and keep drinking water during the day. When I am dieting, I usually add another 8-ounce glass for every 20 lbs that I need or want to lose.
If you are like I am, you don’t like drinking water especially municipal/tap water which has no taste. But there are many brands and types of bottled water on the market that do taste better. I actually did a taste test to see if this was true because I thought all water had no taste. But I was wrong. All the different types of waters do have a different taste and spring water is especially good tasting. And all water tastes good when ice cold.
You can also add flavors to some of the waters to make a better taste. Sparkling water is good but flavored sparkling water is great. A large assortment of calorie free flavors to flavor sparkling water to great taste is sold at https://allfreightfree.com
When you are dieting for weight loss drinking water is important in other ways also. It increases your energy so your feel more like exercising every day. As we all know daily exercising is not only part of a healthy lifestyle but is also important to any weight loss diet. If you are extremely overweight, I know that it is hard to start exercising. But with renewed energy from drinking enough water, you will find that walking for 15 or 30 minutes every other day will become easier and easier and soon you will want to walk every day.
Many new food products on the market today are made with little water and a lot of sugar and fats. This is because some food products are stored longer and foods with lots of water often spoil faster. So, try to add to your diet foods that have a lot of water in them, such as fruits, vegetables and soups.
So, yes, drinking water and weight loss is very important to healthy dieting and water should be the main ingredient in any weight loss diet. And you should keep drinking water to remain at a healthy weight and as part of a healthy lifestyle.