{"id":2236,"date":"2017-06-05T07:00:04","date_gmt":"2017-06-05T14:00:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/re-tales.net\/?p=2236"},"modified":"2017-06-04T21:23:36","modified_gmt":"2017-06-05T04:23:36","slug":"16-facts-that-show-why-bottled-water-is-one-of-the-biggest-scams-of-the-century","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/re-tales.net\/?p=2236","title":{"rendered":"16 facts that show why bottled water is one of the biggest scams of the century"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Here’s a great article from BusinessInsider<\/a>\u00a0about bottled water that really makes you marvel at how the bottled water industry has thrived in the face of logic. \u00a0Just walk the aisle at your grocery or drug store and look at all of the high-priced, fancy bottles of something that you can literally get for free at a public drinking fountain or your faucet at home. \u00a0 The good news is that we’re drinking more water than soda (or beer) now, the bad news is that we \u00a0Americans drink more bottled water than any other country except China. \u00a0The next time you’re inclined to shell out big bucks for some of that Voss water in the fancy bottle, take 1 bottle home, pour it in a glass, fill another glass with tap water and switch them around until you can’t tell which is which. \u00a0You won’t be able to tell the difference. \u00a0(I’ve tried it…)<\/p>\n

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There’s nothing quite like the feeling of pure, ice-cold hydration. Some of us get our water for free from the tap. The\u00a0rest<\/a>\u00a0pay for it \u2014 at the cost of roughly $100 billion<\/a> a year.<\/em><\/p>\n

At that steep a price tag, you might assume buying the bottled stuff\u00a0would be worth it. In most cases, you’d be wrong.<\/em><\/p>\n

For the vast majority of Americans, a glass from the tap and a glass from the bottle are virtually identical as far as their health and nutritional quality are concerned. In some cases, publicly-sourced tap may actually be safer<\/a> since it is usually tested more frequently.<\/em><\/p>\n

There are exceptions, however\u00a0\u2014 people living near private wells<\/a>\u00a0do not enjoy the same rigorous testing as those whose water comes from public sources, and some public sources are not properly screened<\/a>, as was recently seen in Flint, Michigan<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

But there are plenty of reasons to stop shelling out for bottled water. Read on to find out all the things you didn’t know about your drinking water.<\/em><\/p>\n

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The first documented case of bottled water being sold was in Boston in the 1760s, when a company called Jackson’s Spa bottled and sold mineral water for “therapeutic” uses. Companies in Saratoga Springs and Albany also appear to have packaged and sold water.<\/em><\/h3>\n
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\"The<\/em><\/div>\n

Wikimedia Commons<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Sources: GreatLakesLaw.org<\/a>,\u00a0FineWaters.com<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Across the globe, people drink roughly 10% more bottled water every year, but Americans consume more packaged H2O overall than people in every other country in the world besides China. On a per capita basis, the US ranks #6.<\/em><\/h3>\n
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\"Across<\/em><\/div>\n

Erik Charlton\/Flickr<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Source: International Bottled Water Association<\/a>,\u00a0Beverage Marketing Corporation<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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At 12.8 billion gallons, or 39 gallons per person, Americans today drink more bottled water than milk or beer.<\/em><\/h3>\n
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\"At<\/em><\/div>\n

Mark Dadswell\/Getty Images<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Source: Beverage Marketing Corporation<\/a>\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Last year was the first time Americans drank more bottled water than soda. “Bottled water effectively reshaped the beverage marketplace,” Michael C. Bellas, Beverage Marketing’s chairman and CEO, said in a recent statement.<\/em><\/h3>\n
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\"Last<\/em><\/div>\n

Shutterstock<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Source: Beverage Marketing Corporation<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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It’s not cheap. At an average cost of $1.22 per gallon, we’re spending 300 times more on bottled water than we’d spend to drink from the tap. But that number could be even higher, some analysts have pointed out, since most sales are for single bottles.<\/em><\/h3>\n
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\"It's<\/em><\/div>\n

Getty Images\/Matt Cardy<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Source: Business Insider<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Soda companies are aware of how lucrative bottled water can be \u2014 corporations from Coca-Cola to PepsiCo have been investing in bottled water. Pepsi recently bought a 30-second Super Bowl ad to debut its new premium bottled water brand “LIFEWTR.”<\/em><\/h3>\n
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\"Soda<\/em><\/div>\n

PepsiCo<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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But research suggests that for most Americans, the stuff in a bottle is not better for you than the stuff in your tap. In fact, a recent report found that almost half of all bottled water is actually derived from the tap, but may be further processed or tested for safety. In 2007, Pepsi (Aquafina) and Nestle (Pure Life) had to change their labels to more accurately reflect this.<\/em><\/h3>\n
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\"But<\/em><\/div>\n

Stefanie Dollase-Berger\/Shutterstock<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Sources: Food and Water Watch<\/a>, CNN<\/a>, FDA<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Tap water is also typically tested for quality and contamination more frequently than bottled water. The Environmental Protection Agency is responsible for conducting those tests.<\/em><\/h3>\n
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\"Tap<\/em><\/div>\n

Unsplash\/Averie Woodard<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Source: Natural Resources Defense Council<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n