The Known Health Risks of Plastic Water Bottles

by Caitlin Schott / Feb 24, 2021
The Known Health Risks of Plastic Water Bottles

Are plastic bottles bad for you? For what feels like forever, plastics have had a bad rap. It started as a whisper decades ago that has amplified to a shout today. If we play our cards right, it seems like some suspect plastics could eventually be a thing of the past. While scientists, startups, and society band together to find better solutions, here’s what we do (and don’t) know about today’s plastic water bottles and the effects of plastic water bottles on health. 

 

Common Concerns With Single-Use Plastic Water Bottles

Big bottled water brands, stateside towns, bustling airports, and entire countries (cheers, Canada) have already made pledges to decrease dangerous single-use plastics like disposable plastic water bottles. All for various reasons that should come as no surprise:

 

To sum it up, several common plastics can threaten our health, ozone, air, oceans, energy, and more. Though that’s all heavy stuff — and we don’t want to discount it — the truth is there’s a slew of additional concerns surrounding the plastics typically used as water bottles.

 

What’s Up With Today’s Plastic Water Bottles?

Plastic water bottles are generally made from a type of plastic called polyethylene terephthalate (PET) or polycarbonate. PET bottles are the common, single-use bottle you’ve been sipping from since you were a kid. It’s a lightweight, cheap, clear, and recyclable plastic that's been the preferred material for the big brands since the early 70s. Far from perfect, this plastic is abused and overused daily. Polycarbonate, on the other hand, is a harder and more rigid plastic used for larger, reusable containers like shaker bottles and 3- and 5-gallon jugs. It’s the plastic you hear linked to those three little letters that pack a punch of problems, BPA (Bisphenol A).

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is responsible for regulating plastic water bottles in the United States since it is considered a food product [the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulates tap water). According to the FDA, "the available information continues to support the safety of BPA for the current approved uses in food containers and packaging" including reusable water bottles. But BPA isn't the only concern with plastic water bottles.

 

You’re Drinking Slivers of Plastic

“Uncomfortable and scary.” Those are the words Phoebe Stapleton, an assistant professor at Rutgers University, used to describe the notion of microplastics accumulating in our bodies in a 2019 Time Magazine feature. A heavily referenced 2018 study discovered microplastics in 93% of water bottles tested from 11 big-time brands. So to say microplastics are common in bottled water is quite the understatement. 

Consider microplastics a fancy term for small pieces of plastic. Then imagine those little chunks floating around your stomach. Yikes. That said, health concerns surrounding microplastics are what researchers describe as an “open question.” We don’t have a ton of definitive information, but it’s safe to assume that sipping on shreds of plastic isn’t ideal. 

 

Plastic Bottles Contain Dangerous Compounds 

BPA, antimony, and phthalates might seem like a foreign language to you, but the health risks that can come with exposure to them are universal. BPA, found in polycarbonate bottles to help make them strong and shiny, has been linked to reproductive issues and breast cancer — among other things. Antimony, a compound used to make PET plastic (a BPA-free plastic), is a suspected carcinogen that could have the potential to be toxic in high doses. And phthalates are endocrine disruptors that can mess with your hormones, specifically estrogen (though there’s plenty of debate around them). Not only does this trifecta of terrors surround plastic bottles, these chemicals can leach into your water under the right circumstances. 

 

The Easy Ways Chemicals Leach Into Bottled Water 

Now that you know the key offenders in plastic, let’s reveal how they sneak into your water. We’ll start with a hot topic: Heat. Whether you’re letting plastic bottles ride shotgun in the car or catch some rays under the summer sun, it’s no wonder your water tastes a little funny after it warms up. But heat’s no laughing matter: It can break down plastic and cause it to leach toxic chemicals like the ones we just mentioned right into your water. A warm bottle here or there isn’t likely to affect you, but you don’t want to make a habit of it. Of course, that also means both the dishwasher and scalding hot water aren’t the best options for cleaning plastic bottles, either. 

But wait, there’s more: Overuse is another remarkably easy way to put yourself in danger. That 16.9 oz bottle that belongs in the recycle bin isn’t built to withstand the test of time nor constant refills. You might think you’re doing the world a favor by refilling and reusing — while also saving yourself a buck or two — but it’s a dangerous game that almost encourages leaching. 

 

BPA Alternatives May Not Be Much Better:

You’ve seen enough BPA-free stickers by now to know BPA is bad. It’s even been banned from baby bottles, sippy cups, and infant formula packaging. Question is: Is the substitute better than the original? We can’t answer that when it comes to the preferred BPA alternative, Bisphenol-S. BPA and Bisphenol-S share similar properties. And the effects of Bisphenol-S on mice give us reason to wonder. However, there’s not enough science to date to drive a stake in the ground. For now, call us skeptical. Just like our friends at National Geographic. 

And it’s that healthy dose of skepticism that led us to hand pick BPA-Free, medical-grade Tritan plastic for use in all Clearly Filtered plastic containers; guaranteed BPS-free, too, so you can drink easy knowing you’re not consuming BPA or any of its ugly bisphenol compound cousins.

 

Single Use Water Bottles Are Wasteful In So Many Ways 

Bottled water isn’t the be-all, end-all some think it is.

Making bottled water requires up to 2000 times more energy than making tap water.

In a world where energy is currency, that’s wildly concerning. Plus, it’s an open secret that plenty of bottled water is just refiltered tap water with a pricey label and attractive branding. 

Expenses aside, bottled water is beyond wasteful. It can take up to 3 liters of water to produce just ½ -1 liter of bottled water. That’s not to say there isn’t a place for plastic bottles. When the tap is unusable, filters are unavailable, and water is a matter of life or death, the good outweighs the bad. But relying on plastic water bottles when other options are available isn’t good for anyone. And the fact that the water inside those bottles might just be tainted tap water adds a new layer of issues.

 

How to Protect Yourself

Here’s a few quick tips to protect yourself from chemicals found in typical plastic water bottles:

  • Wash BPA and BPS-containing reusable plastics by hand and take great care to avoid exposure to heat.
  • Get clean water from a filter instead of a bottle.
  • Use  glass, stainless steel, or medical-grade Tritan plastic bottles to avoid exposure to bisphenol compounds like BPA and BPS.

What the Future Looks Like 

The world isn’t sitting on its hands as plastic-related problems pile up. Our crystal ball reveals optimism as consumer demand for safe drinking water drives innovation in the industry. 150,000+ people have already joined us by investing in our advanced filtration systems and a further 1,500 have ditched the single-use plastic water bottles in favor of our medical-grade Tritan plastic bottles.

Click Here to learn more about Clearly Filtered water filtration systems and our thoughtfully crafted water bottles, designed with your safety in mind. 

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