Bottled Water In College

Seventy percent of the human body is comprised of water. This makes drinking water quality vital. The EPA estimates the average adult consumes 1.2 liters daily or 115 gallons of community (tap) water daily while the average consumption of bottled water per capita in the U.S. is in excess of 30.8 gallons per year and is expected to continue to increase according to the International Bottled Water Association (IBWA) and the Beverage Marketing Association’s 2013 report. Bottled water costs anywhere from 240 to 10,000 times more per gallon than the average cost of tap, but people’s perception that bottled water is purer, safer or healthier is driven, in part, by strong bottled water marketing campaigns that focus on news reports about crises that involve municipal water supplies. (NRDC, “Bottled Water Pure Drink or Pure Hype”) The sources for both tap and bottled waters as well as additives to either enrich or neutralize contents of water determine the mineral and chemical composition of drinking water. Is bottled water really any purer or healthier than local tap water?

Another way bottled water is the way to go is because it helps aid in healthy choices. In the article, “Grab the Bottle”, it states that “bottled water has helped consumers choose to drink more water because it presents it in a convenient way (Giroux). In many cases, consumers buy more objects that appeal to the eyes. Bottled water comes in different sizes and shapes. What is trending in society, the public wants automatically. In the article, “Comment-Soft Drinks and Water- The Future of Bottled Water”, he told that “attractive packages alone can make us feel that what we are drinking is beneficial” (Rowlands). Trendy shapes, sizes, and colors are what the public is drawn to. If a consumer sees a unique water bottle in the store, he or she will buy that because it’s trendy and popular in society.

Billions of gallons of bottled water are consumed in the United States every year. Many Americans choose bottled water for its convenience and say that the taste is much better than tap water. They say tap water is flat and tasteless. Some argue that the cost of bottled water far exceeds the cost of tap water. One study showed that one bottled water per day would cost the consumer $365 per year while the same amount of tap water would cost ten cents. While bottled water is more expensive, it provides over 130,000 jobs resulting in over six billion dollars in salaries for american workers “Bottled Water Matters.” In the article, “ Bad To The Last Drop,” Tom Standage says that bottled water is too expensive and encourages people to stop buying bottled water and give the money to charity. In the article “ In Defense of Bottled Water,” Thomas J. Lauria says that eliminating bottled water would have the unintended consequence of driving people to choose more unhealthy beverages which have thicker plastic bottles and would be worse on the environment. He also says that bottled water is an important choice in situations where there is a lack of tap water or concern about water

3.Personal Factors: Personal values have been assumed to influence behavioural and consumption decisions through attitudes (Carman, 1977, pp.403-7), thus creating desires, influencing needs to be satisfied, and driving consumers to select products that fulfil specific needs (Gutman, 1982, pp.60-72). Bottled water satisfies the most basic of human needs, that of thirst. But it also satisfies a range of specific needs

Gleick supports this argument and cites specific grounds that disprove bottled water companies’ false claims. For example oxygenated water is said to “strengthen your immune system…and even brain function” despite scientific testing done proving that a single breath of air contains more oxygen than the product itself (Gleick 118). Next, the author recalls someone who drank nothing but super-hydrating Penta Water, which cost over sixty dollars a case. This costly expense was proven to be futile, because scientific evidence proved that Penta did not have any health benefits superior to those of ordinary water (Gleick 129). Barnett incorporates a qualifier which states that it is difficult to conclude whether bottled or tap water is healthier. However, this does not take away from the fact that the EPA, which regulates municipal water, is more strict than the FDA is with regulation over bottled water. Bottled water companies claim they intensely purify their products despite this evidence. These seemingly astonishing claims mislead consumers who do not possess the knowledge nor the equipment necessary to test the water themselves. Consumers spend money to purchase products that turn out to have no outstanding health benefits. They may additionally put their health at risk by consuming bottled water which may contain pollutants detrimental to the human body.

In the online article, “How does Pollution Affect Humans” by The World Counts, “Breathing polluted air puts you at a higher risk for asthma and other respiratory diseases. When exposed to ground ozone for 6 to 7 hours, scientific evidence shows that healthy people’s lungs function decreased and they suffered from respiratory inflammation” (The World Counts par. 4 ). THose are just some of the health problems that pollution causes This information matters to me because it shows that bottled water not only affects the Earth by causing pollution, but that pollution also causes health problems. Not only does it affect the Earth by causing pollution, but bottled water can directly affect you. According to the online article “Bottled Water vs. Tap Water: Rethink What You Drink” by Priscilla Torres, “The EPA regulates tap water, while the FDA oversees bottled. Yet FDA oversight doesn’t apply to water packaged and sold within the same state, leaving some 60 to 70 percent of bottled water, including the contents of watercooler jugs, free of FDA regulation” (Torres pg. 2 par.5). This matters to me because it means if every student in the Natomas district drank from bottled water, some of their water might contain chemicals because it wasn’t checked. Chemicals are definitely a threat because Torres continues to say, “Scientists in Germany found that the longer a bottle of water sits around (in a store, in your home), the more antimony it develops. High concentrations of antimony can cause nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea”(Torres pg. 3 par. 7). This information is important because it shows that just keeping water bottles for a long period of time can cause many health problems. If every student had to drink bottled water, they would constantly be getting sick and spreading their sickness to other students. So, bottled water causes many health problems, through pollution, and because there may be

“Mom can you grab me a bottle of water for my game?” Did you ever think that grabbing a bottle of water may put you in danger? A latest report by NRDC, tested 1,000 bottles of water and 103 brands. They found out that ⅓ of them had chemicals or bacteria in them. Now that I have read a couple articles I now know that tap water is safer to drink than bottled water. The first reason is that the company’s making the bottles are wasting plastic. Also if we use water from our tap, it will be free instead of buying new bottles every time we run out. If you read my essay you will know why I think tap water is better.

Tap water and bottled water are used in peoples lives daily. Yet, barely anybody seems to care for the difference between the two. The quality, price, accessibility and many other aspects areover looked in the decision for tap or bottled water. Another topic that seems to be shoved under the rug is the safety of tap water in the United States. But from investigative information it proves that there is no problem with drinking tap water in the United States.

In the article “Trust on Tap”, Kate Brown explores the why the vast majority of people turn to bottled water as opposed to tap despite bottled water’s many drawbacks. The article discusses how it was found that people in a survey seem to believe “convenience, cost and environmental impact” (Brown) are a “secondary” (Brown) concern and many drink it because they believe it is “better quality” (Brown). Despite this view, it is completely untrue that bottled water is “safer” (Brown) than tap water. According to an expert in water quality, Stewart Khan, tap water must meet more “stringent… criteria” (Khan) than bottled water to ensure purification. Lastly Brown shows how many water companies lie to the public, just as Nestle did as they led the public to believe their water was spring water although it was in fact groundwater they pulled “near a present… waste dump” (Brown).

There are articles, flyers, and even books out in the market that try to persuade people to either use bottled water or tap water. While many believe that tap water is more beneficial to the body, others believe that the convenience and advertising of purified bottled water is acceptable enough for themselves. As we consume water, we concern ourselves with issues such as if it is harmful to the environment, if it is harmful to our health and whether the product is convenient for us. Ultimately, the choice is personal because both sides provide pros and cons to these issues.

Throughout the many years that the bottled water industry has been around, they have provided consumers with convenience.This conveniency, however, is being threatened by schools placing bans on them. This should not be the case as they induce a healthy lifestyle, create additional income, and can enforce the habit of recycling.

​Drinking water from the fountains promotes health. College students consume other beverages when bottled water has been exhausted from the canteen and other sources around the school. Some

In this journal a study was run comparing the characteristics of bottled water to regular tap water and the overall beliefs of their health benefits. In the journal they had participants affiliated with the University of Birmingham, they ranged in ages, ethnic backgrounds, and it contained both males and females. These participants had email correspondence with the Researchers, who set up the study, before they went to an interview with them about the nature of bottled water and their thoughts on its benefits compared to tap water. The interview imposed many questions about the two waters such as the way they taste, smell, and even their environmental aspects. Many of the participants believed that there are some health benefits of drinking

Bottled water, from companies such as Poland Springs, Dasani, and Nestle Pure Life has become one of the largest consumed drinks in America. According to Sean D. Daj, a Stockholm water research prizewinner, there are approximately 475 bottled water plants in the U.S., producing 600 brands of bottled water. It is estimated that bottled water will soon become the nations second most popular beverage after soft drinks (Daj). Bottled water is widely discussed because of its availability elsewhere. Why do we buy bottled water when we have a free supply of tap water? In describing the mass expansion of the drink Brian Howard, a writer from the Environmental Magazine, says, “Bottled water is expected to pass both coffee and milk to become the

Have you ever had any concerns about bottled water? Do you think that bottled water consumption should be banned? Bottled water is water packed in plastic containers and sold for human consumption (Health Canada, 2013). Currently, the amount of bottled water consumed has increased considerably since many people feel it is safer drinking bottled water than tap water (Parent and Wrong, 2014). According to The Statistics Portal, the global sale of bottled water took a leap from 161, 589 to 181, 608 liters from 2009 to 2011. Only in the United States, each American citizen consumed around 32 gallons of bottled water in 2013, thus meaning an equivalent growth of 15, 94% over 2009 (The Statistics Portal, 2014). In fact, due to good portability, bottled water has been helpful in both simple and complex situations such as daily exercises and natural disasters. Even though having those few considerable advantages, bottled water still have been less beneficial; especially due to the negative impacts in the socio-economic, health and environmental fields.