Mineral water, as the name suggests is any water which contains dissolved minerals, either naturally occurring at source or added during the processing stage of production. This includes sparkling, carbonated or effervescent water which again occurs naturally as well as being processed.

Historically, mineral waters were considered a therapeutic ‘cure’ which you could not only drink but bathe in to receive the health benefits. The historic City of Bath in England is a prime example and other towns harboring spas, baths and wells, have basically built themselves around these natural mineral water sources. Pilgrimages to these spas were commonplace.

Nowadays our mineral water tends to be bottled at source and shipped around the world, which is far more convenient than traveling to the source – many of which are now not open to the public but have been turned into big bottling businesses. The number of commercially available brands of mineral water total some 3,000 products across the globe and so there is no real shortage of choice.

The amount of dissolved minerals contained within the water determines whether it is classified as hard or soft. The more minerals, the harder the water. The United States ‘Food & Drug Administration’ (FDA) defines mineral water as having over 250 parts per million of dissolved solids and having to be naturally sourced from bore holes, springs or other underground sources. Mineral water as far as the US FDA are concerned can not be processed to add more minerals although this is not stipulated elsewhere in the world where processed waters are also considered or classified as mineral water.

So, where a great deal of our water today is processed to remove dissolved solids such as minerals, chemicals, gas and other ‘impurities’, often our natural mineral water tends to be bottled at source, retaining all of it’s mineral content which the majority see as being beneficial to our health and well-being. Magnesium and calcium are the most common naturally occurring minerals with various others including iron, potassium and fluoride to name but a few. The tap (faucet) water in some cities and countries for example Zurich in Switzerland also contains large amounts of dissolved minerals and can also be classified as mineral water.

Although our municipal systems have mandatory checks and tests in place to ensure that water safety regulations are adhered to for our safety, there are no such questions asked or testing procedures carried out for spring and mineral waters. We have to place our faith in the bottlers and producers. However, it is generally accepted that the dissolved minerals in this water do not harm us but do actually contribute to a healthy lifestyle. Other chemicals and bacteria present are hopefully treated during the bottling process before we consume the water!

It is also generally accepted that drinking water high in minerals is the best way for us to achieve the correct mineral levels within our bodies so that the mineral content of our bodies isn’t leached away, leaving our cells deficient, which in turn can quickly lead to illness.

Tap water also contains minerals and a simple answer would be to install a carbon filter system or similar, which can ensure that you have mineral water on tap, but with other contaminents and impurities removed. This is quite obviously a much more cost effective solution to buying bottled mineral water from the supermarkets.

Bottled water is predominantly available in plastic bottles, usually PET (Polyethylene Terephthalate) while the water cooler companies tend to use high density polyethelene containers. This tends to be the biggest public criticism of bottled water – that it creates so much waste plastic and that chemical contaminant leaching from the plastics can do us harm in the form of cancer and other undesirable complaints.

However, recent studies have shown that the level of recycling of used, plastic water bottles has risen by over 20% since 2006 in the United States to a rate of over 23%. When you consider that globally, our consumption of bottled water is forecast to rise by over 50% from 2006 until the end of the decade, where we will be drinking nearly 175,000 million liters, you can see that that is a huge amount of recycled plastic.

Bottling companies led by the big beverage brands are also doing their bit for the environment by reducing the amount of plastic they put into each bottle, creating a more eco-friendly product. With an estimated 200 million bottles of water consumed throughout the world every year 50 billion of those within the United States), whatever we can do to conserve energy and reduce waste is going to help the environment substantially.

OK, so what processes are used to produce our bottled water and what effect does the water really have on our health?

Apart from natural mineral and spring waters which are bottled at source, the vast majority of our bottled water is processed and created using reverse osmosis and distillation processes. (A lot of the big brand water products are taken from our own municipal supplies). These create an extremely pure water, probably the purest with the least risk of contaminants, but most of the natural minerals which our bodies need are also filtered out. Fluoride is also filtered out which some blame for an increase in tooth decay.

Much research has been done and many test reports have been commissioned and written on the subject of the bottled water market, the standards and the quality of our bottled water with the general concensus of opinion being that they are generally free of bacteria and that levels of harmful chemicals are well below the standards set making them safe for consumer consumption.

Bottled mineral waters, while containing the minerals and dissolved solids which help our bodies, can also contain high levels of calcium which if consumed excessively could increase the risk of conditions such as gallstones and kidney stones.

So, tap (faucet) water or bottled water drinks?

Much of the argument comes down to the environmental effects of producing the plastic bottles and the other associates packaging. Globally, we drink more bottled water than tap but we also pay a huge amount more for it. Arguments for and against one or the other will rage for eternity. Mostly it is down to personal preference, price and taste. Tap water in certain areas can be of just as good a standard as the purest distilled or filtered water.

The most toxic commercial drinks are made from purified water and studies have consistently shown that heavy consumers of soft drinks, sugar-free or otherwise, dispense huge amounts of calcium, magnesium and other trace minerals into the urine leading to a greater risk of osteoporosis, osteoarthritis, hypothyroidism, coronary artery disease, high blood pressure etc etc etc.

Purified water is usually acidic and can only be recommended for drawing poisons out of the body – SHORT TERM! Long-term, disease and early death is more likely with continued consumption of purified water.

For more on this… Watershed.net