Tap water is safe to drink - water management has strict guidelines concerning water cleanliness and drinkability. So, I’m not knocking tap. However, I can tell a big difference between tap and filtered (e.g. where i fill up, it’s done with reverse osmosis and charcoal filtering) by taste, especially in a house with old piping. I’m not afraid to drink it, it’s just that it’s too blah for me. Maybe I’m spoiled :lol:
Jen - concerning minerals in tap water and what is needed by your body. I can say that whoever said bottled water is bad for you was misleading their listeners. It’s not bad - it’s water. Tap water, with its minerals, can be bad for you. For example, in Kentucky, where the state sits on tons of limestone, a lot of minerals work their way into the water. This spells out an increased risk of kidney stones, and I think this is due to the form of calcium. You could eat chalk, which is a form calcium, but the absorbability of that calcium is horrible compared to other sources. And the calcium content in water is very minute in relation to your daily needs. Not to say that there would never be a benefit for having trace minerals in your water, just that it needs to be the right form.
IL - On the basis of taste, Evian kicks taps ass. But I prefer Gerolsteiner (yes, Germany is in the biz too) if I’m going to shell out money for bottled water. I don’t see how people drop $2 for 16 oz of molecularly distilled water - which I question its ability. And if you buy Deer Park - well that’s just tap in a bottle, so why bother? Anyway, fluoride is just as much a poison as chlorine, and no one has proved that it’s harmless to your health. In fact, more concern has been raised recently to the detriments of that substance when added to drinking water.