Thursday, July 09, 2009

Go Green with a Stainless Steel Water Bottle

Stainless Steel Water Bottle
Over the years, it has become an increasing problem to find clean and refreshing drinking water in many areas of the country. Whether it be from contamination in the local water tables, to extra chemicals being added to public water systems, good clean drinking water is becoming hard to come by. Unless you have a good filtration system setup in your house, or buy your water at the store, you could be filling your body with chemicals.

Recent studies have shown that even some of the plastics being used in water bottles, and other containers are not of food grade plastic because they are made of recycled materials. These plastics can contain dangerous chemicals that can lead to cancer and other diseases. The main carcinogen in this increasing problem is a chemical known as Bisphenol-A, or more commonly referred to as BPA. If the container you are currently using for any food or drink purposes in your house has the #7 on the bottom of it, throw it out! This particular mix of plastics is most known to have BPA in them. In fact, Nalgene changed the composition of one of their plastic water bottle lines due to complaints and pressure by customers that they could contain BPA.

In any case, a metal water bottle of some sort would be a safer alternative to hold your beverages. Some metal water bottles are actually just mediocre in terms of their claim to be a green alternative to plastic bottles. Sigg water bottles are made of aluminum. Sounds good right? Well, they are actually coated with some sort of resin on the inside to prevent corrosion and staining. They claim this proprietary resin has been rigorously tested for BPA, but it has been approved by the FDA, so I guess it is fairly safe. Safe to drink out of maybe, but what about that resin when you are trying to recycle this container? Where does that go in the recycling process? I don't feel that the Sigg water bottle is a very eco-friendly alternative to plastic water bottles, although they may be a safer alternative.

Stainless steel water bottles seem to be the safest bet when choosing a portable beverage container. Stainless steel does not stain obviously, I mean it is part of the given name. Another great quality of a stainless steel water bottle is that it does not corrode from water or other drinkable liquids, so no need for any lining. It looks like I will be choosing a stainless steel bottle, as it really seems like the best alternative to plastic bottles. Stainless steel bottles are fully recyclable, so they are eco-friendly. Not only that, but you really don't need to buy another bottle for your beverages ever again.