Bottled Water Laden with Plastic Particles, Study Suggests

A new study suggests that bottled water is laden with plastic particles also known as microplastics. Researchers found 10.4 microplastics in every liter of bottled water per average.

Last fall, a study from Orb Media revealed that 83% of the world’s tap water contains microplastics. The nonprofit journalism group wanted to know how safe bottled water was. The latest research revealed that bottled water is contaminated with plastics as well and, sometimes, to a much greater extent than tap water is.

Orb noted that people buy bottled water because they perceive it as a safer alternative to tap water or other sources of drinking water. However, the latest research revealed that water which many people presume pure is contaminated with plastic.

The study was conducted by a team of researchers from the State University of New York. Researchers analyzed water purity in 250 bottles and 11 major brands. Most of water samples contained microplastics, including polyethylene, polypropylene, and nylon particles. The plastic particles varied in sizes up to the width of a red blood cell.

Study authors couldn’t tell how microplastics impact human health in the long run.

The Safest And Least Safe Brands of Bottled Water

The highest amount of microplastics was detected in Nestlé Pure Life, with 10,390 plastic bits for every liter of water. Surprisingly, some of the brand’s bottles contained lower levels of microplastics, with one bottle having only 6 plastic bits.

The next in line based on microplastics content were the brands Bisleri, Aqua, and Gerolsteiner. At least on bottle of those brands had high levels of plastic contamination.

The San Pellegrino brand had the lowest concentrations of microplastics, with one bottle containing 74 particles per liter. The second came Evian with 256 plastic bits per liter, and Dasani with 335 microplastics.

Other brands that were tested included Epura, Aquafina, Wahaha, and Minalba.
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Anne-Marie Jackson

Anna grew up on a steady diet of 20th century literature, science-fiction movies and Viking lore. Unsurprisingly she turned into a technology geek with an inclination for history & fantasy.