# Is tap water really bad for your health? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 23, 2015, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-tap-water-really-bad-for-your-health/738368 "2015-11-23T17:01:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![dougie\_monty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@dougie\_monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dougie_monty)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2015, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-tap-water-really-bad-for-your-health/738368/21 "2015-11-23T21:18:20Z")
I get the distinct impression from some people that we are supposed to subsist on weeds and tap water. :mad: ---
**Author:** ![Bones\_Daley](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@Bones\_Daley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bones_Daley)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2015, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-tap-water-really-bad-for-your-health/738368/22 "2015-11-23T22:24:52Z")
Everybody on this thread has shares in fracking companies IMO … ---
**Author:** ![Quercus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/7ab992/32.png) [@Quercus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quercus)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2015, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-tap-water-really-bad-for-your-health/738368/23 "2015-11-23T22:31:37Z")
> [@dougie\_monty](#): > > I get the distinct impression from some people that we are supposed to subsist on weeds and tap water. :mad: Wait, people are saying “Sure, drink tap water; it’s not bad for you. You can spend your money on something more fun than bottled water.” and you’re mad about that? 😕 ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2015, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-tap-water-really-bad-for-your-health/738368/24 "2015-11-23T22:48:35Z")
A great deal of bottled water IS tap water. ---
**Author:** ![JerrySTL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e274bd/32.png) [@JerrySTL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JerrySTL)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2015, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-tap-water-really-bad-for-your-health/738368/25 "2015-11-23T22:52:23Z")
Drink out of random creeks, ponds, and rivers. You’ll be back to tap water pretty quickly. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2015, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-tap-water-really-bad-for-your-health/738368/26 "2015-11-23T22:54:00Z")
One more time: Tap water in the US (and other first world countries) is fine and healthy. Chlorine is present in minute quantities, the main health effect of which is to kill off water-borne diseases that used to kill tens of thousands of people in North America every year. It’s like using soap when you wash your hands - sure, it’s a chemical, but it gets your hands cleaner. Chlorine in municipal water supplies cleans the water. It’s a good thing. Fluoride strengthens your teeth. This effect was discovered when people studied why people in some regions had less tooth decay than other regions. The answer: the people with less decay had naturally higher levels of fluoride in their water supply. In the small amounts in municipal water supplies it’s a good thing, it makes your teeth healthier. As noted, in areas where water sources are unusually high in fluoride municipal water systems take it _out_, to reduce levels to something healthier. It’s a good thing. Drink your tap water. ---
**Author:** ![dougie\_monty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@dougie\_monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dougie_monty)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2015, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-tap-water-really-bad-for-your-health/738368/27 "2015-11-23T22:54:31Z")
> [@Smeghead](#): > > A great deal of bottled water IS tap water. Would that assertion survive chemical analysis? ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2015, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-tap-water-really-bad-for-your-health/738368/28 "2015-11-23T22:55:00Z")
> [@Smeghead](#): > > A great deal of bottled water IS tap water. _Mostly_ it’s filtered, thru more or less what your home carafe filter does- activated charcoal, etc. Get the chlorine out. ---
**Author:** ![Barrett\_Bonden](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/5e9695/32.png) [@Barrett\_Bonden](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barrett_Bonden)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2015, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-tap-water-really-bad-for-your-health/738368/29 "2015-11-23T23:14:09Z")
> [@dougie\_monty](#): > > Would that assertion survive chemical analysis? I’m not sure what you think chemical analysis would prove. You can generally tell groundwater from surface water (groundwater tends to be harder and doesn’t require as much disinfection), but treatment of municipal drinking water varies with the quality of the influent and _that_ can vary daily, depending on the source. According to Peter Gleick, author of _Bottled and Sold_, [55% of bottled water is spring water (groundwater), and 45% of bottled water is municipal (tap) water](http://www.motherjones.com/environment/2013/03/bottled-water-poland-spring-rubio). ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2015, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-tap-water-really-bad-for-your-health/738368/30 "2015-11-23T23:38:09Z")
> [@Barrett\_Bonden](#): > > According to Peter Gleick, author of _Bottled and Sold_, [55% of bottled water is spring water (groundwater), and 45% of bottled water is municipal (tap) water](http://www.motherjones.com/environment/2013/03/bottled-water-poland-spring-rubio). \*\* treated\*\* tap water. Honestly, ever since this meme started people got the strange idea they just run tap water into bottles. No, they do a little filtering first- or a lot of filtering/treatment, like reverse osmosis. ---
**Author:** ![Foggy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foggy/32/1082_2.png) [@Foggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Foggy)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2015, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-tap-water-really-bad-for-your-health/738368/31 "2015-11-24T00:15:17Z")
> [@Bones\_Daley](#): > > Everybody on this thread has shares in fracking companies IMO … I don’t, but should I? 😕 ---
**Author:** ![araminty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b5e925/32.png) [@araminty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/araminty)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2015, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-tap-water-really-bad-for-your-health/738368/32 "2015-11-24T00:58:31Z")
> [@bob\_2](#): > > Keep the empty bottles and refill from the tap as required. Ehhh, it’s more hygienic to use a purpose-built bottle. Reused bottles tend to harbour higher bacterial loads, and are difficult to sanitize. Not a problem for a steel or glass or even a thicker plastic bottle intended for reuse, as you can stick it in the dishwasher or scrub it with the rest of your dishes with hot soapy water. OP, I’m glad you thought to ask about this! You can save yourself money, and reduce your carbon footprint, very very easily, but just not buying bottled water any more. I wish more people would do so. ---
**Author:** ![purplehearingaid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7bcc69/32.png) [@purplehearingaid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehearingaid)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2015, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-tap-water-really-bad-for-your-health/738368/33 "2015-11-24T01:02:20Z")
> [@sweeteviljesus](#): > > In hopes that this isn’t a rhetorical question… > > Bottled water is actually less safe that tap water. > > Chlorine is in there to keep you safe from the nasties that will make you sick and possibly kill you. > > Fluoride is in there to help strengthen your teeth. True, it’s poisonous in it’s elemental form, and fluoride salts they use are poisonous at large dosages, but it’s not the dosages in municipal water supplies. This may run contrary to what dickhead scare mongers like Alex Jones tell you while trying to sell you water filters, but it isn’t true. BTW, municipal water supplies take fluoride out if the concentration is too high. ``` My city put way too much chlorine in the water ! When I turn my water on ``` it’s like opening a bottle of bleach ! It taste so bad I had found my dog drinking my bottled water instead of his tap water . I know bottled water isn’t better for you but at least I can drink it. I know a few people that refuse to give their pets It sound like you work for your city water department the way you’re pushing tap water ! tap water. ---
**Author:** ![leahcim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b4bc9f/32.png) [@leahcim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/leahcim)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2015, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-tap-water-really-bad-for-your-health/738368/34 "2015-11-24T02:31:40Z")
> [@purplehearingaid](#): > > My city put way too much chlorine in the water ! When I turn my water on > it’s like opening a bottle of bleach ! It taste so bad I had found my dog drinking my bottled water instead of his tap water . I know bottled water isn’t better for you but at least I can drink it. Do note that chlorine is a gas. If you don’t like chlorine in your drinking water, all you have to do is leave it in an open container and the chlorine will escape within a few hours. > [@](#): > > I know a few people that refuse to give their pets It sound like you work for your city water department the way you’re pushing tap water ! I know of no one who makes additional revenue when people use more tap water. In fact, most municipal water departments encourage you to use less. ---
**Author:** ![tarrel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f0a364/32.png) [@tarrel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tarrel)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2015, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-tap-water-really-bad-for-your-health/738368/35 "2015-11-24T02:35:31Z")
Not sure but I used to love drinking water out the bathroom sink in the middle of the night while I was half sleep ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2015, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-tap-water-really-bad-for-your-health/738368/36 "2015-11-24T03:01:27Z")
> [@purplehearingaid](#): > > My city put way too much chlorine in the water ! When I turn my water on > it’s like opening a bottle of bleach ! It taste so bad I had found my dog drinking my bottled water instead of his tap water . I know bottled water isn’t better for you but at least I can drink it. I know a few people that refuse to give their pets It sound like you work for your city water department the way you’re pushing tap water ! > tap water. Ok, then just buy one of those carafe filter things, like Brita. Hwaaaaaay cheaper than bottled and better for the environment. ---
**Author:** ![KarlGauss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/karlgauss/32/3713_2.png) [@KarlGauss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGauss)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2015, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-tap-water-really-bad-for-your-health/738368/37 "2015-11-24T04:01:35Z")
> [@Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](#): > > On the radio the other day they said that topical (dental) fluoride from toothpaste was beneficial for dental health, but that there were no studies that showed that fluoride in drinking water had any effect on dental health, however, it is a possible factor in hyperthyroidism, which is another problem. There seem to be only a very few (and not terribly convincing) studies available regarding the effect of fluoride on thyroid function. Some of those studies suggest that excess fluoride (at least as evidenced by the presence of dental fluorosis) may be associated with _hypo_thyroidism, i.e. low or under-active thyroid. [HERE](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3327488/) is a free, full-text article looking at the question. In it, no relationship was found between fluoride and thyroid function. If you’re really interested in finding out more, and have access to a good library (which I don’t right now), references #1, 2, and 9 from the linked article might be the most informative. ---
**Author:** ![Springtime\_for\_Spacers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Springtime\_for\_Spacers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Springtime_for_Spacers)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2015, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-tap-water-really-bad-for-your-health/738368/38 "2015-11-24T04:08:37Z")
Of course some municipalities can make a [mess of tap water.](http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/oct/04/flint-michigan-lead-water-children-health)… > [@](#): > > The Flint Water Study found that 10% of the homes tested had 25 parts per billion of lead, far exceeding the Environmental Protection Agency’s action level of 15 parts per billion. > > As a result, according to the study, the city’s water is wholly unsafe. ---
**Author:** ![Martin\_Hyde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/47e85d/32.png) [@Martin\_Hyde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martin_Hyde)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2015, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-tap-water-really-bad-for-your-health/738368/39 "2015-11-24T04:25:24Z")
I normally drink tap water, we have had situations here where huge scale agricultural runoff has resulted in the water system intake receiving water that has contaminants in it above accepted limits. The reality is that water is **still probably safe** , but they’ve had “do not drink” warnings issued because it’s over the limits. This has happened maybe 5 times in 10 years, and only persisted for a couple days. I will note this about bottled water–under the law the bottler has to disclose it source. And “Spring Water” is a special term under FDA regulations, if water really comes from a spring then it can be marketed as spring water. A major spring water brand is Deer Park, Ice Mountain etc–they can legally advertise as spring water. Bottled water that is genuinely just tap water purified can’t market itself as spring water, Dasani and Aquafina for example market themselves as as purified water. ---
**Author:** ![dougie\_monty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@dougie\_monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dougie_monty)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2015, 5:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-tap-water-really-bad-for-your-health/738368/40 "2015-11-24T05:24:47Z")
> [@Barrett\_Bonden](#): > > I’m not sure what you think chemical analysis would prove. You can generally tell groundwater from surface water (groundwater tends to be harder and doesn’t require as much disinfection), but treatment of municipal drinking water varies with the quality of the influent and _that_ can vary daily, depending on the source. > > According to Peter Gleick, author of _Bottled and Sold_, [55% of bottled water is spring water (groundwater), and 45% of bottled water is municipal (tap) water](http://www.motherjones.com/environment/2013/03/bottled-water-poland-spring-rubio). And how trustworthy is Peter Gleick? Besides, My original point had nothing to do with the claimed benefits of bottled water. (I have lived for about 60 years in the Los Angeles area, whose water is notorious.) I was commenting, with some irritation, about how all things people like to drink are supposedly bad for us so we should only drink plain old tap water. We have had delivery for more than 20 years of Sparkletts, which, I can assure you, tastes far better than the water out of our kitchen (and bathroom) taps. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-tap-water-really-bad-for-your-health/738368.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-tap-water-really-bad-for-your-health/738368.md?page=3)