Wellness With Water – Your Daily Dose

While most of us are focusing on BPA in plastic water bottles, we should also consider other sources that  BPA can be found and make necessary adjustments to reduce your family’s exposure to this harmful chemical.

By Sonya Lunder, MPH EWG Senior Scientist, October 2008

Although completely eliminating exposure to bisphenol A (BPA) may not be possible, there are steps you can take to reduce your family’s exposure to this chemical by avoiding common sources and limiting exposure for the highest risk groups.

The developing fetus and baby are the most vulnerable to BPA’s toxic effects. Unfortunately they also have the most intense BPA exposure of any age group. Many parents who have replaced their polycarbonate baby bottles are unaware that BPA contaminates liquid baby formula sold in metal cans. Since formula can make up 100% of a baby’s diet over her first 6 months of life, parents should choose BPA-free types

Adults ingest much less BPA than babies. But a recent study linking BPA exposures in adults to heart disease and diabetes raises concerns about the safety of current exposures. Adult exposure comes primarily from canned foods and polycarbonate food containers, but BPA-containing medical devices could also be a source. Pregnant women and older children should avoid BPA. Eat a varied diet, avoid canned foods, and don’t use polycarbonate plastics for warm food or drinks.

BPA in formula and baby bottles

The federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) estimates that babies have 12.5 times more BPA exposure than adults, and EWG is concerned that FDA has seriously underestimates exposures for many babies. Recent tests by Environmental Working Group and the Canadian government, and a 1990s test by FDA show BPA leaching from metal cans into all brands of liquid formula. Powdered formula appears to be BPA-free. Therefore, EWG recommends that you choose powdered formula if your baby tolerates it. [Read more about BPA in formula and bottles and EWG's efforts to reduce babies' exposures.]

Most manufacturers now make BPA-free baby bottles. Glass is the safest and most durable option. Never microwave baby food or drinks in plastic containers. Bottles used to pump and store expressed breast milk by the brand Medela are also labeled BPA-free.

BPA in canned foods

Almost all canned foods sold in the United States have a BPA-based epoxy liner that leaches BPA into the food. EWG tested 97 canned foods and found detectable levels of BPA in more than half of the foods. [Read about EWG's food and formula tests]. The highest concentrations were in canned meats, pasta and soups. Only 1 manufacturer claims to use no BPA. Eden Foods uses an alternative technology for canned beans but not for its tomato-based products. Pregnant women and children should limit their consumption of canned foods to avoid BPA. Rinsing canned fruit or vegetables may reduce the amount of BPA you ingest.

BPA in water and food containers

Less BPA leaches from plastic water bottles and food containers than from cans into canned foods and baby formula. Nevertheless it is good to take simple precautions to reduce your exposure.

Polycarbonate plastics are rigid, transparent and used for food storage containers and water bottles, among other things. Trace amounts of BPA can migrate from these containers, particularly if used for hot food or liquids. Soft or cloudy-colored plastic does not contain BPA.

When possible, avoid polycarbonate, especially for children’s food and drinks. This plastic might be marked with the recycling code #7 or the letters “PC”. Plastics with the recycling labels #1, #2 and #4 on the bottom are better choices because they do not contain BPA. Avoid putting any plastic containers in microwaves. Wash plastics on the top shelf of your dishwasher or by hand.

Some metal water bottles lined with an epoxy-based enamel coating could leach BPA. Look for stainless steel bottles that do not have a liner. Avoid using old and scratched plastic bottles.

Other sources of BPA

BPA has countless uses, several of which have been highlighted as an exposure risk. BPA is a component of non-metal dental fillings, it is in thermal paper for many receipts, and it is increasingly used in medical devices. There is little research about the magnitude of exposures from these products.

See original post on EWG website

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For those of you who don’t want the bells and whistles of a water ionizer, here is the perfect system for you.

The Wellness Kitchen S3                                                                         

- Reduces chlorine and other harmful contaminants

- Reduces foreign tastes and odors

- Provides the best water for drinking and cooking

- Easy 3-minute installation – no plumbing required

- Optional Under-the-Counter Conversion Kit

The Wellness Kitchen S3 comprises a filtration and enhancement system that delivers the cleanest and most natural tasting water available. It effectively reduces harmful contaminants, while at the same time enhancing the water with delicate ions and minerals.

The S3 reduces chlorine, chloramines, chlorinated hydro-carbons, trihalomethanes, and pesticides, as well as foreign tastes and odors, below detectable levels for safer, healthier water. An LED display tells you exactly how much life is left in your cartridges, making it easy to know when it is time to replace them. The S3 also uses a unique quick-fit connector which makes installation an easy 3-minute operation — no plumbing required.

The Wellness Kitchen S3 has the option of an under-sink installation. You can easily convert your counter top Kitchen S3 to an under-sink model. The kit contains everything you need, including a faucet, mounting hardware, shut-off valve, cold water plumbing connector, black tubing, a leak sensor and four AA batteries. The only visible part of your new S-III system will be the beautiful stainless steel faucet that is designed to fit into the standard accessory hole of your kitchen sink.

To learn more about the Wellness Kitchen S3 and other products, Click Here to Enhance Your Water

Visit the Wellness With Water site.

Invest 341 seconds of your day and watch the hard-hitting trailer for Tapped – a bottled water documentary.

Tapped will illustrate the impact of the global water crisis on America and what we can do as individuals to enact change sooner rather than later. Tapped examines the role of the bottled water industry and its effects on our health, climate change, pollution, and our reliance on oil.

Take action as soon – Buy a water ionizer for healthier water and buy stainless steel reusable water bottles.

Click here for – Tapped, the Movie official website.

Click here for – Wellness With Water home page

Video courtesy mercola.com

Over the past several years, bottled water has been recalled due to contamination by arsenic, bromate, cleaning compounds, mold, and bacteria.

The burden we place on the earth by our use of disposable plastic is simply too heavy, and yes, I know, the temptation is to say ‘Well, what can I do about it? How could one person possibly make a difference?’

Well, check out these statistics.

Americans purchase over 30,000,000,000 plastic bottles of water per year.
Less than 14% are recycled.  26,000,000,000 bottles ended up in landfills where they will take up to 400 to 1000 years to degrade. Those that are burned emit chlorine and heavy metals into the air. 16,500,000,000,000 gallons of water were wasted in the manufacture of plastic bottles. 17,000.000 barrels of crude oil were used in the process.  2,500,000 tons of carbon dioxide was emitted during manufacture.

The answer won’t lie in telling the bottlers to stop. It will come from a personal and collective change, along with a plan of personal action. When I fill up my own stainless steel, BPA free Wellness With Water bottle, I know I am assisting with the solution, rather than the problem. And every time I refill it, I congratulate myself because that is one less bottle being produced, sold, consumed and dumped.

This 17 oz. stylish two-toned, stainless steel water bottle with plastic colored sports top is durable, long-lasting, and BPA free, making it perfect for a variety of uses.  So purchase yours today and become part of the solution.

Visit the Wellness With Water website.

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Did you know that your body can absorb 600 – 1000% more contamination in a single ten minute shower that drinking a same tap water for an entire day?  Ever notice how dry your skin is after you shower, and the negative effects on your hair?  The Chlorine in the water is designed to attack living organic matter, Oops!  We are living organic matter. Most people are aware of the harmful effects of chlorine and other chemicals in their drinking water.  However, many don’t realize the negative effects this volatile chemical causes on the body’s largest organs – our skin and lungs.

Developed over 20 years ago in Japan by Haru Naito, a famous physiologist who coupled purification and enhancement technologies into this award winning water filter. Designed to produce purified and enriched water, this patented system has received the praise and endorsement of institutions, physicians, universities, researchers and users in Japan, USA, Australia, New Zealand, China, Canada, and Korea. The Wellness Filter offers you a quality and essence of water that only a selected few have previously had…water the way nature intended it.

The Wellness Shower effectively reduces up to 99% of Chlorine for up to 24 months – two to three times longer than any other shower filtration system.  This easy to attach Wellness massage shower head helps promote a healthier, sanitized shower. This has an antioxidant effect and lasts up to 27,000 gallons of water. Now, you can stop the harmful effects of chlorine and other contaminants in your shower by getting the Wellness Shower Filter System.

To find out more about the Wellness Shower filter and other products, or to order yours today just Click Here to Enhance Your Water

By Rory Harrington, 15-Jul-2009

Safety fears over controversial chemical bisphenol A (BPA) and environmental concerns have prompted one US beverage company to start selling water in cartons.

O.N.E World Enterprises has announced the launch of O.N.E Water in a BPA-free Tetra Pak carton as a “sustainable alternative to plastic bottled water.”

Plastic concerns

“With concern growing about the health risks of bisphenol A (BPA) leaching from plastic as well as the alarming abundance of plastic bottles in landfills, O.N.E Water offers consumers a health, smart and eco-conscious option,” a company spokesman told FoodProductionDaily.com.

O.N.E said its 100 per cent spring water was sourced from the Blue Mountain Plateau of Eastern Canada. The Tetra Pal-packaged product will be available nationwide across the US from this summer.

Company founder and CEO Rodrigo Veloso said: “We pride ourselves on being a socially and environmentally responsible company and we are extremely proud to offer consumers an alternative to plastic bottled water.”

Read full story

For more information on Ionized alkaline water, visit the Wellness With Water site.

Friday Jul 10, 2009
By Greg Ansley

CANBERRA – Australia is discovering hamlet power. First it was the tiny Tasmanian township of Coles Bay, population 200, which nine years ago led a burgeoning national movement to ban plastic shopping bags.  Now it is the 2500 people of Bundanoon, in the Southern Highlands southwest of Sydney.

On Wednesday night the town voted to outlaw bottled water, shaking the A$460 million-a-year ($572 million) Australian industry like the mouse that roared.

Yesterday, New South Wales Premier Nathan Rees responded by announcing an immediate ban on state government purchases of bottled water, including refills for the thousands of water coolers that act as office networking hubs.

If plastic shopping bags are any indicator, worse may be in store for bottled water.  Read full story.

For more information on Tyent Water Ionizers, visit the Wellness With Water site.

New Reports Say Bottled Water Should Get Stricter Labeling

July 8, 2009

Millions of Americans prefer bottled water over tap. But as Kelly Wallace reports, a new congressional report indicates there is little evidence as to what is actually inside those bottles.

(CBS/AP) Consumers know less about the water they pay dearly for in bottles than what they can drink almost for free from the tap because the two are regulated differently, congressional investigators and nonprofit researchers say in new reports.

Both the Government Accountability Office and the Environmental Working Group, a nonprofit research and advocacy organization, recommend in reports released Wednesday that bottled water be labeled with the same level of information municipal water providers must disclose.

The researchers urged Americans to make bottled water “a distant second choice” to filtered tap water because there isn’t enough information about bottled water. The working group recommends purifying tap water with a commercial filter, however.

Both reports were released at a congressional subcommittee Wednesday morning.  Read more.

For more information on Tyent Water Ionizers, visit Wellness With Water site.

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By DEVIN DWYER
July 8, 2009

Despite consumers’ beliefs that bottled water is safer and healthier than tap, a lack of information means they don’t know for sure if it’s worth the extra money, according to a new report.

The answer, said some House lawmakers at a hearing on Capitol Hill today, is that we often don’t know for sure. Holding up a bottle of Dasani, Rep. Bart Stupak, D-Mich., scoured the label for information on the source of the water.

“It doesn’t say anything about sources or anything, does it?” he asked the panel of government and beverage industry experts.  “So we don’t know where this water really came from — Nevada, Connecticut, New York or Pennsylvania?” he asked. The panel agreed.

With more Americans turning to bottled water believing it safer and healthier than tap water, there are growing concerns over how water is marketed, sourced and tested for safety and purity.   Consumption of bottled water in the U.S. has doubled over the past 10 years, according to the Beverage Marketing Corporation.

Many of the most popular brands of bottled water claim a high level of purity, but often consumers and government regulators can’t easily verify those claims.

Full story

By STEPHANIE CLIFFORD

Americans yearn to be young. So it is little wonder that RealAge, which promises to help shave years off your age, has become one of the most popular tests on the Internet.

According to RealAge, more than 27 million people have taken the test, which asks 150 or so questions about lifestyle and family history to assign a “biological age,” how young or old your habits make you. Then, RealAge makes recommendations on how to get “younger,” like taking multivitamins, eating breakfast and flossing your teeth. Nine million of those people have signed up to become RealAge members.

The test has received widespread publicity because of its affiliation with Dr. Mehmet Oz, a popular author and regular on “The Oprah Winfrey Show.” Dr. Oz — “America’s Doctor,” as he is known on Oprah — is a RealAge spokesman and adviser, and his soothing, simple approach to health is reflected in RealAge’s message: you can change.

But while RealAge promotes better living through nonmedical solutions, the site makes its money by selling better living through drugs.

Pharmaceutical companies pay RealAge to compile test results of RealAge members and send them marketing messages by e-mail. The drug companies can even use RealAge answers to find people who show symptoms of a disease — and begin sending them messages about it even before the people have received a diagnosis from their doctors.

Full Story