Is drinking tap water healthy?

AngelaHuo
AngelaHuo Posts: 15 Member
edited November 17 in Food and Nutrition
Is it?
«13

Replies

  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    Depends where you are, I suppose.

    I do it, and think it is healthy.
  • socajam
    socajam Posts: 2,530 Member
    I have triple filter on my system, so yes my water is drinkable.
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
    As others have said, it depends. We have a nice filtration system.
  • PennWalker
    PennWalker Posts: 554 Member
    AngelaHuo wrote: »
    Is it?

    I agree with the person who posted it probably depends on where you live.

    I live in the United States, where we are supposed to have safe drinking water. However, my tap water smells bad, so I drink it filtered or buy water. I believe the spring water I buy doesn't have fluoride, which prevents tooth decay, so that's something to consider.
  • Chef_Barbell
    Chef_Barbell Posts: 6,644 Member
    I don't. But not because it's unhealthy, just a taste preference.
  • JeepHair77
    JeepHair77 Posts: 1,291 Member
    For most of us - yes.
  • Lounmoun
    Lounmoun Posts: 8,423 Member
    edited March 2017
    It depends. Is the tap water polluted where you live? Do you have a medical condition?

    The water where I live has levels of nitrates above the federal and state standard for maximum contaminants level. Our community has been advised that it is unsafe for infants below 6 months to consume the tap water. Pregnant women or those with health concerns were advised to consult their doctor but everyone else is supposedly okay. My family still drinks the tap water.

    Check the water quality report for your area. My town has it on their web site or you can request a paper copy.
    https://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/drinking/index.html
  • earlnabby
    earlnabby Posts: 8,171 Member
    AngelaHuo wrote: »
    Is it?

    My tap water is among the safest in the US. 25 years ago, not so much when we had a serious cryptosporidium outbreak (the safety procedures put in place then is why it is so safe now).

    Tasty is another thing. Our municipal water is so hard that I filter it for drinking.
  • ohyes135
    ohyes135 Posts: 2 Member
    I live in NYC and my tap water taste just as good as bottled water (I hate Evian water). I don't recommend water from New Jersey because I got sick from it. I guess it all depends where you live.
  • xmarye
    xmarye Posts: 385 Member
    Some might or might not agree, but here's a link about fluoride in the water and ways to filtrate your water.

    http://energyfanatics.com/2012/06/13/how-decalcify-pineal-gland/
  • moesis
    moesis Posts: 874 Member
    Save your money, bottled water is just tap water from somewhere else. If you are in the US, install a reverse osmosis unit to remove the fluoride and you are golden.
  • GottaBurnEmAll
    GottaBurnEmAll Posts: 7,722 Member
    lemurcat12 wrote: »
    Depends where you are, I suppose.

    I do it, and think it is healthy.

    ^This.
  • Emily3907
    Emily3907 Posts: 1,461 Member
    My tap water is a bit "meh" in taste straight out of the tap. When we built our house we added a water filtration system and that made the water taste just like bottled water (sometimes better, depending on brand). So, in my case, yes it is safe.

    It totally depends on the water source and the filtration that happens before it gets to your tap though. Look into your cities water system, that should give you a better idea of how safe your tap water is.
  • maddymama
    maddymama Posts: 1,183 Member
    We have a decent filtration system at our house so I feel good about drinking it out of the tap. We would go BROKE if I only drank bottled water based on the sheer amount of water I drink.
    I would love to get a Berkey, though.
  • GottaBurnEmAll
    GottaBurnEmAll Posts: 7,722 Member
    ohyes135 wrote: »
    I live in NYC and my tap water taste just as good as bottled water (I hate Evian water). I don't recommend water from New Jersey because I got sick from it. I guess it all depends where you live.

    I live in New Jersey and have been drinking my tap water for years. Where in NJ did you drink water that got you sick? I'm assuming it was North Jersey. I live in South Jersey, and I have tasty tap water that is perfectly safe.
  • JenSD6
    JenSD6 Posts: 454 Member
    Our tap water goes through stricter testing and regulations than bottled water does, so I have no hesitation in drinking it.
  • dutchandkiwi
    dutchandkiwi Posts: 1,389 Member
    Strongly depends on where you live- I am the netherlands, totally safe (and very nice) non chlorinated water
  • MonkeyMel21
    MonkeyMel21 Posts: 2,396 Member
    As others have said, it depends on where you live. Our town has informed us that there is a level of lead in our water that is high enough that they gave us recommendations on how to decrease it (ie: using a filter, only using cold (not hot from the tap) water to cook with/consume, not using it for baby bottles, etc). We have a filter on our fridge that we use for drinking/cooking. If you have no issues like that then tap water should be totally fine.
  • PrincessMel72
    PrincessMel72 Posts: 1,094 Member
    I use a filter on my tap because of the taste. otherwise, totally healthy here!
  • BlueSkyShoal
    BlueSkyShoal Posts: 325 Member
    edited March 2017
    Unless you live in a specific town that has a polluted water source (like Flint MI) then tapwater is perfectly fine.

    I guess people get anxious about tapwater because it travels through pipes? But if you think about it, bottled water also goes through pipes, plus machinery. It's not like they send a guy to personally hold a plastic bottle under the beautiful waterfall they show on the logo.

    Also depends on your country, of course. I was watching a Youtube video where a Chinese lady talked about the things that surprised her most about the US, and one of the things was that people drank the tapwater. She said that in China you would never do this, it would make you sick.
  • markrgeary1
    markrgeary1 Posts: 853 Member
    BlueSkyShoal wrote: »
    Unless you live in a specific town that has a polluted water source (like Flint MI) then tapwater is perfectly fine.

    I guess people get anxious about tapwater because it travels through pipes?? But if you think about it, bottled water also goes through pipes, plus machinery. It's not like they send a guy to personally hold a plastic bottle under the beautiful waterfall they show on the logo.

    Also depends on your country, of course. I was watching a Youtube video where a Chinese lady talked about the things that surprised her most about the US, and one of the things was that people drank the tapwater. She said that in China you would never do this, it would make you sick.

    Very true. I remember this beer commercial snow and pines with a clear running pristine water. I drove by the brewery years later. Looked like a toxic wasteland with a nasty industry lined muddy river at the bottom. No way you'd want to drink that.
  • DavidC1857
    DavidC1857 Posts: 149 Member
    The last place I lived (before this one) had 7 ppm of arsenic in the water and it was still probably safer than bottled. People in that town have been drinking it since the mid 1800's and they're all a pretty healthy bunch.

    I've never consumed anything but tap water, except maybe when away from home and needing a drink. Most of the time it's been well water, but a few places I've lived have been municipal treated surface water (water from lakes, streams and reservoirs.)
This discussion has been closed.

Categories