Question by mike

Bottled water, no matter what brand you choose, may not be any safer, healthier or better protected than tap water. Generally, if the bottle says 'spring' water that should mean it comes from a natural water source rather than a local tap. But it can be difficult to find out where your bottled water came from because bottlers aren't required to list the source of the water on the label. Some bottled water, like Dasani, actually comes from the local municipal water supply. That may not be a bad thing -- tap water is more carefully regulated than bottled water. Tap water is regulated by the EPA while bottled water falls under the Food and Drug Administration but the FDA doesn't bother to regulate water that is packaged and sold within the same state. In 1999, NRDC tested more than 1,000 bottles of water and found bacterial and chemical contaminants in at least one sample of a third of the brands tested. Spring or purified, there just isn't enough regulation of bottled water.