Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

Orb Media Research Finds Plastic Particle Contaminants Sealed in Bottled Water

Orb Media Research Finds Plastic Particle Contaminants Sealed in Bottled Water
(@BerelYoudovich/Twitter, Education Images/UIG via Getty Images)

If you think all purified water flows from bottled water sold in stores, a new study will make you think twice about stocking up.

Orb Media, a non-profit journalism organization based in Washington, D.C., led a research that found microscopic plastic particles inside single bottles of water. It's a dispiriting revelation within the fastest-growing beverage industry valued at $147 billion per year, according to Orb's website.


The research was conducted at State University of New York in Fredonia and tested 250 different bottled water brands from Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Lebanon, Mexico, Thailand and the United States.



The discovery of "widespread contamination" in 93% of the samples – including Aqua, Aquafina, Dasani, Evian, Nestle Pure Life and San Pellegrino – revealed the presence of such contaminants as polypropylene, nylon, and polyethylene terephthalate (PET).




Orb confirmed the contents of the contaminants from research results.

For plastic particles in the 100 micron, or 0.10 millimeter size range, tests conducted for Orb at the State University of New York revealed a global average of 10.4 plastic particles per liter. These particles were confirmed as plastic using an industry standard infrared microscope.

Ex-squeeze me?

Giphy


Professor of chemistry Sherri Mason, who conducted the study, told BBC News, "We found [plastic] in bottle after bottle and brand after brand."

It's not about pointing fingers at particular brands; it's really showing that this is everywhere, that plastic has become such a pervasive material in our society, and it's pervading water - all of these products that we consume at a very basic level.



Even smaller plastic contaminants were found in the water samples, which averaged about 325 per liter.



Despite the plastic particles floating around in your bottled water, it's still considered potable to drink and there's no significant study indicating that ingesting small pieces of plastic could have harmful effects on your body.



But the discovery is still cause for concern.

"It's not catastrophic, the numbers that we're seeing, but it is concerning," Mason confirmed.

There are connections to increases in certain kinds of cancer to lower sperm count to increases in conditions like ADHD and autism. We know that they are connected to these synthetic chemicals in the environment and we know that plastics are providing kind of a means to get those chemicals into our bodies.



The lack of pure water available on the market perplexed Peggy Apter, a real estate investor in Carmel, Indiana. "It's disheartening, I mean, it's sad," she said. "I mean, what's the world come to? Why can't we have just clean, pure water?"

We're wondering the same thing.

So what's the alternative? Depending on the region, Mason suggested that cleaner water can be found at home.

"Tap water, by and large, is much safer than bottled water," she said.

For Jacqueline Savitz, chief policy officer for North America at Oceana, the study confirmed it's time to stop purchasing bottled water.

We know plastics are building up in marine animals, and this means we too are being exposed, some of us every day. It's more urgent now than ever before to make plastic water bottles a thing of the past.

It's time to look for alternatives. For better health and a better planet.




H/T - Twitter, BBC, Yahoo, OrbMedia

More from Trending

Alex Cooper singing 'Take Me Out to the Ballgame'
@MBDChicago/Twitter (X)

'Call Her Daddy' Host Alex Cooper Gets Brutally Booed At Wrigley Field After Painfully Off-Key Singing

If there's one thing that all baseball fans can come together about, it's the importance of their traditions—and songs.

In the seventh inning at Wrigley Field during a match between the Cubs and the Cardinals, popular Call Her Daddy podcast host Alex Cooper was invited to sing "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" and brought two backup dancers with her.

Keep ReadingShow less
Linda Yaccarino
Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images

X CEO Resigns Day After AI Chatbot Grok Praised Hitler In Alarming Series Of Antisemitic Tweets

Linda Yaccarino—the former NBC Universal executive who later took the reins at X—stepped down as CEO of billionaire Elon Musk's platform after two years on the job just a day after Grok, the platform's AI chatbot, went on antisemitic rants and openly praised Adolf Hitler.

Grok issued deeply antisemitic responses on Tuesday following a reported software update that encouraged the bot to embrace what developers described as the “politically incorrect.” Taking that directive to heart, Grok responded with a series of disturbing posts that included praise for Hitler and even a statement expressing its aspiration to become a “digital version” of the Nazi leader.

Keep ReadingShow less
Black and white photo of a falling spider.
Photo by CHUTTERSNAP on Unsplash

People Divulge Their 'Rare' Phobias That People Refuse To Believe

I am a SEVERE claustrophobic.

I have struggled with this issue for decades.

Keep ReadingShow less
Ted Cruz
Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images

'The Onion' Rips Ted Cruz With Brutal Headline After Yet Another Vacation During Texas Disaster

The satirical news site The Onion had social media users cackling with its brutal headline mocking Texas Republican Senator Ted Cruz for once again being out of the country when Texas was hit by another deadly natural disaster.

Cruz faced considerable national backlash after he flew to Cancún while millions of people went without food and water as a result of the February 2021 Texas power disaster. At least 246 people were killed directly or indirectly; some estimates suggested as many as 702 people were killed as a result of the crisis.

Keep ReadingShow less
Elon Musk and Grimes
Kevin Tachman/Getty Images for Vogue

Elon Musk's Ex Grimes Calls X Platform A 'Poison' And 'Theatre' After Social Media Hiatus

Claire Boucher—who performs and creates under her stage name Grimes, but prefers her birth name or just "C" offstage—recently returned to her musical persona's social media accounts after taking a hiatus for her own well-being.

Once extremely active, she noted on X in April:

Keep ReadingShow less