Here's a frequently asked question, "Is bottled water better than tap?" The answer may surprise you. I'll use examples so that by the time that you finish reading, you can decide for yourself the answer.

Coke, Pepsi & Nestle

Coke, Pepsi and Nestle freely admit - because they are legally required to - that they use publicly treated sources for Dasani, Aquafina and Pure-life, respectively. One of these sources, Poland Spring, spent some time in court 2003 and they've paid out $10 million over the last five years, in order to settle a false advertising suit. They admitted no wrong doing, but they were sued for false advertising.

You see "springs" are areas where groundwater bubbles up out of the earth. One of the largest springs is Big Spring, Missouri, where water flows out at an average rate of 12,000 liters per second.

But, Poland Spring does not come from a "spring," it comes from wells (also called "boreholes"). So in reality, it should be called Poland Wells.

So is bottled water better than tap water that comes from a well? If you're talking about Poland Spring, the two are the same thing.

Just the Same

The only requirement that the FDA makes for bottling companies is that they provide something "equivalent to" (not "better than") tap water. If the bottles are not transported across state lines, they are not even required to test for contamination. So they don't.

Maybe Worse

The polymers used to create the bottles include phthalates and BPA. Those compounds have been found in bottles tested by environmental groups. In fact, 22% of the bottles tested contained some level of a contaminant that could cause cancer or other health problems. The rates of contamination were higher than those considered "tolerable" by the regulatory standards.

So is bottled water better than tap, when it comes to your health? I bet you're starting to get the picture now.

A Better Choice

Unfiltered tap water contains too many chemical contaminants to be good for your health. With the effective purifiers that are on the market today, there is no reason to risk exposure to those chemicals, and there is no reason to waste your money on those bottles.

The bottles are polluting our environment and filling up our landfills at an increasingly fast pace, despite the new packaging that some bottling companies are using. With an effective home purifier, the answer to "is bottled water better than tap" is a definite "NO".

There is nothing safer or better for your health than tap water that has been run through a multi-stage selective filtration device. These devices remove chlorine, cancer-causing chlorination byproducts, pesticides, herbicides, industrial solvents and a variety of other carcinogens. They also remove cysts, which the EPA says may be present in any supply at any time and can even be found in those bottles you're thinking of buying.

You should also know that exposure to cancer-causing chemicals occurs in the shower and when you cook with unfiltered water. Is bottled water better than tap for cooking or showering?

Can you can afford to find out the hard way? Just buy some effective filters.

Sherri Stockman is a Naturopathic Practitioner and avid researcher of healthful living practices. Find out the water purification systems she recommends by visiting her site now at http://www.Pure-H2O.net.