Tap water better than still water

Tap water as in still water

06/28/2012

Stiftung Warentest has examined and compared 29 still mineral waters in its current magazine "Test". The sobering result: tap water contains more minerals than purchased still water. In addition, the consumer advocates found in some water bottles germs that are unproblematic for healthy people, but can pose a health risk to the sick and infants. The comparison also shows that tap water is usually better than many people think.

Silent mineral water often contains too little sodium
The comparison of the 29 types of mineral water has shown that tap water often contains more minerals than purchased still water. Nevertheless, still water is a trend drink whose sale has risen by 14 percent since 2011, according to Stiftung Warentest. The investigation revealed that only one of the 29 waters had a high mineral content. This product could therefore be the only "make a significant contribution to provide bone with calcium and muscle with magnesium," report the consumer advocates. But even this water contains little sodium, which is particularly important for athletes, as they would lose larger amounts of mineral during sweating. As a "low sodium" would also be advertised 24 other waters. They are according to manufacturers particularly suitable for people with hypertension.

Stiftung Warentest considers EU-wide regulations to be the reason for the low mineral content of still waters, according to which a water may also be called "mineral water" if it contains only small amounts of minerals. According to the earlier German regulations, a water had to have a higher mineral content.

Tap water is cheaper and often contains fewer germs
The consumer advocates have tested both still mineral water from the discounter and common brands of various supermarket chains. Striking was also the price. Cheap varieties are to have from 13 cents per liter while for expensive products up to 74 cents per liter would be paid.

Another negative that Stiftung Warentest found in more than one third of the tested waters is the bacterial load in the bottles. For healthy people, the germs are unproblematic, but they could lead to health problems in sick or infants. In order to avoid this, the water would have to be boiled before drinking, so the consumer advocates. The germ burden is legally permissible as long as no pathogens are included.

Positive is the decline of acetaldehyde from the plastic bottles, which can be released from the plastic and go into the water, so that the taste would be impaired. Only in six of the tested waters, the substance had been detected, but only in small quantities, which had been both health and taste unproblematic.

How much water does a person need??
The water requirement of a person depends on his body mass, his physical condition, the activity and the climate. The World Health Organization (WHO) gives two liters of water a day for a 60-kilogram adult in high demand. For a child who weighs ten kilograms, the daily requirement is one liter. (Ag)

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