A CHOICE THAT AFFECTS EVERYONE

Plastic bottled water is negatively affecting the environment, health, and economy

compared to tap water in the US. Plastic water bottles threaten marine animal life, and take a

long time to decompose releasing harmful chemicals into our environment. Tap water also be

beneficial for your health, more specifically to achieve healthy teeth and bones. Buying that 10

pack of plastic water bottles every 2 weeks is more expensive than paying $80-$100 once for a

handheld water filter. The filter will be reliable for about 5-7 years, making it more affordable to

rely on tap water rather than plastic water bottles. Many people might not think something as

simple as a pack of plastic water bottles can affect the environment and your health as much as it

does. When compared to tap water you can see the effects.

Plastic water bottles have a wide raging effect on the environment. Environmental factors

are strongly looked into when it comes to plastic water bottles, because it’s what a lot of activists

like to focus on. Particularly when it comes to marine ecosystems, the plastic from water bottles

usually ends up in large bodies of water like the ocean endangering marine life; A large number

of animals are killed year by year due to plastic, either ingesting it or getting stuck in the plastic.

Another issue is the bottles take a long time to decompose which leach harmful chemicals into

our environment along the way as it decomposes. These chemicals could lead to a variety of

health issues including cancer. Water bottles take up to at least 500 years to decompose,

depending on the environment surrounding the plastic. During decomposition, the plastic can

release a chemical called antimony (sb) and bisphenol A (BPA). Inhalation of antimony can

negatively affect the skin and eyes if exposed short term. Longer-term effects are more focused

on the respiratory system, issues like inflammation of the lungs, chronic bronchitis, and chronic

emphysema (where the lungs are damaged and can make it harder to breathe). Via halation BPA
can affect one’s health in many different ways. The chemical attacks your immunity and can

cause neurological issues including Alzheimer's. It can also damage your respiratory system as

well, causing asthma. Other health issues arise when one continues to look at the chemicals

being released into the atmosphere. When manufactured about 2.5 million tons of CO2 (Carbon

Dioxide) is released into the atmosphere making it difficult for some to breathe in specific areas.

Lastly, focusing on the economy, plastic water bottles are not only expensive to make but also

expensive in comparison to the consumers. On average, the cost to make a plastic water bottle is

about $1.29. Compared to other drinks, bottled water is much more expensive when compared to

tap water. On average a shocking statistic of 2,000 times more expensive. On top of that,

consumers are spending around 300 times more than what it costs to manufacture

Some argue that plastic water bottles can be more convenient because one can reuse the

bottles, and bottled water is thought to be safer. Convenience is the argument, buying the pack of

water in the store is much easier than filtering out the water at home. Although, it is much more

convenient and less time-consuming it doesn’t always mean it is better. It does become expensive

for both the consumer and the manufacturer. One could save roughly 1$ for every bottle. When

compared to tap water it is cheaper and helps out the consumer and manufacturers. Arguments

have also been made about helping out the environment by reusing the bottles. By doing this one

is just harming their health. Reusing plastic water bottles can be dangerous. Bacteria is one of the

main issues when it comes to resuing because it spreads very quickly, and the bottles can become

contaminated with chemicals from the bottle itself. Although, some will also sanitize the bottle

to help with the bacteria issue, the problem still lies with what the bottle is made up of. As stated

in the previous paragraph the chemical BPA is a harmful chemical to the environment. This

chemical is present in many plastic bottles. When one reuses the bottle this chemical has the
potential to leach into the drink put into that water bottle and large exposure to BPA can lead to

harmful impacts on one's health. However, clearly stated by the water bottle mafactures’ plastic

bottles are single-use only. This does not mean people will not do the exact opposite to try to

help the environment. Finally, the water in plastic water bottles are safer to drink. The water in

the plastic bottle is purified and safe to drink. People argue that because the manufacturers are

required to process and transport the water under sanitary conditions it is safer to drink bottled

water. However, In the US, 99.2% of the country has access to clean tap water. Without the harm

of the chemicals used to create the bottle, ultimately the most common reasons for using plastic

water bottles are still causing harm in the end. No matter how many times you reuse a plastic

water bottle it is still harming the environment and causing more harm to your health which leads

to the second most common reason people choose plastic water bottles compared to tap water,

which is the water in the bottles. .

In conclusion, tap water is ultimately the best choice in the long run, when compared to

plastic bottled water. Plastic water bottles can easily become toxic to humans and the

environment. Humans have a hard time realizing that convenience isn't always the best answer.

Although easier, and tap water is cheaper to distribute to the community, helping the economy.

As stated, those plastic bottles are harming not only the marine life by the waste of plastic in the

ocean, but also humans when it comes to toxins in the atmosphere during decomposition and

manufacturing. The plastic ultimately becomes dangerous to your health rather than helping it as

many people believe it to be safer compared to tap water. Your choice at the end of the day

matters and affects more people than just yourself, for example, marine life and those around

you.
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