Plastic water bottles are a convenient way to stay hydrated on the go, but did you know that reusing them may not be the best idea? At WellHealthOrganic.com, we’re dedicated to promoting healthy habits and sustainable living practices. In this article, we’ll explore the reasons why you should avoid reusing plastic water bottles and offer tips for choosing safer alternatives.
Understanding the Risks of Reusing Plastic Water Bottles
1. Bacterial Growth
When you reuse a plastic water bottle without properly cleaning it, bacteria from your mouth and hands can accumulate inside the bottle, leading to bacterial growth. This can potentially make you sick and compromise your health.
2. Chemical Leaching
Plastic water bottles are made from polyethylene terephthalate (PET), a type of plastic that may leach harmful chemicals into the water, especially when exposed to heat or sunlight. Repeated use and washing can increase the risk of chemical leaching, exposing you to potentially harmful substances.
3. Degradation of Plastic
Over time, plastic water bottles can degrade and develop scratches, cracks, or other damage that can harbor bacteria and make them more prone to chemical leaching. Using old or damaged bottles can pose health risks and may affect the taste and quality of the water.
Tips for Safer Hydration Practices
1. Choose Reusable Alternatives
Instead of reusing plastic water bottles, opt for reusable water bottles made from safer materials like stainless steel, glass, or BPA-free plastics. These materials are more durable, easier to clean, and less likely to leach harmful chemicals into your water.
2. Clean and Sanitize Regularly
If you do use plastic water bottles, make sure to clean them thoroughly after each use with hot, soapy water and sanitize them regularly with a mixture of water and vinegar or hydrogen peroxide to kill bacteria and remove any lingering odors.
3. Avoid Excessive Heat and Sun Exposure
To minimize the risk of chemical leaching, avoid leaving plastic water bottles in hot cars or exposed to direct sunlight for extended periods. Store them in a cool, shaded place whenever possible, and consider using insulated water bottles to keep your drinks cold for longer.
4. Recycle Responsibly
When you’re done with a plastic water bottle, be sure to recycle it properly to minimize environmental impact. Look for recycling bins or facilities in your area that accept plastic bottles and follow local recycling guidelines to ensure they’re disposed of correctly.
Health Risks of Plastic Water Bottles
Most of us know that plastic water bottles aren’t the most environmentally-friendly products. What many people don’t realize is that using (and reusing) plastic water bottles also carries some surprising risks for health. Some research has shown that chemicals from plastic bottles can leach into the water they contain.
Plastics can impart bisphenol A and phthalates—two known endocrine disruptors—into drinking water.2 Over time, these disruptors can affect the reproductive system, alter thyroid function, and potentially stunt growth in children.3
Additionally, in a 2022 study in the Journal of Hazardous Materials, when researchers tested tap water that had been stored in reusable plastic bottles, they found it contained several hundred chemical substances, many of which may be hazardous to human health.4 Washing plastic water bottles increases their health risks, too.
The higher the heat used on them—such as in a high-heat dishwasher setting—the more likely they are to release chemicals.5 This can also occur when water bottles are left out in the heat or in a hot car—which tends to happen often, considering the times and places you want to stay hydrated.
Environmental Impact of Plastic Water Bottles
After you take the last sip of Evian or Dasani, your bottle has to go somewhere—and typically, that means a landfill. But even when properly disposed of, plastic bottles aren’t harmless. In landfills, plastic bottles release particles into the soil, ultimately making their way into the food chain via plant life.
Plenty of bottles also end up in waterways. At least 14 million tons of plastic land in oceans every year.1 And because plastics take around 450 years to decompose, it’s no wonder many experts have called this an environmental crisis.
Not only do bottles litter and congest oceans, but marine animals like seabirds, whales, fish, and turtles may mistake plastic waste for prey. When these animals ingest plastic, they can die from internal lacerations, infections, or reduced ability to swim.
Besides the fact that water bottles end up polluting the planet, they take quite a lot of resources to create in the first place. Plastic water bottles are made from a petroleum product called polyethylene terephthalate. This substance requires large amounts of fossil fuels to create. And, of course, there’s the environmental impact of the transportation of water bottles from their source to your local store.
Sustainability and Waste Reduction
Living a more sustainable life can happen in many ways, and sometimes even seemingly small changes can add up to a significant personal planetary impact. Choosing a reusable water bottle instead of plastic ones is one such change.
By opting out of plastic waste, you’ll keep plastics out of landfills and oceans, leaving a smaller waste footprint—and potentially benefitting marine life. You’ll also reduce your overall consumption of fossil fuels—a worthy goal, since the use of these fuels is by far the largest contributor to global climate change. The United Nations (U.N.) reports that fossil fuels account for more than 75% of global greenhouse gas emissions and nearly 90% of all carbon dioxide emissions.6
Cost-Effectiveness
While you’re going green, how about saving a little green, too? No one can argue with the financial benefits of switching from plastic water bottles to reusable ones. Consider this: Reports on the average wholesale price of domestic still bottled water range from about $1 to $2 for a 16-ounce bottle.
Investing in a sturdy, reusable water bottle for around $10 to $20 yields the same amount of hydration for the cost of about 10 plastic bottles. It’s a near guarantee you’ll fill a reusable bottle at least 10 times.
As for the water itself, you can make your drinking delicious and cost-effective by purchasing a filtered pitcher, such as Brita or Pur. Many come with a price tag of $20 or less. Or, if you’d like purified water immediately on demand, consider installing a reverse osmosis system in your home kitchen.
Any time you want to fill up your bottle, you’ll have clean, filtered H2O on tap. Countertop Reverse Osmosis systems can range from about $300 to $500. The cost may sound steep, but it’s about one year’s worth of plastic bottles!
Convenience and Accessibility
Even though plastic water bottles are available at every corner store and pit stop, it’s not always convenient to continually purchase them. Having your very own bottle on hand saves you the hassle of perpetually looking for the next disposable one.
Then again, it’s understandable if you’re worried you won’t be able to find a spot to refill your bottle while out and about. If this is a concern, consider a reusable bottle with a built-in filter. These range in price from about $15 to $100 and can turn even gas station bathroom water into an enjoyable drink. Take stock, too, of locations near you (such as your local grocery store or water and ice store) that offer water refill stations. Each refill typically costs a fraction of store-bought bottles—plus, can stay cold for hours if you use an insulated or stainless steel water bottle,