It's very tempting to throw things away or even drop them in a recycling bin when we are done with them. Is there a better way?
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Battle of the Bottles: Plastic or Stainless Steel?
I have to say, I am quite proud with my family's effort of reducing their use of plastic water bottles and investing in nice, reusable water bottles. Not only do reusable bottles reduce the amount of fossil fuels and toxins released during air production, they are also produced in trendy colors and designs. Each member of my family possesses one, and we have completely banned the use of plastic water bottles in our household. But with that being said, we all have plastic reusable water bottles. The issue with this is that although some water bottle companies have tried to reduce the presence of BPA (a harmful chemical linked to a multitude of health risks), some companies still have not guaranteed that their products are BPA free. However, refillable water bottles made of stainless steel do not contain BPA, thus making it a risk free option and healthy for both your body and the environment. But, some issues related to the use of stainless steel bottles are pricing, metallic taste of water and a conductor of heat. Which option do you feel is better for both your body and the environment in the long run? Do you think we should only consider if BPA is present when buying our water bottles, as it poses major health risk?
Like your family, my family has also banned all plastic water bottles from our house. I think that it's extremely important to only buy BPA free water bottles due to the health complications, like obesity, diabetes, and asthma, that can arise from ingesting the chemical, bisphenol-A. Personally, my family and I check to make sure our water bottles are BPA free before purchasing them. After doing some research on this however, I found that there is a chemical found in BPA free plastic that is just as harmful as BPA. This chemical is bisphenol-S (BPS), and it has similar, and even worse health effects than BPA has on the human body. After reading this, I now think it may be better to avoid plastic reusable water bottles all together. Therefore, it may be smarter to splurge on a good quality stainless steel water bottle that won't leave a metallic taste in your mouth in order to avoid ingesting BPA or BPS into your body.
Link to article debating the issue of plastic vs. stainless steel regarding BPA: http://www.naturalnews.com/029758_stain … ttles.html