The Staggering Impact of Plastic Water Bottles on our Health and the Environment.
The bottled water, soda and sport beverage industry is a multi-billion dollar profit center for corporations annually.
One of the plagues of this industry are the millions and ultimately billions of plastic bottles discarded after drinking these beverages. It is estimated that in the United States alone, we Americans discard sixty-five million plastic bottles a day! That’s approximately twenty-four billion a year.
In these times of Madoff billions and bailout trillions, a number like 65 million plastic bottles discarded a day is another large number most of us have a hard time relating to.
What ads insult to injury is that only 10-15% of these plastic bottles are recycled. The rest find their way into landfills, oceans, streams, rivers and everywhere else imaginable. What makes matters even worse is that plastic bottles take hundreds of years to degrade and fully breakdown. It is unfathomable to think that since plastic bottles were first invented, it will still be hundreds of years before the very first will be completely broken down. This continues to be a very unhealthy prospect for our soils, plants, animals, sea life, ourselves and our planet overall.
If that wasn’t quite enough, most bottled waters are filtered tap water and these days in many municipalities, the route is actually toilet to tap to the consumer. Yuck! In some cases bottled waters are purified by using reverse osmosis, leaving the water very acidic and dead. Stripped of any life force and drawing alkaline reserves from one’s body tissues to neutralize the waters’ acidic PH.
It has been reported time and again that bottled waters not only pollute but have shown to contain: leached petroleum, dioxins(linked to breast and other cancers) BPA (also linked to certain types of cancers), arsenic, herbicides, pesticides, insecticides, bacteria, trace fecal matter, pharmaceuticals of all kinds and much more. If we knew better about what they contained, most of us would be appalled and look for another source of water to drink.
The estimate is that from the time many of these waters and other beverages are bottled, it is somewhere between sixty days to two years until the consumer ingests the contents. During that time these bottles are being transported on ships, trucks and trains. After that, they are stored in warehouses or often sit out in front of supermarkets exposed to temperatures ranging from quite cold to very hot. This cannot be good for our health since these plastic containers are very porous and the contents can be affected dramatically by these extreme temperature changes.
What other choices do we have?
The world’s renowned “fountain of youth” waters, like Lourdes in France or waters from the Hunza region of the Himalayas, all have similar properties in common. They are alkaline (in that they contain minerals that support health and are a ph level of 9 or 10). They are naturally ionized, having a higher anti-oxidant and oxygen level. People who drink these waters have been extensively studied since they have extraordinary health and longevity. International studies show that populations with little or no history of illness, such as cancer, heart disease, diabetes, depression and fatigue, drink water that is in a range of 8.5 to 10 ph alkalinity.
So what should most of us do who don’t live near these sought-after healing waters? How do we improve our health and in the process spare our environment of the massive American and worldwide use of these plastic bottles?
Here is where modern technology comes to the rescue.
One of the ways some families are stemming the tide is to incorporate a water ionizer into their household as an important health appliance. A water ionizer provides super-fine filtration of contaminants and transforms regular tap water into an alkaline, anti-oxidizing, oxygen-rich, super-hydrating water source.
These ionizers have been used in Asia for over thirty years and one in five households in Japan and one in eight in S. Korea have one. Yet, they are virtually unknown in the United States and most countries around the world. In Asia they are classified as medical devices and not only used in hospitals and medical facilities, but are prescribed for all manner of health problems.
Among the best investments a family can make is to purchase a water ionizer. This will help to flush away acidic waste that builds up in cells and body tissues (the basis for virtually all health problems), neutralize free-radicals, help restore ph balance, promote anti-aging and disease prevention, and provide our bodies with ultra-cellular hydration and renewed energy.
Between water quality issues, the enormous amount of plastic residue left behind from the beverage industry and the health care crisis happening in America, this is a product for every household!
Steve Marmor is the owner of Herbs & More in Encinitas, a Natural Health Center serving San Diego North County since 1993. Herbs & More features the Athena Water Ionizer as well as personal health consultations, health classes, hyperbaric oxygen therapy and dispenses gallons and gallons of alkaline, anti-oxidizing, oxygen-rich, super-hydrating water every day.
Herbs & More is located at 388 N. El Camino Real, Encinitas, Ca. 92024. Call (760)753-7272 or visit www.herbsandmorewater.com for more information.