Whatcha drinking???

My bottled water research unveiled!

About a year ago I was sitting at my Mom’s house getting ready to mix my Son's formula.

Coincidentally, we were discussing bottled water quality, which sparked an interest in me and made me want to test the distilled nursery water I was serving my baby.

My parents have recently invested in a water tester and have been testing their tap and bottled water to check for amounts of TDS.

So I did some research to figure out exactly what TDS was and what amount of it was safe in my bottled water and more important-my infant’s distilled water.

Here are some facts I came across:

 
-Bottled water is regulated under standards set by both the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
 
-The FDA uses Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) as a measure for how pure the water is.
 
-TDS is the sum of all dissolved solids in water( minerals, salts, metals, cations or anions measured in parts per million (ppm).
 
-All bottled water contains TDS.
 
-Spring water is derived from an underground formation from which water flows to the Earth's surface and is treated to remove bacteria and other organic material.
 
-FDA regulations mandate a maximum TDS of 500 ppm for spring water(according to the EPA-Environmental Protection Agency) and according to Aquafina's website, a maximum of 10ppm for purified water.  (I say according to Aquafina because I was not able to find that anywhere else but their website)
 

 
Okay, so I literally ran to my Mac and ordered a handy dandy TDS tester on Amazon for about $25.  

It’s really easy to use and it comes with a TDS chart that helps you rank where YOUR water falls in.

These were MY findings using my TDS tester and the water we consume in our household:

MY tap water-308 ppm

Nursery water(purified and distilled)-25 ppm

Aquafina (purified drinking water)-2 ppm

Sam’s Choice
(purified drinking water)-15 ppm 


I feel a little better owning this little device and being able to conduct my little experiment.  
I hope you enjoyed it.
Also, as I try out different brands of water, I will update the results and post them in this blog-so look out for your brand to be tested next-or simply comment on what bottled water you drink and I will try to test it and post the results asap.

Just FYI-I recently stocked up on Aquafina, haha!

For more information on water safety regulations you can visit:
http://www.epa.gov/
or for more info on TDS and what it means for you visit:
http://www.tdsmeter.com/what-is#what