Another reason to use refillable water bottles

In an analysis of commercially available mineral waters, researchers found evidence of estrogenic compounds leaching out of the plastic packaging into the water. What’s also shocking, these chemicals result in an increased development of embryos in the New Zealand mud snail. These findings, show for the first time that substances leaching out of plastic food packaging materials act as functional estrogens.They analyzed 20 brands of mineral water available in Germany – nine bottled in glass, nine bottled in plastic and two bottled in composite packaging (paperboard boxes coated with an inner plastic film). The researchers took water samples from the bottles and tested them for the presence of estrogenic chemicals. They then carried out a reproduction test with the New Zealand mud snail to determine the source and potency of the man made estrogen (xenoestrogen). The water samples from the plastic and composite packaging showed 50% more cotamination. Also, the snails in the plastic bottles produced twice the number of embryos compared to the snails in the glass bottles. These results demonstrate contamination of mineral water with potent man-made estrogens that originate from compounds leaching out of the plastic packaging material. The researchers conclude: “We must have identified just the tip of the iceberg in that plastic packaging may be a major source of xenohormone contamination of many other edibles. Our findings provide an insight into the potential exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals due to unexpected sources of contamination.”

This was a mix of hypothesis and  discovery based science. The contamination problem was discovered during an analysis of mineral waters. The snail and water sample tests were hypothesis based.


This is useful information because it alerts people to the problem of man-made hormones in bottled water. It might also further encourage students to use the refillable bottle stations at Saint Johns.