PLASTIC BOTTLES: ARE THEY SAFE & WHAT DO THE NUMBERS MEAN?

PLASTIC BOTTLES: ARE THEY SAFE & WHAT DO THE NUMBERS MEAN?

Have you ever noticed or paid attention to the plastic beverage bottles you buy in a grocery or convenience store?   Drinks such as water, fruit juice, soda, iced teas, smoothies, etc. generally come in plastic bottles.
Have you ever wondered what the “number in the  chasing triangle” on the bottle’s bottom means.    There is a number stamped in a triangle (see image below) on the bottom of every plastic bottle we use, which varies from one to seven.  Sometimes it is stamped on the side near the bottom. Some claims are that the particular number represents the recycling process of the plastic or the amount of times that exact bottle has been recycled.   While it does have everything to do with recycling, the number of times an item has been recycled has nothing to do with the numbers.

The following chart represents the ‘Resin ID Codes’ or ‘plastic identification number’ (PIN) found on each plastic bottle in the chasing triangle.
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# 1 –> PET ….. polyethlyene terephthalate
# 2 –> HDPE ….. high-density polyethylene
# 3 –> PVC ….. polyvinyl chloride
# 4 –> LDPE ….. low-density polyethylene
# 5 –> PP ….. polypropylene
# 6 –> PS/PS-E ….. polystyrene / expanded polystyrene
# 7 –> OTHER ….. resins or multi-materials



Some plastic leach chemicals not good for human health.  Which plastic water bottles don’t leach chemicals?  Choose your water bottles very carefully in order to prevent  drinking these chemicals that leach into your water.
Plastic  bottles are seen everywhere  carrying water around when we are on the go. If we drop them,  they don’t break. However, please pay attention to the type of plastic your water bottle is.  Ensure that the chemicals in the plastic do not leach into the water.   If you taste plastic, you are drinking it.   Get yourself another bottle.   To be certain that you are choosing a bottle that does not leach, check the recycling symbol on your bottle.

If it is a #2 HDPE (high density polyethylene), or a #4 LDPE (low density polyethylene), or a #5 PP (polypropylene), your bottle is fine.
The type of plastic bottle in which water is usually sold is usually a #1, and is only recommended for one time use. Do not refill it. Better to use a reusable water bottle, and fill it with your own filtered water from home and keep these single-use #1  bottles out of the landfill.     Actually, it is best to use glass.

ONLY USE PLASTIC #2, #4, #5 TO DRINK FROM OR STORE WATER IN.