Plastic Water Bottles/Nalgene - 5 Plastic Safety Tips

Isn’t life grand?

I’ve been making some plastic conversions over the past year or two as things wear out, new options become available, etc., though I’m not even close to 100% plastic free nor am likely get that close. I still think getting in the car every day is the single biggest risk I take with my own and my family’s future (& yet I have an excellent driving record).

Like you, Kelly, I’m trying to stay on top of the issue, yet stay sane as I deal with it. I look first to address my son’s plastic exposure, since he is probably more at risk.

And you are absolutely right, there are some plastics that are more problematic (leaching) than others, and whether they are heated or not is a huge factor.

So more often than not, I send my son’s water to school in a stainless water bottle (Lap Top Lunch brand) this year (wide mouthed for easy cleaning in case it gets forgotten under a car seat or in a desk at school for weeks at a time - yuck). I’m in the process of looking up the plastics used in his Laptop Lunch set and the Rubbermaid containers I sometimes use for his lunch.

I rarely microwave anymore, but my husband uses it to warm his half & half for coffee so the MW stays put. When we do use it, it is always with porcelain ceramic or strong glass containers/dishes. I still use plastic in the freezer; it seems less likely to leach under those conditions and in some cases there is minimal direct food to plastic contact. I’ve had too many glass quart broth jars crack. I’ve not used much plastic cling wrap for years because the soft, stretch clingy plastics have long been suspected, and I’m too cheap to buy cling wrap when I have reusable lidded containers. I get cheese and other foods wrapped in cling plastic out of it asap and into waxed paper or greaseproof deli paper, then into a lidded storage container. Reduces mold growth on cheese, too.

I have some dry storage plastic containers for nuts and such. I haven’t gotten excited enough to replace those. They are from Ikea, too, and while Ikea isn’t infallible, they usually are up on this sort of stuff. I also have some great stacking medium sized Ikea glass & silicone seal storage containers for butter, salt, yogurt, culturing cream, etc. I’ll probably get more of those, but I doubt enough to replace my entire Rubbermaid storage containers, which nest and fit perfecting in one drawer, without weighing a ton, unless they are confirmed problematic.

I’m even now choosing vitamins and such in glass containers over plastic, after learning that fish and krill oil capsules go rancid faster in some plastic bottles compared to glass. I have a new pair of drug store reading glasses that I think I may have to toss. The plastic frames stink to high heaven of plastic chemicals, so I’m sure they are off-gassing. I even had a special handmade silver necklace be ruined when the velvet covered foam base in the box off-gassed and the fumes destroyed the unique varnish finish applied to the silver. I’m quite sure that at room temp under normal conditions if plastics are reactive, then many of them might be reactive with heat or contact with certain contents. Though it is important to remember that not all plastics are the same and there is likely varying degrees of risk.

Looking forward to reading what else you learn in your quest to “bottle” the info, kelly.

There are stainless steel re-usable water bottles made by Klean Kanteen. They come in various sizes and can even come with a top whereby only stainless steel touches the water. They are also available with a “sippy cup” top for children. The sippy cup top is made from plastic though. To find more information on these water bottles or to purchase them online visit http://www.reusablebags.com, http://www.kleankanteen.com, and http://www.theportablebaby.com (a “mom and pop” retail website that has good commentary on the disadvantages of plastic, and she also sells these water bottles in various sizes along with shoulder straps for ease of carrying).

I have also stumbled upon http://www.lifewithoutplastic.com which has some great information about the ill effects of plastic and some very unique items for sale. This is a “mom and pop” retail website that was started when their first child was born, and they didn’t want to expose their child to the effects of plastic.

And one more…I came across this woman’s blog at http://plasticfree.blogspot.com. She has tried to go completely plastic free in her life. I think she has taken it to an extreme, but what I have read on her blog is very interesting. Once you read some of this woman’s blog, you realize how much “stuff” in our lives is made of plastic or has plasticizers in it that we don’t even know about.

http://www.lifewithoutplastic.com/index.htm

Not cheap, but a good site to find non-plastic food storage and drinking containers.

Just so you know the Sigg bottles are made from aluminum, but are lined with a leach free safe liner tested by the FDA and an independent group that actually cares about people. You shouldn’t freeze your Sigg bottle, or put hot beverages in it, other than that it has been tested safe with just about any kind of juice and soda. You can even dent your bottle and the seal bends with it. When you are done with your bottle it is completely recyclable.
To clean you just need to run some warm soapy water through it.
Please don’t fear the aluminum, you aren’t going to even touch it if you buy a powder coated bottle.

I love your site. You are tireless and I understand the hours it takes to do research. I’m a writer-editor. I have a blog, but I am also enrolled in an effort for a second degree, working full time, and doing freelance editing, so my posts are nowhere near your level. Someday. In the meantime, I use your site often.

Some notes on this plastic post. If you have not visited or read Paul Goettlich at mindfully.org, do so. You will find him a bit radical, but he is an excellent researcher and a kindred spirit.

Sigg bottles are aluminum, but the inside is a special ceramic coating. I have both a Klean Kanteen and a Sigg. The Sigg is very light weight and easy for transporting. I trust the Swiss; they know how to produce good quality and they are very environmentally conscious.

I too am overwhelmed by the plastic in my life and like you, my first point of elimination is anything that comes in contact with food. Some fanatics use glass in the freezer. NG for anyone with kids–or even husbands.

So rather than toss all my plastic containers into the landfill, I line them with parchment paper or waxed paper (a good brand is Natural Value–made with unbleached paper and coated with paraffin). You can do the same with plastic bags: line them with paper lunch bags.

I always wonder what that “freezer” smell is on plastic that has been frozen for more than a month. That’s my next point of research. I think the plastic is breaking down in the freezer. Might be as harmful as the leaching/breaking down in heat. It could also be that the plastic is absorbing the chemicals in the freezer system, but to my knowledge that is supposed to be closed system, but who knows? Time to check in with an appliance repairperson.

We have have several Nourishing Traditions groups here in north Florida, and we often get together and cook meals ahead as a group. It is fun and we learn from each other.

Thanks again for your site. -Ellie

Kelly,
Do you know any thing about the safety of silicone kitchen cookware? I was thinking about purchasing a silicone vegetable steamer (not for microwave but to use in a stainless steal pot on the stove) but would like to know about its safety.

Hey, I have not read through all the comments, but the safest vessel for food and drinking, would be glass. It is non reactive and does not leach like all the plastics we have heard of. Anyway, pyrex sells a great food storage container that I use, and my website sells a great reusable glass water bottle. Check us out at http://livinglavidaverde.net/store.aspx . If you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact us through the contact us option. Good post by they way!!!

You might want to reconsider putting anything plastic in the dishwasher. Between the heat (even with the drying heat off the water gets hotter than sink hot) and the chemicals in the detergent, your bottles are breaking down and becoming leach machines.

Local Nourishment’s last blog post..May 2009 Summary

I just spent 40 minutes typing a very informative piece about plastic for all of you to benefit from and this site deleted it because I forgot to type my email address. Very poor. Waste of my time and now you don’t get the information I had for you. There should be an asterisk stating your email address is required.