One of the most important health habits you can have is to limit your toxic exposures by having a relialbe source of clean water. That means avoiding nearly all unfiltered municipal water supplies as they are loaded with chlorine and fluoride. Many don't realize that it is also environmentally wise to avoid bottled water too.

It is important to pay careful attention to how your water is stored. In terms of containers, my first choice is glass. However, glass simply is not practical for traveling due to its weight and risk of breaking.

One needs to be careful of the type of plastic you use as many are potentially dangerous. Conventional Nalgene bottles sholud be avoided.

I use the wide-mouth Nalgene bottles that are made from safer plastic. I found them at http://www.campmor.com/. The wide mouth allows them to be easily cleaned so they don't accumulate bacteria. I bring my water to my office with me in a glass container, as that is better. It is just difficult to travel with glass due to the obvious safety reasons.

As for the water itself ... drinking enough water is essential to your health. It's best to sip the water throughout the day, rather than consuming large quantities at once. If you drink a quart of water at a time most of the water will pass through your body before you're able to use it.

It's imperative that you drink pure water -- if the water you are drinking is contaminated then you are harming yourself. Your best bet to ensure a clean and affordable water source is to filter your own water at home.

Please don't fool yourself into thinking that you can tell your water is safe by the way it looks, tastes, or smells. Some contaminants in water are so harmful that they are measured in "parts per million" or "parts per billion." In other words, just a drop of these poisons added to gallons and gallons of water can be very harmful.

Just installing a filter to purify your drinking water may not be enough. You could still be exposed to contaminated water when you:

1. Shower or bathe
2. Wash your hands
3. Wash laundry
4. Rinse fruits and vegetables
5. Wash dishes, glasses, and other utensils

My staff has been investigating water filter units for the last three years and hopefully later this year we will be able to share our recommendations with you.