Can you just drink tap water straight from the tap? There are some arguments for, but also against.
Dortmund – It can actually all be very simple. You don’t have to lug around heavy boxes or somehow dispose of hundreds of plastic bottles in the deposit machine. Tap on, glass underneath and water march. But isn’t tap water harmful?
| drink | water |
| physical state | fluid |
| molecular formula | H2O |
Drinking tap water is not unhealthy and even environmentally friendly
In general, many people worry about the ingredients in tap water, as RUHR24 reports. First and foremost, lime comes to mind. In some areas of Germany the water is very calcareous. But is that unhealthy?
Limescale can be seen above all on household appliances and glasses as a white deposit. No, it doesn’t always look good. But all clear. According to utopia.de , you can also drink hard water without any problems. However, coffee and tea drinkers should be careful. The more lime there is, the more the substance draws the taste out of the drink (more life hacks at RUHR24).
The good thing: lime is even good for the body and contains magnesium and calcium. These are substances that have positive effects on the body. Are there other problems? Not at first sight. Because water is one of the most intensively controlled foods in Germany. In addition, unlike many mineral water brands, you save a lot of plastic waste.
Drink tap water: When it’s hot, heavy drinkers should have a beer every now and then
As the Badische Zeitung reports, there is one exception. Prof. med. Hans-Jörg-Busch from the University Hospital in Freiburg that there could be problems with excessive consumption of tap water, especially in the heat. However, you have to ask yourself who can manage eight to ten liters a day.
His objection: If you drink eight to ten liters of tap water at high temperatures over several days, you risk salt shifts in your body. This causes dizziness, nausea and vomiting. The solution would be simply to have isotonic drinks like (non-alcoholic) beer every now and then.
Drinking tap water: no problem in France, Spain, Denmark and other EU countries
You can drink tap water in Germany without any problems. And what about the rest of the European Union (EU)? No problem, writes utopia.de . You can taste chlorine, especially in southern Europe. But that is not harmful to health. Outside the EU, however, you should avoid drinking tap water. This can be dangerous due to pathogens and bacteria.
For example, anyone in Germany who has concerns about their pipes can have the water quality tested by numerous independent institutes.
