The Editor, Sir:

I am glad to see that Dr. Sheila Campbell-Forrester, chief medical officer of health, has addressed problems related to drinking water (bottled and from the tap) as reported in The Gleaner of June 8 (Page A3).

I would like to discuss some related issues:

According to The British Medical Journal 2004 (BMJ 329:1417-18), U.K. consumers spent £1 billion on bottled water in 2003, a 70-fold increase from 20 years ago. In the United States, consumption increased from 2.5 billion gallons (9.5 billion litres) in 1992 to nearly six billion gallons in 2002. There is also safe water on sale for pets! The world's fastest-selling water is bottled water.

Dissatisfaction with taste

Second, the Journal of Water & Health 2006 (4:271-6) questions why people are drinking more and more bottled water, even in places where tap water is considered safe and acceptable? The main reasons for choosing bottled water are dissatisfaction with the taste and shelf life of tap water and health concerns. Other factors are demographic variables, the perceived quality of the water sources, and lack of trust in water companies.

Third, in the developing world, water-borne diseases cause over two million deaths a year, most of the victims aged less than five years (BMJ 2003; 327: 1416-18). In these countries, adding chlorine to water is viewed as a healthy intervention with potential to save a huge number of lives. Tap water is as safe as bottled water and 1,000 times cheaper.

Finally, I trust the National Water Commission and have been drinking tap water for the last 11 years. Also, I am urging patients to drink safe tap water. I believe that the Ministry of Health, regional health authorities and governments should work together to address this major health issue.

I am, etc.,

DR. MAHESWARA M. REDDY

M.B., B.S. (Nagarjuna University)

mahes_mo5@yahoo.com

May Pen, Clarendon