I try my best to avoid insulting people, but the person who filmed this How To video is stupid.
Plastic Bottles – The best bloopers are here
I might be stupid too. I have been operating under the assumption that heating liquids in PET plastic bottles was a proven health hazard. When I took the time to try and confirm my assumption, I was surprised to find out that I couldn’t. PET water bottles are a BIG problem for the environment. Something like 85% of them are tossed into landfills or discarded into our environment after a single use. But PET bottles have not been a big problem for human health. NGOs are even promoting a water disinfection method for rural Africa using PET bottles and solar energy (PDF). Reusing PET bottles repeatedly without proper cleaning and air drying can put you at risk of ingesting dangerous bacteria.
I still contend that it is unwise to throw a plastic bottle of water on an open fire and then drink from it. I managed to find a few quotes from chemists and food scientists saying that they make a personal choice not to consume food or beverages that are contained in plastic. If any of my readers know of any new credible research into potential health risks with reused PET bottles, please let me know.
UPDATE: Beth Terry, writer of FakePlasticFish managed to find a scientific paper detailing how PET water bottles leach the toxin antimony faster when they are heated. Thanks, Beth.
February 23rd, 2009 at 6:15 pm
I always wondered the same thing. I’ve seen Bear Grylls do it on the TV show Man vs Wild, but always thought that it would be dangerous.
I hadn’t planned on trying it. I carry a tin cup for boiling while camping.
Great article
February 25th, 2009 at 3:42 am
Wow. Did I ever find the article for you:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17707454
This study of antimony leaching from PET bottles last year shows that the higher the temperature, the more the leaching.
March 3rd, 2009 at 1:29 pm
But I have another study BY THE SAME PEOPLE that shows that glass is just as bad (or good) as PET. Glass leaches lead, PET leaches antimony. In both cases, the amounts are about the same. In other words, the amounts are both SMALL.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17547171?ordinalpos=2&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_DefaultReportPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum
March 3rd, 2009 at 7:18 pm
Thanks for the info, Sally. Elements like lead and mercury are hard to avoid entirely and we have to content ourselves with minimizing wherever possible. A complex chemical like antimony is another story entirely.
March 31st, 2009 at 3:35 am
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October 12th, 2009 at 6:40 am
[...] night, Martin from Plasticless posted a video demonstrating how to boil water in a plastic bottle (the typical #1 PET disposable bottle) and wondered if this practice was safe. He, like most of us, [...]