Drinking Water in The UK

A complete guide to drinking water in the UK

When you come to the UK, you will experience that when you ask for a glass of water in a restaurant, the waiter will pour it directly from the tap for you; people also drink the water directly from various taps on campus and in parks. Most of the tap water in the UK is indeed drinkable directly, but there is a saying that everyone should have heard: drinking British water will make you bald!

So, can we drink tap water in the UK? Will drinking it cause hair loss? Today I will introduce the UK's "drinking water" guide to help you find the right way to drink water!

Unlike some countries where tap water needs to be boiled before drinking, in the UK, most tap water can be drunk directly. This water is called Tap water. Various test data show that the tap water supply in the UK is the highest rated in the world, even close to bottled drinking water, and is very safe.

However, in terms of water quality, tap water in the UK contains high concentrations of calcium, magnesium, iron and manganese ions, and the water quality is very hard. How to simply test it is to boil the water. If there is a lot of scale or white floating objects, that is the precipitation of calcium ions and magnesium ions after heating, indicating that the water quality is very hard.
According to research, drinking too hard water is more likely to damage hair quality, and drinking it for a long time may cause hair loss. Therefore, drinking too much water in the UK may cause baldness. There may be some scientific basis.

Even though the tap water can be drunk directly, there are still some precautions:

1. Before drinking tap water, judge the color and smell.

Although tap water is very clean, some places may have impurities flowing out due to aging pipes, resulting in sediment. This kind of problematic water is also easy to distinguish, and generally, there will be changes in color and smell. So, if you find that the color and smell of tap water are different from usual, don't drink it!

2. Bathroom water may not be drinkable.
Whether the bathroom water can be drunk depends on the situation. Some of them come from the main pipe Water Main, which can be drunk; but the cold water in the bathroom of some buildings comes from the water tank, which cannot be drunk. If we are not sure where the water comes from, for safety reasons, it is better not to drink the bathroom water!

3. The hot water in the tap must not be drunk!
After arriving in the UK, students will find that the hot and cold taps in the UK are separated because they come from different channels. Drinkable cold water usually comes from the main water pipe (Water Main), which is purified layer by layer; hot water usually comes from water tanks, which may not be maintained regularly, and many of them are open-type designs, so there will be a lot of inexplicable things mixed in, such as dust, rust, insects, etc., which are not hygienic or safe enough, and there are a lot of bacteria. Therefore, the water from the hot tap cannot be used as drinking water in the UK's drinking water regulations!

If you want to be convenient and have a lot of hair, you can drink tap water directly. If you are still worried that tap water is unsafe or the water quality is too hard, there are two solutions: the first is to choose bottled water in the supermarket, and the second is to buy a water filter to improve the water quality.

There are many types of bottled water in British supermarkets

1. Still Water
When you eat in a British restaurant, the waiter may always ask you: "Still or sparkling?" Sparkling Water here refers to sparkling water, while Still Water, on the contrary, refers to water without bubbles. Still Water is the most common type of water that people drink, usually divided into Pure water, Distilled water and Mineral water.

①Pure water: water that has been filtered through multiple layers and has very clean water quality. It can remove harmful substances such as microorganisms and also removes fluoride, potassium, calcium, magnesium, and other minerals needed by the human body. To put it simply, the advantage is that it does not contain harmful substances, and the disadvantage is that it does not contain beneficial substances! So, it is not suitable for long-term drinking. Pure water is relatively rare in the UK

②Mineral water: water containing minerals and trace elements needed by the human body, which is more common in supermarkets. Common mineral water brands include Evian, Volvic, Buxton, etc. Mineral water contains minerals, so mineral water with high mineral content may also have some scale when boiled (such as Evian). If you mind, you can look at the ingredient list when buying mineral water and choose one with lower mineral content.

③Distilled water: The basic principle of distilled water is to use distillation equipment to vaporize water and then condense the water vapor into water. Like pure water, it lacks trace elements needed by the human body and is not suitable for long-term drinking.

2. Carbonated Water

British people like all kinds of sparkling water. Sparkling water tastes stimulating and bubbly. Because it contains a lot of carbon dioxide, sparkling water can also increase the body's calorie consumption, eliminate muscle soreness, help expel lactic acid, solve digestive problems, and increase satiety. Carbonated Water usually includes two major categories: Sparkling Water and Seltzer Water.

①Sparkling Water (natural mineral sparkling water) Natural mineral sparkling water is mineral water with bubbles. In the natural environment, the carbonation process of carbon dioxide has been completed through gas. Common brands in supermarkets include: San Pellegrino, Badoit, Perrier, etc.

②Seltzer Water (artificial sparkling water) Seltzer Water can be understood as natural mineral sparkling water with fewer minerals or pure water with bubbles. The taste is relatively pure, and it is very close to the taste of still water. Common brands in supermarkets include: POLAR, Schweppes, SYFO, etc.

3. Soda Water
Although soda water and sparkling water taste similar, their ingredients are quite different. The main ingredients of soda water are water, sodium bicarbonate, and carbon dioxide, while the main ingredients of sparkling water are natural carbonated mineral water or carbon dioxide and ordinary mineral water. In terms of taste, soda water is often better than artificial sparkling water, with a salty taste and weak alkalinity, which can regulate the acid-base balance in the human body and improve the acidic constitution. Common soda water brands include: Essentials Waitrose, Folkington, Tesco, Sainsbury's, etc.

British locals prefer to use a water filter, which is installed under the kitchen countertop. It does not take up countertop space and can filter tap water. The last filter in the kitchen can ensure the safety of drinking water, and there is no need to worry about secondary pollution of water pipes, especially in older buildings, where water pipes may contain lead or be severely corroded.

Under-counter water purifiers can effectively filter out bacteria, heavy metals, sediments, disinfection by-products, residual chlorine and other impurities, improve the taste, and make the water sweet and drinkable directly.

The under-counter water purifier, water boiler, and water chiller are installed together, which is very compact and efficient.
It is very convenient whether you want boiled water, iced water, or filtered water at room temperature. You can get the water you are satisfied with by turning on the kitchen faucet.

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