A very belated thanks to Justin Henry who sent me an article that condemns the re-use of plastic water bottles. As you may recall, I’d been carting around the same bottle for an indeterminate amount of time. The article cites a study that found high levels of bacteria in re-used bottles. You could wash them, but the typical throwaway bottles are not designed for washing; the openings are too narrow (I suppose you could use a bleach solution instead). The bacteria discovery didn’t bother me much (I would be as lazy about washing any bottle, re-useable or not), but I did some further research and found a greater issue: “non-food grade plastic bottles made of polyethylene terephthalate can break down or leach with the addition of water, light and warmth.” This comes from a Dr. Dean Edell article on water bottle re-use. It bothers me more that I may be ingesting chemicals that my body will absorb. So I went to REI and got a Lexan bottle. It actually does fit in my purse — it’s a tight squeeze though.