It's time to give up the (water) bottle

If you're a parent you can't help but be concerned with the environment lately. Especially when you think about it in terms of what kind of environmental problems we are leaving behind for our children. Often, I think, we feel helpless, like there's just not that much that we can do to make a difference. But, this weekend when I read the New York Times Magazine article about how much garbage water bottles alone are making for the planet, I realized how much difference one little change can make.

I have always felt guilty drinking water from a plastic bottle (and the idea of paying for water has always annoyed me,) but I never stopped buying water because it's convenient and for some reason putting water in a plastic sports bottle just tastes terrible. It's like I can taste the plastic. Thus, the feeling of helplessness (violins swell here.)

Finally, though, a couple of things have pushed me over the edge. Besides the above mentioned New York Times article and the overall growing sense of urgency to make changes in our lives to help protect the environment, there has also been the news about the danger of plastics leaching into our food. For a long time the hard plastic bottles that water is sold in were thought safe, but now they are finding that they also leach carcinogenic plastics even when kept cold. Babies, children and pregnant women are especially susceptible to hormone and endocrine damage caused by leaching plastics found in plastic sippy cups, water bottles and even baby bottles. Yikes!

Just as I was fretting over the global problem of plastic water bottles, in a wonderful moment of synchronicity, my friends came over this weekend toting beautiful aluminum water bottles for everyone in their family.

Aluminum water bottles are the perfect solution to the plastic water bottle dilemma. Because aluminum water bottles have a lot of benefits over plastic ones you don't feel like you are sacrificing anything, it's actually more of a water bottle upgrade.

A Swiss company, Sigg, makes beautiful sleek aluminum water bottles that have a water-based coating on the inside so nothing harmful can leach into the water. Their water bottles are cool looking, keep your water cooler longer, and your water tastes crisp and clean just like it does from the tap.

I'm replacing all my plastic water bottles and sippy cups with aluminum water bottles. I also bought a bunch to give to my friends to help spread change. I encourage everyone to check out Sigg aluminum water bottles and wean yourself, your kids and even your friends from those plastic bottles. The water bottles come in all sizes, even little kid sizes with child-friendly designs on them. And you can get them with a screw on or sport cap.

I predict these cool aluminum water bottles are going to be the trendy item du jour once people catch on. Be a trend setter and do the planet some good. You can even hang them off your Bugaboo from a carabiner for extra hip points.