DHAKA: If you have a bottle that you use every day for water-drinking purposes, congratulations!

We're all about hydration here at Healthy Living, but, here's a question for you: When's the last time you actually washed that water bottle?

(After all, if it's just filled with water, it's not actually dirty, right?)

Not exactly, especially if you're using a disposable water bottle, that isn't really meant to be used more than once!

Experts pointed out that the commercial bottled water manufacturers don't recommend that consumers reuse their disposable bottles, reports the Huffington Post.

That's because "everyday wear and tear from repeated washings and reuse can lead to physical breakdown of the plastic, such as visible thinning or cracks. Bacteria can harbor in the cracks, posing a health risk," they wrote.

In addition, "reuse of plastic water bottles can lead to bacterial contamination unless washed regularly," which entails washing the bottle with mild soap, rinsing it well (but not with extremely hot water) and making sure there is no “physical breakdown prior to use.”

You might think in this case, "No problem, I'll just pop all my water bottles in the dishwasher and that'll take care of that." While the "impact of dishwashing or washing in hot (say 120-degree household hot water) should be minor on the chemical structure of most plastics intended as being 'dishwasher safe,'" disposable bottles "are intended to be used [one] time and then disposed, not reused," says Scott Belcher, Ph.D., a professor of pharmacology at the University of Cincinnati, who has conducted research on the release of endocrine disruptor bisphenol A (BPA) from different kinds of water bottles.

"Heating will certainly increase the rate at which chemicals can migrate from the plastic," he says.

Of course, we're not saying that you should never reuse a water bottle (after all, we only have one Earth, and we need to take care of it).

But, you can be strategic about what kinds of water bottles you buy and reuse, Belcher notes.

He recommends glass bottles with protective frames, as well as stainless steel bottles.

"If you need a plastic bottle, I would recommend a polypropylene bottle, typically a white plastic," he said. "These are the types of non-reactive plastic bottles we often use in the lab," though he notes it's impossible to be sure what plasticizers or other additives may have been used in the manufacturing process.

BDST: 1633 HRS, SEP 03, 2014