Microbiological analysis of packaged drinking water sold in Chennai

Abstract

Background: Adequate supply of fresh and clean drinking water is a basic need for all human beings. In terms of public and environmental health, it is essential that water sources be free of pathogenic bacteria and safe to drink. Continuous increase in the sale and indiscriminate consumption of packaged drinking water is of public health significance. In order to safeguard public health it is essential that the available packaged water is of the highest quality. Aims & Objective: The current study was designed to assess the microbial quality of sachet and bottled drinking water sold in retail outlets in Chennai. Materials and Methods: In the present study, fifty one samples including 36 sachet and 15 bottled drinking water samples were analyzed for the presence of bacterial indicators of water quality. Total and faecal coliform count, total viable plate count and culture were performed to determine the identities of the isolates. Results: Of the 36 sachet water samples analysed, 33.3% failed to meet the WHO drinking water standard of zero coliform per 100 ml making them unsuitable for human consumption whereas all the 15 bottled water samples are of better quality. Faecal coliforms were not isolated from any of the sachet or bottled drinking water. The bacteria that were isolated from water samples included Klebsiella pneumonia, Enterobacter aerogenes, Citrobacter freundii, Pseudomonas spp., Acinetobacter spp., Staphylococcus aureus, Coagulase negative Staphylococci, Micrococcus spp. and Bacillus spp. Conclusion: The bottled water samples analyzed are of better microbiological quality when compared to that of the local brands of sachet water samples. The findings therefore suggests that these sachet water are not fit for human consumption and are hazardous to health. Hence there is a need for strict and routine monitoring of the packaged drinking water with the view of raising their standards.

Concentrations of Phthalates and Metals in Commercially Packaged Sachet and Plastic Bottled Water Sold in Lagos, Nigeria

“…A lot of concern has been raised about the sustainability of packaged water production and consumption, especially in some developing countries, in view of its inadequate regulation, monitoring, safety rule compliance, as well as its potential environmental and health impact. Packaged water has been linked to possible outbreak of water-borne diseases like cholera, found questionable in microbiological qualities (Fisher et al, 2015;Venkatesan et al, 2014), and has already been established as a major contributor to solid waste pollution in some West African countries including Nigeria (Mojekeh and Eze, 2011). However, the association of drinking packaged water with increased phthalate load as found in our study and also previous researches (Kanchanamayoon et al, 2012;Keresztes et al, 2013;Oghenekohwiroro et al, 2016) present another dimension to the worry about packaged water.…”

“…However, when these seemingly positive roles are juxtaposed with its adverse health and environmental effects, its sustainability becomes doubtful. Studies have identified sachet water as a potential medium of cholera and other microbial disease (Fisher et al, 2015;Venkatesan et al, 2014). Sachet water has constituted a major environmental menace in many developing West African countries where street roads, gutters, and storm drains get clogged from mainly the plastic sleeves of discarded sachets (Oghenekohwiroro et al, 2016).…”

Bacteriological safety of packaged drinking water sold in Nigeria: public health implications

“…According to Nigeria Industrial Standard (NIS), the microbiological limit for thermo tolerant coliform or E. coli is zero colony forming unit (CFU) in 100 mL of packaged drinking water due to health implications (NIS 2007 ). This was similar to the report of Venkatesan et al ( 2014 ) who investigated microbiological safety and quality of packaged drinking water in India.

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Study of Compliance of Sealed Bottled Water with Nepal Drinking Water Quality Standard: A Case of Bhaktapur Municipality, Nepal

“…Unlike our study, as reported in the previous studies done in Nepal, only 10% to 80% of the bottled water samples were free from microbial (Timilshina, et al, 2012;Rai, et al, 2015;Pant, et al, 2016;Maharjan, et al, 2018). In studies done in India, the acceptability of bottled water samples based on the bacteriological parameter ranged from 55% (Gangil, et al, 2013) , 60% (Jeena, et al, 2006;Jain, et al, 2012), 62.5% (Joseph, et al, 2018), 66.7% (Venkatesan, et al, 2014), 73.33% (Bency, et al, 2010), 83% (Sharma & Kaur, 2015) to even 100% (Singla, et al, 2014). In a study done in Saudi Arabia, no bacteria were detected in 94.64% of the bottled water samples (Mohammad & Sulaiman, 2016) while in a similar study done in Malaysia, only 81.81% of the bottled water samples were found unaffected with microbial (Praveena, et al, 2016).…”

“…Hence, the examination of the quality of packaged water is necessary not only during the production stages but also in the postproduction stages as well to ensure the quality of the product (Venkatesan, et al, 2014).…”