Comparison of the Mineral Element Content of Public Drinking Fountains and Bottled Water: A Case Study of Ferrara City

Mineral elements are essential nutrients for humans and play important roles in many human physiological and bio-chemical processes. In this study, a comparison between the levels of mineral elements present in the water of public drinking fountains (PDRF) and in bottled water was carried out. The a...

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Main Author: Dario Di Giuseppe
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2017-09-01
Series:Geosciences
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3263/7/3/76
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author Dario Di Giuseppe
author_facet Dario Di Giuseppe
author_sort Dario Di Giuseppe
collection DOAJ
description Mineral elements are essential nutrients for humans and play important roles in many human physiological and bio-chemical processes. In this study, a comparison between the levels of mineral elements present in the water of public drinking fountains (PDRF) and in bottled water was carried out. The aim of the study is to assess the effectiveness of PDRF as a mineral supplement, compared to the low-mineral bottled water for out-door non-competitive activity, such as jogging. The city of Ferrara was chosen as the study site. It has ancient walls and on their top there is a gravel road that people use for jogging and walking. Along the road, there are two public drinking fountains that are always used. Water from these fountains was sampled and analysed for major cations and anions using ionic chromatography. Data analyses were compared with the same analyses carried out on bottled water usually used by joggers. Results showed that fountains are a valid substitute of bottled water as they have a moderate content of mineral elements. During outdoor sport activity, the water from fountains is preferable for the reintegration of mineral elements, instead of bottled water that has a very low quantity of minerals.
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spelling doaj.art-b62944d10ab74b7099f3e0e16655ea952022-12-22T02:58:19ZengMDPI AGGeosciences2076-32632017-09-01737610.3390/geosciences7030076geosciences7030076Comparison of the Mineral Element Content of Public Drinking Fountains and Bottled Water: A Case Study of Ferrara CityDario Di Giuseppe0Department of Environmental, Biological and Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technologies, University of Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, Via Vivaldi 43, 81100 Caserta, ItalyMineral elements are essential nutrients for humans and play important roles in many human physiological and bio-chemical processes. In this study, a comparison between the levels of mineral elements present in the water of public drinking fountains (PDRF) and in bottled water was carried out. The aim of the study is to assess the effectiveness of PDRF as a mineral supplement, compared to the low-mineral bottled water for out-door non-competitive activity, such as jogging. The city of Ferrara was chosen as the study site. It has ancient walls and on their top there is a gravel road that people use for jogging and walking. Along the road, there are two public drinking fountains that are always used. Water from these fountains was sampled and analysed for major cations and anions using ionic chromatography. Data analyses were compared with the same analyses carried out on bottled water usually used by joggers. Results showed that fountains are a valid substitute of bottled water as they have a moderate content of mineral elements. During outdoor sport activity, the water from fountains is preferable for the reintegration of mineral elements, instead of bottled water that has a very low quantity of minerals.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3263/7/3/76mineral elementsbottled waterpublic drinking fountainsoptimal mineral profile
spellingShingle Dario Di Giuseppe
Comparison of the Mineral Element Content of Public Drinking Fountains and Bottled Water: A Case Study of Ferrara City
Geosciences
mineral elements
bottled water
public drinking fountains
optimal mineral profile
title Comparison of the Mineral Element Content of Public Drinking Fountains and Bottled Water: A Case Study of Ferrara City
title_full Comparison of the Mineral Element Content of Public Drinking Fountains and Bottled Water: A Case Study of Ferrara City
title_fullStr Comparison of the Mineral Element Content of Public Drinking Fountains and Bottled Water: A Case Study of Ferrara City
title_full_unstemmed Comparison of the Mineral Element Content of Public Drinking Fountains and Bottled Water: A Case Study of Ferrara City
title_short Comparison of the Mineral Element Content of Public Drinking Fountains and Bottled Water: A Case Study of Ferrara City
title_sort comparison of the mineral element content of public drinking fountains and bottled water a case study of ferrara city
topic mineral elements
bottled water
public drinking fountains
optimal mineral profile
url https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3263/7/3/76
work_keys_str_mv AT dariodigiuseppe comparisonofthemineralelementcontentofpublicdrinkingfountainsandbottledwateracasestudyofferraracity