Louise stopped drinking tap water around 12 years ago.
Since then, she has spent hundreds of pounds on all manner of at-home filtration systems in a bid to ease her anxieties about water quality.
“It’s always been a concern for me,” the 34-year-old nurse, from Greater Manchester, tells Sky News.
“In my line of work, I deal with a lot of bacteria. E-coli, legionella, norovirus – and they can all come from water. It’s a scary thought.”
She says that while her worries may just be “speculation” – and there are strict rules on hand hygiene and infection control on her NHS ward – water has been a “personal concern” for more than a decade.
Women, well-educated and city-dwellers are most worried
A study published last year showed 52.3% of people across 141 countries were worried about being harmed by their drinking water in the next two years.
The research, which used 2019 polling data from more than 148,000 people, also found that water concerns were more common among women, people who live in urban areas, those with higher levels of education, and people experiencing financial difficulties.
In the UK, more than 20% reported being worried, while the latest trust in water survey by regulator OFWAT also showed trust in water companies had dropped to 65% by the end of 2022 – compared with 76% at the beginning of that year.
Claire Hanson, 59, from Cheltenham
Claire, 59, from Cheltenham, says she stopped drinking tap water after her father was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease and cancer more than a decade ago.
“My father is very unwell,” she says. “And very early on in his treatment one of the consultants told him making small changes would help – eating organic food and drinking filtered water.”
Her parents bought a filter jug and an under-sink filtration system – and she soon…
