Bottled water contains more bacteria than tapwater, with some brands found to harbour levels 100 times above permitted limits, according to new research.
A team of scientists found that 70 per cent of popular bottled water brands available in shops had high levels of bacteria.
The researchers from Ccrest Laboratories in Canada found that tap water had less bacteria than bottled water.
Microbiologist Dr Sonish Azam, of Ccrest Laboratories, said bottled water did not live up to its claims or purity.
She said: "Heterotrophic bacteria counts in some of the bottles were found to be in revolting figures of one hundred times more than the permitted limit."
