An Important Message About Risks to Your Health and What We Are Doing To Protect Our Members

This message might seem a bit strange at first. To some of you the topic & ultimate stance we are taking might seem a bit trivial, especially considering the extraordinary challenges facing the world today.

However, we don't take this subject as lightly as we once did.

Over the past few months, we have been taking a look at the potential waste and pollution we may be contributing to as a result of all the plastic water bottles we throw away daily at the dojang.

This little, seemingly mundane, question started us down a rabbit hole of investigation and research which truly rattled us to the core and motivated us to change - for the good of our planet, but especially for our health.

We found that the initial question we asked about pollution as a result of throwing plastic away was the LEAST of our worries.

Other serious issues came to light, which caused Grandmaster Lee and the West Coast Hwa Rang Do Academy to make some changes.

The short of it is that as of the beginning of April, we will no longer be having bottled water for sale at the dojang.

The reasons are the following:

1) Like we mentioned, water bottles produce a lot of unnecessary waste. (We already knew this) Recycling causes further pollution in the breakdown and re-manufacturing of the material.

2) Bottled water is marked up by 1000% from what it cost to bottle and is actually more expensive than gasoline as a result.

But here's where it gets interesting...

3) A 16.9 fl oz. bottle of water (based on expert studies) on average requires the burning of approx 3-5 oz of oil to produce (including plastic materials, manufacturing and transport)

4) The plastic bottle which is actually made from oil, releases toxic chemicals into the water, which is then consumed by us, contributing to the development of breast cancer, low sperm counts, prostate cancer and other risks.

5) The entire water bottle industry is regulated by 1 person in Washington DC at the EPA and companies therefore self-regulate (inspect themselves) and submit their reports to the EPA with no follow-up or inspection by the government.

However, we DO NOT encourage the consumption of unfiltered tap water either for the following reasons:

1) Water flouridation is the addition of flouride (silicoflurides) to a public water supply to reduce tooth decay, but the safety of this practice has come into question because the flouride used is not naturally occuring and is actually an industrial waste product from the phosphate fertilizer industry. Potential health risks include lowering of IQ, cancer risks, changes in bone strength, birth defects and many others.

2) Other chemicals used in the water supply, also pose potential health risks.

So what's the solution if both tap and bottled water are unsafe to drink?

For your home:

We recommend you invest in a water filter to clean your tap water for drinking to remove flouride and other unsafe chemicals. This will save you a lot of money (as opposed to bottled water) and make your drinking water safe, from the tap.

For the dojang:

Bring your own water container & refill it for free with our water cooler upstairs. (Notice that we also replaced the plastic 5 gallon jugs on the cooler with glass jugs.)

However, we don't recommend you use plastic water bottles for the reasons described above nor the use of glass bottles because of the potential for breaking and injury.

What we do recommend is investing in a Stainless Steel Water Bottle, available online from many vendors.

We've actually gotten in touch with a manufacturer of these types of bottles and just ordered a shipment of black insulated stainless steel water bottles with the World Hwa Rang Do Association logo engraved & a place to write your name, to be made available to Hwa Rang Do students across the country and the world and we wanted to extend this to our CMA customers.

Each bottle is cast from double wall vacuum insulated food grade 18/8 stainless steel, therefore they are BPA-Free and resistant to bacteria and odors. The double wall vacuum insulation technology allows these special bottles to keep contents hot for 12 hours and cold for 24 hours. (May also be used for coffee and other drinks.)

Investing in this bottle will save you money in water bottle purchases and can be refilled for FREE with the water from your own water filter or the water available in the water cooler upstairs from the dojang floor. A small one-time investment will save you a lot of money, in addition to keeping you and your family safe.

As Hwarang, we must constantly be aware of our surroundings, take a look at the potential risks in our modern industrial society and make changes to preserve our freedoms and health.

As Ghandi says, "Be the change you wish to see in the world."

That's exactly what we are doing, starting with the West Coast Hwa Rang Do Academy.


Product Model: 24OZNM - ID: 1237