Study on the contents of bottled mineral water of various brands in Malaysia

Mineral water has becomes very popular and is a necessity in the present world that we live in. Today, in every part of the world people are using the bottled mineral water widely. The mineral water is produced by various companies using numerous names and brand with approval of the relevant authorities. In this paper, the contents of the  five main brands of bottled mineral water namely “ Spritzer”, “Ice Mountain”, “Bleu”, “Select” and “Cactus” as used in Malaysia is analyzed and presented. Comparison is made between these five brands to determine which of these brands is most suitable for daily consumption in term of its advantages in its mineral content to our health. Based on the investigation, it was found that the “Spritzer” brand had greater advantage with an extra mineral called silica which is good for muscle and bones rebuilding. Conversely the other four brands did not have this mineral. A detailed comparison of mineral content of the “Ice Mountain” brand with the other four brands had been made and a conclusion was drawn. This study will benefit the Malaysian society in helping them make an informed decision on choosing the most suitable bottled mineral water for consumption in line with one’s health concerns these days. Keywords: Mineral water, Brand, Minerals, Comparison, Volum

Physiochemical characterization of taste masking levetiracetam ion exchange resinates in the solid state and formulation of stable liquid suspension for pediatric use

In the present work, an attempt has been made to mask the bitter taste of Levetiracetam using various ion-exchange resins such as Amberlite IRP69 and Duolite AP143. The physicochemical characteristics of the drug–resin complex in the solid state were studied. FT-IR studies revealed that there is no interaction between drug and resin. The DSC and XRD studies proved that the drug is in amorphous nature. Using the same concentration of resins, Xanthan gum as suspending agent in a liquid dosage form for pediatric use was formulated. Evaluation parameters such as drug content, sedimentation volume, re-dispersibility and viscosity of the prepared suspension were found to be satisfactory. The higher Zeta potential value indicates the stability of the suspension. Suspension prepared with Duolite AP 143 efficiently masks the bitter taste of Levetiracetam compared to Amberlite IRP69. From the in vitro drug release, a formulation with 1:2 ratios of resin has shown the maximum release at the end of 90 minutes. The sustained effect is due to one of the properties of the resin. The release profile follows zero order kinetics. The results obtained in this work show that drug–resin complexes effectively masked the bitter taste of Levetiracetam while liquid formulation provides an easier way to administer and to overcome problems with noncompliance of pediatrics