$14 water bottles

For some reason Camelbaks have become very popular. Several months ago the wife decided we all needed these $14 water bottles, including me. I admit I do have a use for a water bottle. The water at work is terrible so I bring my own. I've always re-used a regular plastic water bottle. I use it until I lose it, it gets destroyed, or it gets visibly germy.

The Camelbak is supposed to be far superior to the my old, re-used water bottles for several reasons they conveniently put right on the water bottle. First, it's BPA free. Unfortunately, I have no idea what BPA is. Maybe it's something I really need in my diet? I've had a cough for seemingly months, what if the cause is BPA deficiency? Can I get BPA supplements somewhere?
The brilliant people at Camelbak claim I can "Drink up to 24% more with the Camelbak patented Big Bite Valve." The big bite valve is a chunk of soft plastic with a slit in the middle. Does the Big Bite Valve somehow force extra water down my throat? You have to bite on it to open the slit, then suck to get the water. It's one too many steps for me. Also, using the big bite valve makes me feel dirty. I feel like I'm performing a sex act on the water bottle. I like to keep this blog PG-13, so I'll just say the sex act I'm talking about rhymes with "snow bob." I solved this by removing the Big Bite Valve, but now the bottle will occasionally leak. Also, how in the hell can they claim you'll drink 24% more? I drink less than I used to because I always brought a liter of water to work and the Camelbak is only 750ml. Add that to the daily leakage and I'm slowly dehydrating. And I'm missing out on my BPA.
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