Excerpted from the article:
1. It May Contain Radon
Radon — a radioactive, cancer-causing gas that cannot be seen, smelled or tasted — in household water causes 30 to 1,800 deaths per year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Radon gas is easily released into the air when water is agitated, so even turning on a tap could release the toxic gas into your home’s air if the concentrations are high enough. The radon in this form becomes part of the radon load in your home’s air, and does most of its damage to your lungs.
You can also be exposed by actually ingesting the radon in the water. Because radon does evaporate readily into the air, surface waters, such as those from lakes and rivers, are less likely to contain high levels of the substance.
However, groundwater, which is used in wells, has not been exposed to much air, and therefore may contain much higher levels of radon. Wells filled by ground water supply about half the drinking water in the United States.
2. It Could be Exposing You to Toxic Chlorine, and Chlorine Byproducts, When You Shower
There are numerous studies that link drinking chlorinated water to increased risks of cancer, birth defects, miscarriages, and more. But what you may not realize is that showering or bathing in chlorinated water can be just as dangerous as drinking it, and even more so.
By taking a hot shower you end up absorbing over 600 percent more chlorine and other chemicals than you would from drinking the same un-filtered water all day!
This is because, when you shower, the warm water opens up your skin’s pores, making it like a sponge for chlorine. Meanwhile, the steam in your shower, which you readily inhale, is full of chlorine and its byproducts as well. Since your skin is the largest organ of your body, some estimates say that steam can transport into your body up to 100 times the toxic chemicals as you would get from drinking tap water.
3. It May Contain Carcinogenic Trichloroethylene, or TCE
Trichloroethylene, or TCE, a solvent with a fairly sweet odor and taste used in adhesives, paint and spot removers, and also to remove grease from metal airplane parts and clean fuel lines at missile sites, is a widespread pollutant of U.S. drinking water supplies.
 Showering 10 minutes a day for 10 years in manganese-contaminated water could cause damage to your brain. |
TCE is often described as the most pervasive industrial contaminant in drinking water. It has been linked to numerous health risks, such as kidney cancer, reproductive and developmental damage, impaired neurological function, and autoimmune disease.
4. It is Being Threatened by Pharmaceutical Pollution
Prescription drugs, along with medications given to livestock, are increasingly showing up in our ground water, soil, waterways and even our drinking water. That’s because our conventional sewage treatments may not be looking for drugs, and certainly don’t always remove them.
Adding to the problem are prescription drugs that aren’t used, then are flushed down the toilet or deposited in landfills — ultimately ending up in the environment.
This so-called “pharmaceutical pollution” could have major implications on wildlife, agriculture and humans — yet is only beginning to be studied.
5. Showering in Manganese-Contaminated Water Can be Toxic
Aside from the chlorine and chlorine byproducts, manganese, a naturally occurring substance in our air, soil, water and food, can also exist in your tap water.
What makes manganese so dangerous is that the current safety levels may not be adequate, and in excessive quantities it can cause a variety of health problems, including permanent nervous system damage.
Exposure can occur via many routes, drinking water, foods, manganese-containing pesticides, air, and more, but the most concerning source may come from something most of us do daily: shower.
A study by John Spangler, M.D., an associate professor of family medicine, and other researchers from Wake Forest University School of Medicine found that after showering 10 minutes a day for 10 years in manganese-contaminated water:
- Children would be exposed to doses of manganese three times higher than doses that resulted in manganese deposits in the brains of rats.
- Adults would be exposed to doses 50 percent higher than the rats.
According to the EPA, 0.5 milligrams/liter is the upper limit of manganese in water supplies, based on odor and taste of the water. However, the amount of manganese accumulated by breathing in shower vapors has not been considered, and even at 0.5 milligrams/liter researchers say manganese could cause brain injury.
“Inhaling manganese, rather than eating or drinking it, is far more efficient at delivering manganese to the brain,” Spangler said. “The nerve cells involved in smell are a direct pathway for toxins to enter the brain. Once inside these small nerves, manganese can travel throughout the brain.”
Article by www.SixWise.com
The PPJ Gazette 