How safe is your drinking water?
Whether from the tap or a bottle, it is important to be informed.
It is significant to know of the potential health risks drinking tap water can pose to you.
Water is essential to human survival, and we use it every day for so many things. From our first cup of coffee in the morning, to showering, cooking, and brushing our teeth before bed, water is in everything. It is in all the food you eat, everything you drink, and the products we apply to our skin.
Contaminates are now a part of our modern water supply. When these pollutants are exposed to us, some of them can build up in our body over time and be disruptive, causing disease. These types of chemicals are called ‘forever chemicals’ and they contribute to what is referred to as the ‘chemical body burden’. Aka the chemicals that accumulate in your body over a lifetime of exposure.
The health risks involved are as myriad as the chemicals themselves, many of which have not been around long enough for there to be established limits of safety. Think about asbestos, and how now we know just how dangerous it is. But this was used widely in many consumer products for many years without anyone giving it as much as a second thought.
Our drinking water today contains many contaminates.
This can range from disinfection by-products, to pharmaceuticals, heavy metals, and forever-chemicals like PFAS. Some of these are not as dangerous as others, if our bodies can metabolize them and get rid of them. The big problem lies with many of the forever chemicals, as our bodies don’t have a way to metabolize and get rid of these bad actors. Our bodies have no choice but to let them sit around and accumulate where they can cause problems.
Contamination of water comes mainly from environmental pollution, and as by-products from the treatment facilities. They can also be picked up from the pipes they pass through, and leaked from the plastic bottles they sit in as they are transported to their destination.
Are these contaminates in my water? They probably are. Here is a good place to take a look at to see if your area is affected: www.ewg.org/tapwater. But basically, it is not a bad idea to assume your water is going to have something in it that you don’t want. It is easier to assume the worst and be prepared by bringing your own filtered water from home, or by bringing a portable water filter with you.
You can protect yourself by filtering your water.
Filtering your water at home is an effective way to remove many of these contaminates from your water. Putting your water through a filtration device before using it will help to eliminate at least some contaminates, making the water you have safer for you to consume. And as a bonus, most filtered water has a much more palatable taste compared to regular tap.
It can be very easy to filter your own water. The simplest option is the countertop pitcher with replaceable filters. All you have to do is replace the filter each month, or as specified by the manufacturer and fill the pitcher with water. Gravity pulls the water through the filter, and traps the stuff you don’t want, leaving you cleaner, better tasting water.
There are many options for filtering your water, and you can make the best choice to fit your needs. Many products are sold today to address the demand for filtered water. You can choose from inexpensive countertop pitchers, to whole house filtration systems. I personally chose to go with a Berkey, which cost more money up front, but will clean my water for a long time and save me money in the long run.
You can take a look at the Berkey water filter website here.
So, how safe is your drinking water?
In my area, the tap water contains PFAS at very concerning levels, and that was part of the reason I choose to go with the filter type that I did. I know that by being more informed about what contaminates were in my drinking water helped me to have safer, tastier water at home by filtering it, and you can too.
Originally published at https://plant-based.science on January 3, 2021.
