If you feel safe drinking tap water because the local water treatment plant claims it is safe, you may want to reassess your opinion. The more scientists test tap water around the world, the more chemicals they find. The chemicals found in tap water range from agricultural runoff to traces of prescription drugs to lead. Each chemical poses a series of health risks but what's worse is that combined they pose an even greater risk and level of toxicity.
In order to stay healthy it is advisable to drink and shower only with filtered tap water. Carbon block and granular filtration using a multi-stage process is recognized by the EPA as the best method of removing both organic and inorganic contaminants from tap water.
The most common of all chemicals found in tap water is chlorine. Water is treated with chlorine at the water treatment plant to kill bacteria. The problem is that there are strains of bacteria that are resistant to chlorine such as cryptosporidium and giardia and outbreaks are known to occur. Not to mention chlorine ingestion and inhalation can be detrimental to your health.
Chlorine ingestion has been linked with many different types of cancers, including bladder cancer, rectal cancer, and breast cancer. Also, when you take a shower chlorine is released in the steam. When you inhale that steam it can cause bronchitis and asthma. The health risks of chlorine alone should be enough to make you want to drink and shower with filtered tap water.
The next most common of the chemicals found in tap water is lead. Lead is a heavy metal substance that poses both short-term and long-term health effects. In adults, short-term exposure to lead can lead to high blood pressure and interfere with red blood cell chemistry. Long-term exposure can lead to kidney failure or stroke. In children, lead ingestion can lead to severe physical and mental delays.
So here's some food for thought... are you willing to put your health at risk each time you consume tap water? The contaminants mentioned here are just at the tip of the iceberg. There are over 2,100 carcinogens in tap water across the US, according to the Ralph Nader Study Group. Now that you are armed with this information, why not start shopping around for a water filtration system? The chemicals found in tap water are too dangerous to ignore and by drinking filtered water you will be on the path to optimum health.
