What’s really in our tap water?

Tap water can be a touchy subject. Here in the US, we are very fortunate to have to access to water directly in our homes. Unfortunately, a lot of our water has been contaminated by old pipelines, run off, and chemicals. So while this water is readily available, it could also be compromising our health. This is especially concerning since the federal regulations for tap water have not been updated since 1996. Over the last decade, we’ve seen numerous articles about lead in the water, water contaminated by run off from nearby factories, and now the epidemic of medication in our water. And even more recently there have been incidents of derailments and nuclear run off making its way into our water supply. So now more than ever we have to be very conscious of where our water’s coming from.

Me personally, I started looking into this when my niece was born and she had terrible eczema. Angry, dry, red patches dotted her skin. Bath time seemed to aggravate her more than it soothed her so we decided to look deeper into our water. Filtering the water you bathe with is almost more important than the water you drink because your skin is your largest organ and everything you expose it to can absorb within 26 seconds. It’s scary how your relaxing 10-minute shower can quickly turn into a toxic chemical bath.

The main contaminates in tap water are

• Chlorine
• Chloroform
• Lead
• Heavy Metals
• Fluoride
• Nitrates
• Pharmaceuticals

Chlorine

Chlorine is added during the water treatment process as a disinfecting agent to kill off bacteria and viruses. Which, we definitely need of course, but there’s no process to limit the amount of chlorine or clear some of it out after it’s already in. Chlorine itself is a chemical with it’s own list of side effects such as dermatitis, inflammation and hives. But when paired with heat that chlorine can become even more dangerous and convert into Chloroform. Yep, the chemical on the white rag over they put over character’s mouths in kidnapping movies. That chemical can come out of your shower head and dishwater when the water is heated high enough. The hot water allows our airways to open up and expand and sadly that means we can breathe that chloroform deeper into our bodies.

The addition of chlorine allows for more chemicals to form as by-products. These are Haloacetic acids and trihalomethanes which are linked to bladder/prostrate cancer and reproductive disorders. And since they’re not supposed to be in the water supply, they are not treating or removing them.

Fluoride

Fluoride is a hot topic of debate. While some say it can add some benefit to teeth and bone density, others are warning that’s a neurotoxin and can quite detrimental to our health. A 2014 study out of London, England found that fluoride poses “significant costs in relation to cognitive impairment, hypothyroidism, dental and skeletal fluorosis, enzyme and electrolyte derangement and uterine cancer.“

Lead and Heavy Metals

We all remember the national news of the Flint Water Crisis in 2016, which they still have not fully resolved 7 years later. That was caused by old lead pipes breaking down and flaking off into the water running through them. Most older US cities still have some lead infrastructure that have not been updated. An NRDC analysis found that from 2018-2020, 56% of the population drank from water systems with detectable levels of lead. Lead exposure can cause high blood pressure, neurologic changes and damage, kidney damage, reproductive health issues and developmental delays. And even more disheartening is that most adults with lead poisoning don’t feel or look sick.

Nitrates

Nitrates are a chemical fertilizer. They get into the water supply through agricultural and urban run off or discharges from wastewater treatment plants and septic tanks. High levels of nitrates can affect the blood’s ability to carry oxygen. This is especially dangerous for babies, causing what’s known as “Blue Baby Syndrome” and can cause many other blood-related cardiovascular disorders.

Pharmaceuticals

Pharmaceuticals are extremely prevalent in our current water supply. There is not currently a treatment plan to filter them out since they weren’t supposed to be there in the first place. They get into the water supply by being flushed down the toilet on purpose or in our pee after we’ve taken them. Some of the most common ones are acetaminophen, ibuprofen and estradiol from estrogen birth control.

How to make our water safe?

The short answer is we have to filter it ourselves. Most people already filter the water they drink, but we need to pay attention to the water we wash with as well. There are so many options out there for filters nowadays. Please refer to my shower filter post to check out my favorites!

Sources

• 2014/02/26

Water Fluoridation: A Critical Review of the Physiological Effects of Ingested Fluoride as a Public Health Intervention

• Development of Maximum Contaminant Levels Under The Safe Water Drinking Act 1988
  • Office of Water
  • US Environmental Protection Agency
• 2021/07/09

Natural Resources Defense Council

• Causes and Effects of Lead in Water

America’s Children and the Environment

• Drinking Water Contaminants