The effects of inferior water on our health

by Dr Cornelia Botha

Due to the route our water takes to reach us our water is often contaminated with toxic, heavy metals, pesticides and other harmful chemicals. Chlorine itself is known to destroy essential fatty acids in the body, as well as the beneficial bacterial in our gut. This is in addition to being carcinogenic. The dose considered the safe upper limit for water purification in the US is .3mg per litre. In SA 1.0mg per litre is used.

Haloacetic acids (HAAs) are a common undesirable by-product of drinking water chlorination. Exposure to it has been associated with liver cancer and sperm damage. It also causes hardening of arteries and converts HDL to LDL cholesterol.

Trihalomethanes (THM) are also formed as a by-product when chlorine is used to disinfect water for drinking. They result from the reaction of chlorine and/or bromine with organic matter in the water being treated. As environmental pollutants, these chemicals are considered carcinogenic. They are known to cause liver, kidney and nervous system diseases – not to mention menstrual and fertility problems

Other water is also polluted with organic chemicals like petrol, diesel and paint thinners. Harmful pesticides are to ubiquitous that traces have been found in the snow at the poles!

In 2002 a study found that 95% of the US population had chemical endocrine disruptors present in their fat. Endocrine disruptors contribute to infertility, PCOS, Acne etc. Nonylphenol is an example of an endocrine disruptor. It is considered to be a xenoestrogen due to its tendency to mimic estrogen and in turn disrupt the natural balance of hormones in a given organism. It is formed during the production of certain detergents.

Due to its high production and diverse use patterns, nonylphenol is found in many of the worlds bodies of waters. It was detected in Pretoria tap water in 2005. Nonylphenol is persistent in the environment, therefore lingers around to potentially negatively affect organisms it comes in contact with. Nonylphenol also bioaccumulates, which is dangerous to animals and humans which eat meat.

Conclusion:

We take for granted that the water we drink from our taps is free of disease and disease causing chemicals. The impact is far reaching – cancer and infertility are two examples of diseases we don’t easily connect with drinking water.

It is difficult to test whether you’re sick because of chemical contamination, but it is possible to test for heavy metal toxicity. If you have heavy metal toxicity it is treatable by medical chelation and carefully selected herbs, which should be administered and supervised by trained practitioner. The best you can do for yourself is to drink filtered water more often than not. Choosing the right water filter for your situation can be complicated but we’ll cover this topic in our educational talk on water quality on 15 April 2010.

Bottled water is not a healthy and sustainable long-term solution, because of the impact that the millions of plastic bottles have on the environment, not to mention the harmful chemicals that can leach out of the plastics.

Water is possibly the most precious resource we have on this planet. We need to become more aware of how we interact with it on a daily basis. Avoid wasting water. Who knows how long we’ll have the luxury of easily available fresh water?