What Comes out of Your Tap Water?

By: Elson M. Haas, M.D., Staying Healthy With Nutrition

Most tap water comes from surface reservoirs formed from rivers, streams, and lakes, or from groundwater.  Groundwater refers to the subterranean reservoirs that hold much of the earth's water and supply nearly all the rural drinking water and about half of city water supplies.  The water from these sources goes through local treatment plants, many of which use a very old process of settling tanks, filtration through sand and gravel, and then chemicals to clean up the water so it is fit for human consumption.

The January 1990 Consumer Reports analysis suggests that the three drinking water pollutants of most concern are:

• Lead - may contaminate the water of more than 40 million Americans.  It occurs mainly from corrosion of water pipes, from lead solder in plumbing, and from lead in brass faucets.  The possibility of contamination is of greatest concern to people living in homes more that 40 years old whole pipes contain more lead, and for families with young children, who are more sensitive to lead toxicity.
• Radon - is a radioactive gas by-product of uranium and is found in the earth's crust.  High radon gas levels are associated with an increase risk of lung cancer.  This carcinogen element can be present in any home in levels high enough to cause concern but is more likely to be found in the northeast United States, North Carolina, and Arizona.  Water that comes from wells and groundwater have a higher incidence of contamination.  Municipal waters that come from lakes, rivers, and reservoirs are usually low in radon.  When present in the water, radon can be release into the air with showering, laundering, and dish washing.
• Nitrates - are suggested to be the third main risk in water.  They are present mostly in groundwater sources that have agricultural contamination; these waters may also then have higher amounts of toxic pesticides and herbicides.  High nitrate levels are of greatest risk in infants ad seriously ill people.  Nitrates are converted to nitrites by certain intestinal bacteria; these nitrites may alter the hemoglobin molecule, converting it to methemoglobin, which cannot carry oxygen.  Rural families, especially those with infants and pregnant women, should test their water for nitrates.
• Other - major concerns in drinking water are the chemicals that are released into our waters by industry and the agricultural chemical pesticides, herbicides, and fertilizers that run off into local waters.  These organic chemicals are more toxic and carcinogenic at lower levels than many other contaminants.

With all the possible health threats, the government would like us to believe that we should have no concerns about our drinking water.  Supposedly, tap water consumption usually does not cause immediate or significant health problems unless it is contaminated with infectious organisms.  However, more and more research studies are revealing the relationship of water to chronic disease.

Additional Tap Water Articles

Contaminated Public Water Supplies in 42 U.S. States.