Nasty Bugs in Your Water
Some water treatment systems are heavily contaminated with organisms including parasites. A common cause of diarrhea is Campylobacter, which was responsible for 11 outbreaks between 1978 and 1986. Cryptosporum, which is common in many water systems, can cause spontaneous abortions in pregnant women. The most common symptoms include body aches, bloating, abdominal cramping, vomiting, and watery diarrhea. New Orleans, before Hurricane Katrina, had the highest Cryptosporum counts in the nation, primarily due to its ancient water pipe system. The water pipes are so old and encrusted with debris that purification by chlorination is impossible. A new study found that aging pipes in a number of cities pose a significant danger of infectious as well as chemical contamination. Shigella is another bacteria that can contaminate water supplies and result in severe diarrhea and sometimes death. Viruses also contaminate our drinking water but are rarely mentioned. The Norwalk virus, for instance, can cause severe diarrhea, especially in children. Thousands of viruses exist in the vast majority of drinking water systems, and many escape water treatments.

Know Your Water
Do you know what’s in the water you drink? This primer will help you make informed decisions:

Spring Water: This water comes from an underground source of generally pure water that rises to the surface as a spring. Most are protected to keep them pure, yet natural impurities such as arsenic, fluoride, radon, and uranium can enter the water.
Mineral Water: Mineral water must contain a minimum of 250 parts per million of dissolved minerals, mostly calcium and magnesium. A number have higher levels of fluoride as well. Artesian Water: This is water that originates from an aquifer, a deep underground flow of water. As with mineral water it can contain some contaminants, but less than surface water. This water is naturally carbonated. Most contain added carbonation due to the loss of the natural “fizz” during processing. Many have high levels of fluoride.
Distilled Water: This is water prepared by boiling the water and then condensing the steam. This removes all contaminants but the volatile gases, which need to be removed by carbon filtration. Minerals can be added back to the water.

The Problem With Bottled Water . . .
The problem with bottled water is not the water, but the container. Most water is bottled in soft plastics that leech high levels of the toxic chemicals into the water, especially if left in the heat. Hard plastics, too, such as polycarbonate, can leech a chemical called bisphenol-A, which has been associated with reproductive abnormalities, Type-2 diabetes (insulin resistance), and abnormal sexual behavior in animals exposed to levels equal to human exposures. The state of California has banned the used of polycarbnonate plastic containers that contain bisphenol-A and phthalates in products that will be used for children under the age of 3 years. A large number of independent studies have confirmed this toxicity. Bottled

Water Not All It’s Cracked Up to Be
Americans have been drinking increased amounts of bottled water in an effort to avoid the problems with public drinking water. In 1980, Americans drank 700 million gallons of bottled water. Today that figure is 4.6 billion gallons. There are more than 700 brands to choose from; they differ in source, mineral content, and purity. Because of the growing popularity of bottled water, city officials have conducted a high-level campaign to assure the public that its drinking water is safe and that bottled water offers no benefits. The media has jumped on the bandwagon with stories that most bottled water is taken from municipal water supplies. Therefore, why would you want to pay exorbitant prices for “bottled water?” While basically true, there is a big difference. Most water bottling companies extensively filter the water, removing the vast majority of contaminants found in municipal water. They do this mainly by double or even triple filtration through reverse osmosis filters. In addition, many use ozonization, which kills most of the bacteria and viruses and does so much more efficiently and safely than chlorination. A number of companies add basic minerals, such as calcium and magnesium to the final product. A number of studies, too, have shown that
“soft water,” that is, water with low levels of these minerals, is associated with increased rates of sudden cardiac death from heart attacks.
“Hard water,” which contains these minerals, is associated with a low risk of such sudden death.