Without a home water purification device, you and your loved ones are drinking unsafe tap water. How can I make such a bold statement? In the course of my career as a health researcher, I examined tap water quality, along with the health effects of drinking tap water. I was stunned when I learned the contamination level of the water we drink and use for cooking every day.

Tap water contains all the chemicals we use in our society–in the home, in agriculture, and in industry. Consider our use of cleaning products, lawn chemicals, gasoline, dry-cleaning solvents, pesticides, herbicides, chlorine, and that is just the beginning! We use over 80,000 synthetic chemicals for convenience purposes and to increase productivity. Did you know that municipal water treatment is not effective at removing synthetic organic chemicals (SOCs)? Traces of low level SOCs are found in almost every public water supply anywhere in the world.

You and I must ask what price is being paid for consuming tap water minus an under counter water filter. Dramatic increases in degenerative diseases have plagued our society in modern times. Many illnesses that could not be linked to a probable cause have now been linked to toxins in our drinking water. Synthetic organic chemicals are carcinogens and are believed to be responsible for the majority of human cancers in the United States. Our drinking water contains more than 2,100 toxic chemicals that can cause cancer. In the early 1900s, before the prevalence of the thousands of chemicals we are exposed to every day, the average American had a 1 in 50 chance of getting cancer. Today, 1 out of every 3 people will get cancer.

A whole house water filtration system is mandatory for removal of lead, the number one environmental health threat to our children. Most municipal water flows through lead pipes over 100 years old, and houses built before 1960 may have water supplied through lead pipes. Water can also contain lead naturally. Each year, lead in drinking water contributes to 480,000 cases of learning disabilities in children. Lead ingestion by children can also cause brain damage, stunted growth, and hyperactivity.

We must also consider tap water’s effect on pregnant women and unborn fetuses. A 2001-2003 study of almost 400,000 infants by Birmingham University, U.K., revealed that pregnant women who drink tap water or even shower in it, may double the risk of serious brain and heart abnormalities in their unborn children. The study established a clear link between chemicals formed during chlorination of water and birth defects. The problem chemicals known as trihalomethanes (THMs) can be contained in drinking water, showers, swimming pools, and even the steam from a boiling kettle.

The use of a tap water purifier which removes contaminants and micro organisms is the only way to ensure we won’t hurt our health. I used to think bottled water could be substituted for an in-house water purification device, but it may be even less clean and safe. Public water systems are required to test for chemical water contaminants four times as often as bottled water companies. Also, municipal water systems must test for harmful microbiological content in water several times a day, but bottled water companies are only required to test for these microbes once a week. Bottled water is not a viable alternative to tap water. The only way to assure water cleanliness and safety is to install a home water filter system.

NRDC :: Rob Perks’s Blog :: Restoring Water Quality Protections

Restoring Water Quality Protections Will Save Mountains. Rob Perks: Director, Center for Advocacy Campaigns, Washington, D.C.

Water Quality Regulation in California: Day Late Dollar Short 

In California, there are, in fact, really important deadlines that have a critical affect on the quality of the state’s waters. But they are routinely violated by the state.

Senate Panel Endorses Water Quality Bill - Chicago Tribune

A bill targeting how state regulators protect Indiana’s rivers and streams from pollution passed a state Senate committee Monday after the panel made several changes to address concerns raised by environmental activists.

How the City Handled Troubled Waters | Napa Valley Register

We are working with the Department of Water Resources to ensure the raw water quality from the delta is sufficient to avoid further issues. We will continue to use Lake Hennessey to supply water until the problem is resolved.

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Since you’re searching for a whole house water filtration system, you are educated to the dangers of drinking and showering in tap water. Many people only use a drinking water purifier. While that is an improvement over tap water alone, it does not come close to providing the safety of whole house water purification.  For many years, we health researchers thought chemicals in tap water posed a danger only when ingested. But, current studies are showing that drinking tap water is not the only risk, and likely not the most severe one.

A typical shower exposes you to almost 10 times more chlorine than drinking unfiltered tap water all day long. Your skin absorbs harmful synthetic chemicals; plus, when you take a hot shower, toxic chemicals are released from the water as gases. Research shows the dangers of vaporized chlorine are 100 times greater with inhalation and bathing than with drinking. Inhaled chemicals go directly into the bloodstream, magnifying adverse results. Chemicals in shower water and in the steam from a shower include chlorine, chloroform, trichloroethylene (TCE), and hydrogen sulfide–all may cause cancer, respiratory illness (asthma and bronchitis), kidney disease, liver disease, and a host of other health problems.

The use of a chlorine shower filter benefits skin and hair. You know how a chlorinated pool dries out skin and hair. What amazed me is there is more chlorine in tap water than in a swimming pool! Chlorine strips natural protective oils, causing excess drying and aging. Without the negative effects of chlorine and other chemicals, skin and hair retain moisture more effectively so you look and feel younger and healthier. Water sans chemicals also extends the life of hair colorings and highlights.

Reasons to Use a Whole House Water Filtration System

• A drinking water purifier provides no protection for other water sources in the house.

• Chemicals in the form of toxic gases are released into the air by the dishwasher, shower, and toilet.

• The use of a shower chlorine filter helps, but is not completely effective at removing dangerous contaminants, because water is filtered at high temperatures.

• The release of toxic gases into the air causes poor air quality. The American Journal of Public Health links chlorine to "significant increases in certain types of cancer, asthma, and skin irritations."

• Clothing washed in tap water, which contains chlorine and other synthetic chemicals, can cause skin rashes and other irritations.

Benefits of Whole House Water Filtration Systems

• Every water source in the house has clean and safe filtered water.

• Chlorine is removed from water used in dishwashing, which prevents chlorine vapors from being released into the air.

• A whole house water purifier is the only truly effective shower filter. Filtering water at low temperatures facilitates the removal of chemicals in the water and gases in the steam.

• Air quality is improved because toxic chemicals and the gases they produce are no longer released into the air.

• The occurrence of skin rashes and irritations, caused from washing clothing in chemical laden tap water, is eliminated.

Nothing is more important to me than my family’s health. After much analysis, I decided the best water filter was the one voted "Best Buy" by Consumer’s Digest 6 years in a row (2003 to 2008). This water purification device filters out chlorine, lead, VOCs (volatile organic compounds), and cysts while leaving important natural trace minerals. We have the best tasting water (like natural spring) from the tap for less than 10 cents a gallon.

New York’s Drinking Water Threatened by Drilling Plans

Much of the drilling would underlie the giant reservoirs and watershed that provides unfiltered drinking water to New York City.

Not a Drop to Drink - Water Pollution and the Environment

Pollution doesn’t stop with animal production. The herbicides and pesticides being used on crops are also contaminating our fresh water supply.

Scrapbook: Clean Water Campaign in South Carolina

The chapter’s all-volunteer Water Committtee is comprised of retired engineers, scientists, land use architects, and public health executives.

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