Five Myths About Water
About 60 percent of an average adult man's weight is water. About 50 percent of an average adult woman's weight is water. But is the water you drink giving you something you don't need—like lead poisoning, harmful E. coli bacteria, or dangerous chemicals?
More of us are asking that question. The Water Quality Association (WQA), a nonprofit group representing the water treatment industry, found in a recent survey that nearly three-quarters of us worry about our drinking water supplies.
The United States has probably done better than any other nation in making water safe to drink. In the latest annual report from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), 94 percent of our water systems reported no health-standard violations.
Still, consumer concern is not unfounded, says Joshua Barzilay, M.D., an Emory University endocrinologist and co-author of The Water We Drink. "As we've taken care of one problem," he says, "another takes its place."
Tap into these water myths
Myth: Drinking water can't cause health problems.
Reality: We haven't proved a link between man-made chemicals such as pesticides, insecticides, fungicides, and dry-cleaning agents in our water and cancer in humans. But some naturally occurring chemicals in the water supply have been clearly shown to cause cancer in humans, the most well known and documented being arsenic. Current standards for arsenic levels in the U.S. water supply should protect the American public from arsenic-induced cancers.
Links have been clearly demonstrated between water and other problems. A well-documented example involves lead. Felicia Busch, M.P.H., R.D., an American Dietetic Association spokeswoman, says lead causes brain, nerve, and kidney damage, especially in youngsters. Unlike many other chemicals removed by water treatment, lead can leach into water from pipes in older homes as it travels to your tap.
Builders haven't used lead for new water pipes in many years, but plumbers did use solder containing lead until the 1980s. The longer water sits in pipes made or soldered with lead, the greater the possible lead contamination. If you live in an older home, running drinking-water taps for several minutes each morning can help flush out lead-tainted water.
Myth: Water was safer a century ago.
Reality: Some of us fantasize that pure water reigned before modern industry created pollution. In truth, says Dr. Barzilay, today's pollution is simply different.
"One hundred fifty years ago, they just dumped raw sewage and slaughterhouse material into a lake," he explains. This practice caused diseases such as cholera and typhoid. Around 1900, such diseases were the third leading cause of death. Programs like water chlorination combined with buried sewer lines and sewage treatment facilities tamed such threats.
Today, large-scale bacterial infections linked to water supplies are rare although they do occur. Although some of us fear that chemicals seeping into our water are sickening us slowly, experts agree that things have gotten better, not worse.
Myth: Federal rules don't cover bottled water.
Reality: That's no longer true. Under federal law, companies must test bottled water for the same 80-some contaminants as municipal water, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) says. The FDA regulates bottled water based on EPA rules for municipal water.
In addition, bottled water trade groups have quality assurance programs "above and beyond" FDA rules. Under International Bottled Water Association guidelines, for instance, an independent laboratory, NSF International, tests bottled water for more contaminants. Not all firms use the extra standards; see if your bottled water carries the NSF mark or check by visiting the NSF International Web site at http://www.nsf.org.
NSF spokesman Loren Merrick says bottled brands are sealed at the factory, avoiding potential contamination present in municipal systems. Some bottled water is treated municipal water, but Mr. Merrick says bottlers "go to great pains" to treat that water so it doesn't resemble its source.
Taste originally fueled the bottled water craze. Bottled waters are typically disinfected with ozone, which is tasteless, as opposed to chlorine, which can have a taste many dislike. But most bottled water doesn't contain fluoride to strengthen teeth. And, at about $1 a gallon, it's not cheap. Instead of carrying a disposable plastic bottle of water with you, consider switching to a stainless steel bottle, which you can reuse, NSF says.
Myth: There's no benefit to treating water myself.
Reality: The water treatment industry is booming. In a recent survey by the Water Quality Association, 38 percent of adults reported using a household water treatment device. Is it a waste of time and money? That depends on your water and your concerns, says WQA spokeswoman Carlyn Meyer. Are you worried about taste? Bacteria? Chemicals?
Meyer suggests you test your water before deciding what's right for you. In addition, the EPA makes municipal water systems issue annual "Consumer Confidence Reports" listing everything in their water. Call your system for details.
If you decide treatment might improve your water's safety or taste, you'll find devices run the gamut. Simple $25 tabletop pitchers take out chlorine; $800 systems filter out metals and some bacteria. "To get everything out," says Meyer, "you need to use several technologies together." If you buy a device, look for NSF certification. If you want a reputable water-testing laboratory, call the EPA. And if you have your own well, test your water regularly and treat it yourself if necessary, because the government doesn't monitor private wells.
Myth: Forget water, I'm better off drinking cola.
Reality: Water is the best hydration fluid. An 8-ounce sugar-based cola has about 95 calories, and if water worries you, remember that cola bottlers use local water. Diet colas contain phosphoric acid, which in high enough quantities can adversely affect calcium metabolism and ultimately bone health. Some fruit juices have up to 140 calories in 8 ounces.