Monday, July 12, 2010

Drinking Water Filters: What's in Your Water May Shock You!



If you’re like the many other consumers not using drinking water filters, you’re in bad company, and here’s why. Go down the isle at just about any grocery store in America that carries beverages, and the most popular item that you will find on the shelf is water. Why is that? One, it sells like crazy, and two, those who don’t use drinking water filters have lousy tasting water. However, there should be another reason to consider using a water filter, your health!

Many people do not know what is in their tap water, and there in lies the shock. A few of the ingredients in your tap water include bacteria, viruses, uranium, radium, nitrate, arsenic, chromium and fluoride. One of the most prominent ingredients in tap water is dissolved toilet tissue. Doesn’t sound very appetizing does it?

Where does this contamination come from? Some of it actually comes from natural sources such as rock formations that find their way into our water supply. Some chemicals such as chlorine are actually placed into our water supply on purpose to kill off harmful bacteria. The problem is, chlorine can be very harmful to the human body and has been linked to certain cancers. This is why many people have turned to using a drinking water filter.

Other sources of water contamination include not getting rid of everyday items in your house such as cleaning solvents, paint, and motor oil in a proper manner. Then you have problem of industrial waste. Seems like everyday you read about some kind of accidental leakage or a large company using illegal methods to get rid of its waste. Pesticides are also another item that has found its way into our water supply.

Our local water treatment plants do try to do a good job in making sure our water is safe, but it’s next to impossible to get rid of all the contaminants. We are also faced with a dwindling supply of fresh pure water, so many cities have turned to using reclaimed water. Reclaimed water includes the waste that is flushed down your toilet, and then is chemically treated and used in our drinking water supply. You should consider using a drinking water filter if you live in an area where reclaimed water is being used.

Many people would like to use a drinking water filter, but don’t know where to start. There are many types and brands available. They most expensive is not always best. Same goes for the cheapest. Some drinking water filters are cheap and do a fair job, but they need replacement cartridges often, which can end up being more expensive in the long run than higher priced drinking water filters.

By: Steve Waters

Drinking Water - Fridge Freezer Water Filters

Water and Water Filters.
Some chemically sensitive people find they are sensitive to water that they ingest in their daily lives, due to minute traces of chemicals and metals. For some people, it is reasonable enough to take care with water that they use for drinking and cooking. Other people, if they are highly sensitive, are affected by washing with, or touching tap water, some even by breathing in steam or vapours from standing or running water – a flushing lavatory, for instance. Intolerance of this nature is rare, however, and for most people, it will be sufficient to avoid drinking the water that upsets them.

What Causes Reactions to Tap water?
Low levels of chemicals known to cause chemical intolerance are found in potable, as well as metals known or suspected of causing harm.
Water quality regulations permit levels of chemicals which may not be Hazardous to your health. Chemically sensitive people are, however, affected by very low levels of chemicals, and particles present in tap water are often sufficient to cause them reactions.

The contents of tap water vary quite considerably across the country, and even within the locality of water companies. This is partly because the level of industrial or agricultural contaminants leeching into the surrounding countryside and finding their way into the local water table. It is also because of the age and quality of water treatment plants and their associated pipe networks. You might happen to live in an area with relatively new water treatment plants and pipe networks, or with little or no industry, or with a farming community with low fertiliser usage, then your tap water will contain lower levels of contaminants than that of other places.
Of course your water supply may come from groundwater drawn direct from springs and or boreholes. If this is the case then little or no filtration would be required.

Water that is drawn from rivers is subject to more pollution and needs greater sanitization, especially water from lowland rivers and reservoirs. The chemicals found in tap water which are predominantly associated with chemical sensitivity are: chlorine, nitrates, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, trihalomethanes, and organic solvents.

Read more: http://www.articlesbase.com/wellness-articles/drinking-water-fridge-freezer-water-filters-1052591.html#ixzz0tTXxC6Er
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By: Water Filter Bob