Chemicals found in tap water: the list may surprise you, but you’ll be relieved to know how to block them

There’s a lot of talk these days about how many dangerous chemicals are found in tap water that’s been ‘treated’ by city water authorities, and how home-filtered tap water isn’t always safe, either. .

Well there are two things I would say about the chemicals found in tap water.

First, millions of us are drinking water contaminated with chemicals, and it doesn’t matter if we live in large metropolitan areas or small rural communities.

The fact is that in a recent study of tap water in 62 major urban centers, 24 of them were contaminated with pharmaceuticals. Prescription medications to stop seizures and stabilize mood, antibiotics and sex hormones, and many similar medications are regularly found in the drinking water of more than 40 million Americans.

Then there are the chemicals of industry and science, such as chlorine, bromine, commercial disinfectants, benzene, industrial solvents, pesticides and herbicides that cause cancer, perchlorate that damages the thyroid and distorts physical development, and many, many others. There are chemicals found in tap water.

What’s worse is that city water authorities often fail to test for chemicals and pharmaceuticals. Although drugs have been found in the watersheds that serve Oklahoma City and Santa Clara, for example, they are not tested by water officials in those two cities. This shocking lack of concern is found in many other water treatment offices across the country.

New York is particularly worrying. The state health department and the USGS have found that water in New York’s watersheds has trace concentrations of heart medications, infection fighters, estrogen, anticonvulsants, a mood stabilizer, and a tranquilizer, however , the water authorities insist that they meet federal standards and that their water is safe. It’s almost as if the chemicals found in tap water don’t set off alarm bells for these officials.

Well, how many prescription drugs do you need in your drinking water to make it unsafe? In a lab, you can expose male fish to estrogen compounds in parts per trillion and turn them into females. the same Frankenstein experiments interfere with the circulatory system, eyes and bladders of these fish. Even small traces of chemicals found in tap water are dangerous.

How can drugs and chemicals get through the city’s treatment systems?

Well, part of it is because they often use equipment that only blocks contaminants with a molecular size larger than water. Since the chemicals may have a smaller molecular size, they pass directly through the city’s filters. It’s also partly because officials can get away with it because federal safety standards are too lax, as New York’s water treatment authorities will tell you.

The second thing I’d like to point out is that filtered tap water can remove chemicals found in tap water, but not all tap water filters will do this.

Here’s the simple truth about what makes a good home tap water filter: You need a system, a set of filters.

What you don’t need is the expensive and wasteful home version of the reverse osmosis equipment so popular in big city water treatment plants. They don’t work there and they won’t work in your home. Additionally, these osmosis systems remove healthy, natural trace minerals found in the water that are so essential to your health. Don’t waste your money on reverse osmosis.

Instead, you simply need a relatively inexpensive set of filters that work hard. One that uses granular activated carbon for its filter, one that has a resin and media block, and one that stops sub-micron particles. You may also want to include ion exchange to remove lead if it is a problem in your community’s plumbing and to balance minerals in your water supply. But even with all these things in place, you’re looking at a modest cost of less than a couple of hundred dollars.

And for that you get peace of mind, in a city where chemicals are found in the tap water.

Now that you know this, I recommend that you get down to business and find an affordable and effective tap water filter system for your home. Search the Internet for a reliable manufacturer. (And we encourage you to start looking at my own website, which has lots of helpful information on chemicals found in tap water.) Make good water filters.