Drinking Water– Which water is best to drink?

UPDATE:  Recently fracking was almost allowed in the Florida Everglades.

http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/mar/01/florida-drops-everglades-open-fracking-bill

If you are reading this post and reside in Florida, I would keep an eye out to see if fracking IS allowed in the future because if it does begin, it would mean that the waterways would begin being polluted with the chemicals that are inserted into the earth through the fracking process.

 

Our drinking water is being threatened more and more everyday, see the recent discovery of what happened in a small town in New York:

http://www.syracuse.com/state/index.ssf/2016/01/hoosick_falls_cancer_tap_water_epa.html

 

Be careful where your drinking water comes from and read the below for more information!

–Heidi

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Since I’ve been asked about drinking water, I am putting a link to Dr. Elson M. Haas’ book, “Staying Healthy with Nutrition” Chapter 1 Water. Side note: this book is AWESOME.  If I could only buy ONE BOOK on how to be healthy, I would buy Dr. Haas’ incredible reference guide.

 

Part one explains the importance of water and how American drinking water is produced and monitored by the EPA.  Read part one by clicking here: Drinking water- part one.

 

Part two outlines the different waters to choose from and lists the doctor’s recommendations.  He does “urge people to use purified drinking water and to avoid the faucet.” (p.17) Read part two by clicking here: Drinking water- part two.

 

GreenLightHeidi says…

I agree 100% with his recommendations.  When I read local articles, like this one from the Tampa Bay Times, it leaves out some of the most important elements to keep in mind about water.  While it questions the EPA’s standards, it still gives “tips for drinking tap water,” (thus encouraging people to drink it,) and doesn’t provide any helpful detail about various water filtration systems.

 

For example, one very important “detail” the article doesn’t mention is how those water filters you get in the store like “Brita” or “Pur,” (I cringe to mention the names,) don’t actually filter out much such as fluoride, (please read Dr. Haas’ chapter to get the full take on these).

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Side tangent:

From Brita website, “Do BRITA cartridges remove fluoride? The BRITA cartridge is not designed to remove fluoride. Some fluoride is naturally present in tap water, whilst some water companies add fluoride to the water. If you are concerned about the presence of fluoride in your tap water, you should check with your water supplier. ”

TOTAL side comment response: “Since when does FLUORIDE ‘naturally”‘occur in water??”

Here’s a response to that very question from http://fluoridealert.org/faq/

“Does Fluoride Occur Naturally in Water?

As a general rule, the only fresh water with high levels of fluoride (other than waters polluted by fluoride-emitting industries) is water derived from deep wells. Rather than being something to celebrate, high levels of naturally occurring fluorides have wreaked havoc on tens of millions of people’s health around the world. People consuming water with naturally high levels of fluoride have been found to suffer serious health ailments including disfiguring tooth damage, bone disease, ulcers, reduced IQ, thyroid disease, and infertility. Because of this, international organizations like UNICEF assist developing nations in finding ways of removing fluoride from the water.

Thankfully, most fresh water supplies contain very low levels of fluoride. The average level of fluoride in unpolluted fresh water is less than 0.1 ppm, which is about 10 times less than the levels added to water in fluoridation programs (0.7 to 1.2 ppm).  The frequent claim, therefore, that “nature thought of fluoridation first” does not withstand scrutiny.”

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In response to the fact that Brita and Pur filters don’t really filter much, critiques can say, “See?! Those filters waste our money THEREFORE water filtration is a waste of money.” Ummmm, No.

 

When I moved around more, I used a water filtration system called the “British Berkfield” or “Big Berky” with PF-4 filters in the bottom in addition to ceramic filters in the top, (PF-4 get out fluoride and other smaller elements).  This option is better because if you install a reverse osmosis system under your sink, then move in one year, you have to buy another (or take it apart and bring it with you = pain in butt).  The downside to using a Big Berky is that you have to remember to fill the top chamber with faucet water, which really is no big deal but for people who want immediate and instant gratification, filling up the big berky on a regular basis could become “annoying”.  I guess it depends on how much you value the optimal functioning of your body 🙂

 

 

glass of water

photo credit to faungg

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