WATER

“Pollution has invaded every place on earth. Air and water currents have spread toxic industrial, agricultural and chemical wastes to every point on the earth. The Arctic and Antarctic ice caps are beginning to accumulate toxic wastes. It is understandable that springs, lakes, rivers, wells and other sources of drinking water have not escaped this invasion of pollutants. Scientists have proven that water is one of the most efficient solvents. Water dissolves, absorbs and carries with it something of everything it touches. It is this property of being a universal solvent that has allowed water to become loaded with virtually every contaminant dumped into the environment. Even after treatment at water plants, it is a toxic chemical brew.

“Chlorine, which has been added to tap water, may be one of the most dangerous chemicals consumed. Research studies indicate that chlorine combines with organic substances found in tap water to produce chlorinated hydrocarbons that may be involved in such insidious disorders as hardening of the arteries, heart attacks, strokes and cancer.

“Pure drinking water is essential to life and good health. We are over 70% water. Water is part of every cell. It is involved in most chemical processes. Water helps prepare substances for transport across cell membranes and for distribution throughout the body by way of blood and lymph. This function of water in the body is impaired when the water is filled with contaminants that interfere with its ability to dissolve bodily substances efficiently.

“Metabolic activities depend upon enzymes, coenzymes, trace minerals and other substances which are present in minute quantities. Contaminants and toxic chemicals, introduced into the body through drinking water, can interfere with normal metabolic activities and enzymatic pathways. We can understand this interference better when we consider that these vital elements may be present in quantities of a few thousand molecules; whereas, just one swallow of water containing one part per million of a toxic chemical will contain 600 quadrillion (600,000,000,000,000,000) toxic molecules.

“Water, acting as a solvent within the body, reaches into every cell to absorb and carry away the poisons that are formed as part of the life process. The blood circulates 400 gallons of water through the kidneys each day. When the water we consume is pure, it can do a much better job than when it is already contaminated with toxic substances.

“Water from the body evaporates from the surface of the skin. If this water is full of contaminants, they will be left as residues that will encrust the skin, leaving it rough, dry and a breeding ground for bacteria. Drinking lots of pure water will help leave the skin soft and pliable.

“The source of minerals for the body is the food we eat, not the water we drink. Plants alone have the unique ability to convert inorganic minerals absorbed from the soil and water into organic forms that the body can use. The body can use few, if any, of the minerals absorbed in water. These minerals merely contaminate water and hinder it from performing its natural functions. When water brought into the body is already polluted, its natural cleansing functions are impaired. As a result, we may develop health problems as these pollutants build up in blood vessels, joints and internal organs. Only distilled water is pure and virtually free of all contaminants. Distilled water enters the body clean. It is free to absorb and wash away the poisons the body generates and the poisons that have accumulated.”

The preceding quotations are from,

WHY I DRINK DISTILLED WATER by Clifford C. Dennison, Ed. D.

That dizzy, weak feeling after a long, hot shower is caused by chlorine gas. An open window helps, a gas mask better. Probably the best is a combination of filters, one of which will remove a significant amount of chlorine. These filters must be changed regularly. However, since these filters are a breeding ground for bacteria including Escherichia coli, water should be at least boiled and preferably distilled before being consumed.

When shopping for water distillers, get copies of product performance data sheets. Compare the percentage of reduction for contaminants. You must have actual percentage reductions of at least:

Chloride 99%

Chlorine (residual) 93%

Fluoride 98%

Lead 98%

Mercury 97%

Nitrate 99%

“ACCORDING TO THE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (EPA), AS MANY AS 40 MILLION UNSUSPECTING AMERICANS MAY BE CONSUMING HIGH LEVELS OF LEAD – A TOXIC SUBSTANCE – WHEN THEY DRINK WATER FROM THEIR FAUCETS.” Good Housekeeping, March 1987

“SOME CONCERNS HAVE BEEN RAISED ABOUT POSSIBLE CANCER LINKS OF TWO OTHER BY‑PRODUCTS CREATED WHEN WATER IS CHLORINATED.... BOTH HAVE BEEN SHOWN TO INDUCE LIVER TUMORS IN LABORATORY MICE.” USA Today Magazine, February 1989

“...FOUND MEAN CHOLESTEROL LEVELS ABOUT 4 PERCENT HIGHER IN WOMEN WHO DRANK MUNICIPALLY CHLORINATED WATER THAN IN WOMEN DRINKING UNCHLORINATED WELL WATER. AS A RULE OF THUMB, CARDIOVASCULAR RESEARCHERS ESTIMATE THAT EACH 1 PERCENT INCREASE IN SERUM CHOLESTEROL ELEVATES HEART ATTACK RISK BY ROUGHLY 2 PERCENT. IN MEN FROM HOMES WITH CHLORINATED TAP WATER,...OBSERVED A STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT 1 PERCENT CHOLESTEROL INCREASE. IN WOMEN AND MEN, CHLORINATED DRINKING WATER WAS ALSO LINKED TO COMPARABLE INCREASES IN LOW‑DENSITY LIPOPROTEINS – THE SO‑CALLED ‘BAD’ LIPOPROTEINS THAT CARRY CHOLESTEROL INTO THE BLOODSTREAM – BUT WITHOUT ANY CHANGES IN THE ‘GOOD’ HIGH‑DENSITY LIPOPROTEINS THAT REMOVE CHOLESTEROL FROM BLOOD. WITH DIETARY FAT FACTORED OUT, THEIR [MICE] LIPIDS – ‘SUBTLY BUT NOTICEABLY SHIFTED FROM HIGH‑DENSITY TO THE LOW‑DENSITY LIPOPROTEINS’ – OFFER THE FIRST ‘UNIMPEACHABLE’ EVIDENCE THAT CHLORINATED DRINKING WATER CAN CHANGE THE WAY THE VERTEBRATE BODY HANDLES CHOLESTEROL AND LIPIDS.”

Science News, June 3, 1989

“ONE IN SIX PEOPLE DRINK WATER WITH EXCESSIVE AMOUNTS OF LEAD, A HEAVY METAL THAT IMPAIRS CHILDREN’S IQ AND ATTENTION SPAN. IN EARLY SUMMER, HALF THE RIVERS AND STREAMS IN AMERICA’S CORN BELT ARE LACED WITH UNHEALTHY LEVELS OF PESTICIDES. IRONICALLY, EVEN THE CHLORINE WIDELY USED TO DISINFECT WATER PRODUCES CARCINOGENIC TRACES WHEN COMBINED WITH OTHER COMMON SUBSTANCES IN WATER. DRINKING CHLORINATED WATER MAY AS MUCH AS DOUBLE THE RISK OF BLADDER CANCER. ...STUDIES INDICATE THE SUSPECT CHEMICALS CAN ALSO BE INHALED AND ABSORBED THROUGH THE SKIN DURING SHOWERING AND BATHING. IN A RECENT EPA [ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY] SURVEY, NITRATE SHOWED UP IN MORE THAN HALF OF THE DRINKING‑WATER WELLS TESTED ACROSS THE COUNTRY.” U. S. News & World Report, July 29, 1991

“A NEW STATISTICAL ANALYSIS INDICATES THAT PEOPLE WHO DRINK CHLORINATED WATER RUN A 21 PERCENT GREATER RISK OF BLADDER CANCER AND A 38 PERCENT GREATER RISK OF RECTAL CANCER THAN PEOPLE WHO DRINK WATER WITH LITTLE OR NO CHLORINE.”

Science News, July 11, 1992

“EVERY SUMMER DANGEROUS LEVELS OF PESTICIDES AND FERTILIZERS SEEP INTO 50% OF THE CORN BELT RIVERS AND LAKES, SOURCES THAT PROVIDE DRINKING WATER TO HUMANS AND CATTLE, THUS CONTAMINATING THE WHOLE FOOD CHAIN.” Muscle and Fitness, October 1992

“DON'T DRINK THE WATER, SHOUTED THE CITY'S HEADLINES [MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN], AS THOUSANDS OF AREA RESIDENTS...CONTRACTED A FLU‑LIKE ILLNESS THAT...SENT HUNDREDS TO HOSPITAL EMERGENCY ROOMS. THE CULPRIT...IS A TINY PARASITE...CRYPTOSPORIDIUM. THE OOCYSTS (PARASITE VERSIONS OF EGGS) OF THIS PESKY PROTOZOAN CAN BE REMOVED ONLY THROUGH FILTRATION. UNLIKE BACTERIA, THEY ARE NOT READILY KILLED BY CHLORINE. IN 1987, AN OUTBREAK IN CARROLLTON, GEORGIA MADE 13,000 PEOPLE ABSOLUTELY MISERABLE. TWO OREGON TOWNS, MEDFORD AND TALENT, EXPERIENCED AN OUTBREAK LAST YEAR.” Time, April 19, 1993

“LAST SPRING, THE U. S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY ANNOUNCED THAT OF 8,100 MUNICIPAL WATER SYSTEMS TESTED AROUND THE COUNTRY, HOUSES IN 819 SYSTEMS SERVING MORE THAN 30 MILLION PEOPLE WERE FOUND TO HAVE UNSAFE LEVELS OF LEAD. LEAD IS ONE OF THE MOST UBIQUITOUS AND PERSISTENT NEUROTOXINS IN THE ENVIRONMENT. LABORATORY EVIDENCE SHOWS THAT ADVERSE EFFECTS OCCUR AT VERY LOW LEVELS. VAPORS INHALED DURING A HOT BATH OR SHOWER CAN CARRY HEAVY METALS LIKE LEAD DIRECTLY INTO THE BLOOD‑STREAM VIA THE LUNGS.” Natural Health, November‑December 1993

“ACCORDING TO THE U. S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (EPA), 30 MILLION AMERICANS – ROUGHLY 1 IN 8 – ARE EXPOSED TO POTENTIALLY HARMFUL MICROBES, PESTICIDES, LEAD OR RADIOACTIVE RADON WHENEVER THEY DRINK A GLASS OF TAP WATER OR TAKE A SHOWER. SOME CHEMICALS, INCLUDING RADON AND SOME CHLORINE BY‑PRODUCTS, CAN BE INHALED THROUGH VAPOR OR STEAM. KEEPING A BATHROOM WINDOW OR DOOR CRACKED ENSURES SOME AIR CIRCULATION.” Parents Magazine, March 1996

“SHIGELLA SONNEI OUTBREAK ASSOCIATED WITH CONTAMINATED DRINKING WATER – ISLAND PARK, IDAHO,....”

Journal of the American Medical Association, April 10, 1996

“IN MARCH 1995, A SUDDEN INCREASE OF SEROLOGICALLY DIAGNOSED CASES OF ACUTE TOXOPLASMOSIS WAS NOTED IN THE GREATER VICTORIA AREA OF BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA. A MUNICIPAL DRINKING WATER SYSTEM THAT USES UNFILTERED, CHLORAMINATED SURFACE WATER WAS THE LIKELY SOURCE OF THIS LARGE COMMUNITY‑WIDE OUTBREAK OF TOXOPLASMOSIS. OUTBREAKS OF TOXOPLASMOSIS ARE RECOGNIZED INFREQUENTLY.” The Lancet, July 19, 1997

“WATER STUDY LINKS CHLORINE TO MISCARRIAGES.”

Chemical Market Reporter, February 16, 1998

“CHLORINATION HAS A DOWNSIDE. IT GENERATES DISINFECTION BY‑PRODUCTS THAT, WITH LONG‑TERM EXPOSURE, HAVE BEEN ASSOCIATED WITH A RISK OF CANCER OR OTHER ADVERSE HEALTH EFFECTS. THE EPA [ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY] SAYS THAT, TO AVOID THESE UNWANTED BY‑PRODUCTS, MORE WATER SUPPLIERS ARE DISINFECTING WITH OZONE INSTEAD.” Prevention Magazine, February 1999

“VIBRIO CHOLERAE, LIKE SOME OTHER BACTERIA, GOES INTO A DORMANT, SPORE LIKE STATE WHEN CONDITIONS AREN’T RIGHT FOR REPLICATION.” Discover Magazine, February 1999

“DEATH CAME IN THE WATER. ESCHERICHIA COLI BREAKS OUT AT A NEW YORK COUNTY FAIR.” U. S. News & World Report, September 20, 1999

“CHLORINATION BY‑PRODUCTS FROM YOUR WATER THAT ARE VOLATIZED (TURNED INTO GAS OR VAPOR) HAVE BEEN ASSOCIATED WITH CANCER IN ANIMAL STUDIES. YOU MAY BE EXPOSED TO MORE TOXIC CHEMICALS BREATHING THE AIR IN YOUR SHOWER THAN DRINKING A GLASS OF TAP WATER.” Prevention Magazine, December 1999

“MORE WATERS TEST POSITIVE FOR DRUGS. U. S. AND CANADIAN SCIENTISTS OFFERED PRELIMINARY CONFIRMATION THAT TRACES OF DRUGS, EXCRETED BY PEOPLE AND LIVESTOCK, POLLUTE AMERICAN WATERS.” Science News, April 1, 2000

“GROUNDWATER PROBLEMS CAUSED BY IRRIGATION WITH SEWAGE EFFLUENT. THE MAIN CONCERN IS THE POTENTIAL FOR INFECTIOUS DISEASES IN FARM WORKERS AND CITY DWELLERS EXPOSED TO THE EFFLUENT, AS WELL AS IN PEOPLE WHO CONSUME CROPS IRRIGATED WITH EFFLUENT, ESPECIALLY WHEN THOSE CROPS ARE EATEN RAW OR BROUGHT RAW INTO THE KITCHEN.”

Journal of Environmental Health, September‑October 2000

“IT HAS BECOME CLEAR THAT DECADES OF EXPOSURE TO VERY LOW DOSES OF ARSENIC – SUCH AS LEVELS FOUND IN DRINKING WATER IN MANY AREAS OF THE UNITED STATES – MAY SUBSTANTIALLY INCREASE THE RISK OF VASCULAR DISEASE, DIABETES AND SEVERAL TYPES OF CANCER.”

Women’s Health Weekly, March 29, 2001

“IN 1991, THE EPA [ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY] CONCLUDED THAT A PERSON CAN ABSORB MORE CONTAMINANTS FROM BATHING AND SHOWERING THAN FROM DRINKING POLLUTED WATER.

“STUDIES DONE BY BROWN, BISHOP AND ROWAN IN THE EARLY 1980s SHOWED THAT AN AVERAGE OF 64 PERCENT OF THE TOTAL DOSE OF WATERBORNE CONTAMINANTS IS ABSORBED THROUGH THE SKIN.

“WITH DERMAL EXPOSURE AND INHALATION, VIRTUALLY 100 PERCENT OF THE CONTAMINANTS ARE ABSORBED DIRECTLY INTO THE BLOODSTREAM.”

Third World Traveler – Earth Island Journal, Summer 2001

“BEFORE YOU RUN OUT AND BUY A HOME FILTRATION SYSTEM, CONSIDER THIS. THE CENTER FOR DISEASE CONTROL IN ATLANTA SAYS THAT SOME OF THOSE SYSTEMS CAN ACTUALLY ADD LEAD TO WATER. BRASS ELEMENTS (MADE FROM COPPER AND LEAD) ARE THE LIKELY CULPRITS.”

Better Nutrition, June 2002

“THE COMING WATER CRISIS (WATER‑SUPPLY INFRASTRUCTURE DECAY) — DECAYED PIPES ALONE WOULD BE A SERIOUS CHALLENGE; PROVIDING WATER FREE OF DISEASE AND TOXINS IS EVER MORE DIFFICULT, AS OLD METHODS PROVE INADEQUATE AND NEW HAZARDS EMERGE.”

U. S. News & World Report, August 12, 2002

“ANDOVER, MASSACHUSETTS’ NEW OZONE TREATMENT COSTS TWO‑THIRDS AS MUCH AS THE OLD [CHLORINATION] TREATMENT PROCESS.” Townsend Letter for Doctors and Patients, May 2003

“A STUDY BY THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA AT CHAPEL HILL CONCLUDES THAT SPREADING SALT ON ROADWAYS TO SPEED UP MELTING OF SNOW AND ICE HAS CONTAMINATED FRESHWATER RIVERS, STREAMS, LAKES AND WELLS TO AN ALARMING DEGREE.”

USA Today Magazine, December 2005

“RESEARCH SHOWS THAT CHLORINE HAS SIDE EFFECTS. IT REACTS WITH ORGANIC MATTER PRESENT IN WATER AND FORMS A SERIES OF COMPOUNDS THAT HAVE BEEN LINKED TO CANCER IN ANIMALS. THESE COMPOUNDS ARE CALLED DISINFECTION BY-PRODUCTS (DBPs) DBPs HAVE BEEN LINKED TO BLADDER AND RECTUM CANCER, AND MAY ALSO HAVE REPRODUCTIVE AND DEVELOPMENTAL EFFECTS. CHLOROFORM AFFECTS LIVER AND KIDNEY FUNCTION IN HUMANS IN BOTH ACUTE AND LONG-TERM EXPOSURES.” Journal of Environmental Health, June 2006

Third World Traveler – Earth Island Journal, Summer 2001

www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Environment/Bathtub_Toxic_Dump.html

WATER

by Robert A. Kroboth www.citizengadfly.com

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