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The Dangers of Chlorine in Drinking Water

30 May, 2011 (18:42) | Drinking Water System, Impurities Found in Drinking Water, Impurity Solutions, Water Safety | By: admin

Studies aren’t meant to scare people. They aren’t meant to affect businesses. They are meant to keep consumers safe and be sure that the products they are using or ingesting aren’t making them sick, especially when it comes to something as vital as drinking water. That is where the birth of some important studies on chlorine in drinking water came from. Researches wanted to make sure that chlorine wouldn’t harm consumers if they used it in the water. Now, chlorine is a chemical element and is added to water as a method of purification to make it fit for human consumption. Water treated with chlorine is effective in preventing waterborne diseases. While chlorination has prevented many bacteria and viruses, and is a regularly used agent in sanitizing pools, it does have many serious drawbacks according to scientific studies.

The Environmental Protection Agency has some crucial information for consumers regarding this serious topic as well. From one article on their site, they say “disinfection practices can be complicated because certain microbial pathogens, such as cryptosporidium, are highly resistant to traditional disinfection practices. Also, disinfectants themselves can react with naturally-occurring materials in the water to form byproducts, such as trihalomethanes and haloacetic acids, which may pose health risks.” Limitations are in place, but even the EPA admits that controlling these limits is a major challenge for water suppliers.

In many studies on the topic, there has been evidence of a link to chlorine in drinking water and chlorine by-products and rectal, colon, and bladder cancer. One molecular science author had incorporated many studies into one article. He states that “Long-term risks of consuming chlorinated water include excessive free radical formation, which accelerates aging, increases vulnerability to genetic mutation and cancer development, hinders cholesterol metabolism, and promotes hardening of arteries.” Furthermore, “A study in the late 1970s found that chlorinated water appears to increase the risk of gastrointestinal cancer over a person’s lifetime by 50 to 100 percent. A later meta-analysis found chlorinated water is associated each year in America with about 4,200 cases of bladder cancer and 6,500 cases of rectal cancer. Chlorine is estimated to account for nine percent of bladder cancer cases and 18 percent of rectal cancers. Those cancers develop because the bladder and rectum store waste products for periods of time.” Those can be worrisome statements, but a dependable water treatment company has products which will help eliminate those worries.

Water filtration systems are the true purifiers. Don’t let chlorine fool you. It might clean the water, but too much of it can really be harming your health. Chlorination claims to purify water, but it is actually adding to the contaminants. The water treatment solutions offered include water filters, reverse osmosis systems, and water coolers. Choose one that is designed with state-of-the-art technology to ensure your household or business has a consistent flow of safe drinking water no matter how high the demand is. The reverse osmosis systems effectively reduce and eliminate unwanted contaminants from your drinking water.