Should You Worry About Your Water?

Introduction

Drinking water should be safe to swallow, right?  Whether it comes from your tap (private well or public water source) or a bottle, it’s essential when it comes to survival.  All life forms are dependent on water to thrive.  However, a study conducted by the US Geological Survey found nearly half of the United States tap water is contaminated with chemicals known to cause health issues.

In this blog, I review the chemicals that may be found in your water, how they affect your health, and what you can do to ensure safer drinking water.

I have a whole-house water softener system and thought my water was chemical-free after it was installed less than a year ago.  I recently had my tap water tested to find out if I had any chemicals.  The test was free and much to my surprise, I found out I have 287 total dissolved solids (TDS).

TDS is composed of inorganic salts and some organic matter that can include calcium, sodium, magnesium, and potassium.  However, there can be other contaminants that may be harmful when present in water.  This number was not broken down into which solids were in my water. The most controversial and concerning chemicals to me are perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorobutane sulfonic acid (PFOS) called PFAS and referred to as “forever chemicals.” More on this shortly.

According to the fact sheet, my number is under 300 which is considered excellent!  However, it doesn’t tell me which chemicals are in the water.  I prefer none!   

Out of curiosity, I asked if my bottled water could be tested, and it was.  No TDS were found but the pH was slightly acidic.  Not a big deal, but still not ideal for bottled water. Bottled water has its own issues.

Pro tip:  Bottled water is the 2^nd most popular beverage in the US with #1 being bottled carbonated soft drinks!

What is PFAS?

Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and Perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) are known for their levels of high toxicity of chemicals found in many household products like nonstick pans and stain-resistant carpeting.

These manufactured chemicals are called PFAS for short, also referred to as “forever chemicals” that can cause serious health issues, including cancer.

These synthetic chemicals have been linked to thyroid disease, high cholesterol, and liver damage just to name a few health issues associated with them, and need to be studied in more detail regarding human health.   

They’re called “forever chemicals” because they don’t break down in the environment and can be stored in your body.   We all have PFAS in our blood.

These forever chemicals have built up over time and continue to do so through many sources. Sources of drinking water are affected the most, but they’re also found in lakes, rivers, food, soil, and the air.

Other places forever chemicals are found

Other places they’re found are in pesticides and biosolids (sludge waste) spread on farm fields used as fertilizer, hence food that’s being grown in it. Not only are they found in water, but they’ve also been found in clothing!  That’s right!  If you’re a Lululemon or Athleta fan, your yoga pants may be contaminated with these chemicals.

Forever chemicals are found in the food production industry, pharmaceuticals, aerospace, chemical industry, paper and packaging and the list goes on and on.  Americans are exposed daily to common products that contain these man-made chemicals.

PFAS in water

The most alarming place where PFAS and PFOS are found is in your drinking water because they are found long-term in your body and water is in your diet on a daily basis.  Many people have suffered negative health effects from the “forever chemicals” which go unnoticed because it’s not brought to your attention as a cause of where your health issues may be stemming from.

According to Beyond Pesticides, June 29, 2023, Industrial chemical titans DuPont, Chemours (spin-off from DuPont) and Corteva will collectively pay 1.185 billion dollars to cities and towns across the U.S. to cover the cost of PFAS remediation and monitoring in public drinking water systems.

This is a BIG deal!  One of which I’m sure you haven’t heard about because it’s not reported to the general public. Companies don’t pay out that kind of money unless there’s a reason.

Is there a National Standard for drinking water?

In 1974 the Safe Drinking Water Act was passed by Congress with amendments made in 1986 and 1996 to protect our drinking water.  Sounds safe because the word, “safe” is in the title, right?

It turns out we have Primary and Secondary Drinking Water Regulations standards.  These were created to regulate contaminants depending on what they are. Wait, I thought the “Safe Drinking Water Act” was created to protect our drinking water, so why would we need additional regulations?

Public water systems must follow the Primary standards while Secondary regulations are guidelines to help control taste, color, and smell at state levels but are not required by federal regulations for these 15 contaminants, all of which could cause plumbing issues if found to be above the allowed standards.

Then there are Unregulated Contaminants standards that may require regulation in the future. These standards are NOT regulated by the National Primary Drinking Water Regulations and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) controls the samples and the approval of the program. There is a Contaminant Candidate List (CCL) that must meet three requirements to make a regulatory determination.  One of which may have an adverse effect on health, but don’t look for resolution any time soon if it does as this is a five-year process and only addresses a minimum of five contaminants.

Pro tip: bottled water is not regulated by the EPA but by the FDA!

What’s being done?

These chemicals have been around since the 1940s and the Environmental Protection Agency is finally planning a regulation.  

The EPA is proposing a National Primary Drinking Water Regulation for six PFAS.  You may have heard about this in the news from the Biden-Harris Administration as a proactive approach to protect communities from PFAS in drinking water.  Keep in mind no actions will be taken until it’s finalized and fully implemented which won’t happen any time soon.

Just a fact: Teflon nonstick cookware is the original offender of PFAS chemicals. 

Conclusion

What can you do to lower your risk for PFAS?

If you’re concerned about your drinking water, consider having your water tested, and if your levels of contaminants make you uncomfortable to safely drink and cook, find some simple solutions such as water filters.  Water filters can help reduce forever chemicals and give you an option for optimal health at a reasonable cost.

Another option is a reverse osmosis water system under the sink for cooking and drinking or a whole house system but understand these can be very expensive.  Reverse osmosis is a type of filtration system that filters contaminants and flushes them down the drain leaving clean water in a holding tank for you to use.  More information on reverse osmosis to help you decide.

You can always buy bottled water, but that can add up over time and the plastic, well that’s for a future blog!

In optimal health,

Lisa