Jennifer Rae Vliet
Those of us who care, know quite a bit about the dirty truth about our water supply here in America. We also do not need the government to give us the truth although they should make that a high priority, but a large percentage of Americans believe that it is the duty of the gov to create a safe existence in relation to the integrity of our water supply. Unfortunately, a great many here in the states believe the gov is actually responsible for the toxicity or at best, they are allowing it to remain as such. To think that still in 2023 in this amazing blessed by God, Country and first world scenario...that we have to find alternative ways to safe water and that includes spending precious money on filtration/reverse osmosis systems for our own homes, is pretty unfortunate.
The Dailymail this past week posted two in depth articles about the poisonous water we are being exposed to and the most egregious states of poor health and chronic illness' plaguing their populations.
Let's look at one title alone on this article from TDM:
Nearly HALF of tap water in U.S. is laced with hormone-warping 'forever chemicals' linked to cancer and infertility, major government study finds
Forever Chemicals
In the most comprehensive study of its kind, researchers from the US Geological Survey tested water sources at more than 700 locations across the country for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). These microscopic, man-made chemicals can take thousands of years to break down in the environment or in the human body, hence the name 'forever chemicals'.
The report found that 45 percent of drinking water sources contained at least one PFAS - with highest concentrations in the Great Plains, the Great Lakes, the Eastern Seaboard and Central/Southern California. The team's testing was limited to 32 types of PFAS out of more than 12,000 that exist, meaning thousands of the chemicals could have gone undetected. If that's the case, it may indicate that the problem is even larger than the study conveys. Researchers set out to determine levels of PFAS in water sources across 716 unique sites nationwide, including both urban and rural areas.
Over the course of five years spent collecting samples to detect PFAS levels, the team concluded that taps in densely populated urban centers were generally more laden with the forever chemicals than taps in rural parts of the country.
This is due to the fact everyday home products from frying pans to food packaging contain PFAS that leach into the water supply, and urban areas tend to be situated closer to manufacturing plants.
The main purpose of PFAS compounds is to repel water and oil, which is what makes non-stick cookware so much easier to clean and why certain jackets and tents can withstand rain.
PFAS can seep into the water supply by simply washing the dishes. The compounds can also seep into our food if the packaging is made to be grease-resistant - think fast food cheeseburgers - or if the non-stick coating on pots and pans begins to deteriorate.
PFAS are also common in pesticides used to feed crops, which produces chemical-rich runoff that can enter the drinking water supply.
Last year, Texas Tech University researchers examined 10 common insecticides being used on cotton fields, but can work for food and other crops.
They found PFAS in seven of the 10 insecticides, with levels of PFOS – which has been strongly linked to cancer – as high as 19m parts per trillion (ppt) in one insecticide.
Here is the second article:
North Carolina and Iowa drinking water is worst for 'forever chemicals' after industrial waste was dumped into rivers for DECADES: Toxins are up to 46,000 times higher than EPA limit (read full story here)
Brunswick County, N.C. and Quad Cities, Iowa, have significantly higher levels of PFAs in their drinking supply
North Carolina at large has been known to have significant issues with PFAS pollution as the state has a large number of military bases, airports and industrial sites. PFAS are commonly found in firefighting foam and gear, which has led to contamination of military bases and airports.
The problem is particularly grave along the Cape Fear River partly because of the DuPont plant in Fayetteville and its spin-off, Chemours.
According to the National Resources Defense Council (NRDC), the DuPont chemical company dumped PFAs for over four decades into the river, which supplies drinking water for around 350,000 North Carolinians.
Many of the area's residents have claimed over the years that they got cancer from the contamination. Back in 2019, scientists recommended expanding an investigation of suspected thyroid cancer clusters in the area, as reported by NC Newsline.
In 2017, the Cape Fear Public Utility Authority filed a lawsuit against the company over their dumping of toxic materials in the river, and in 2020 the state's Attorney General filed another.
'Everyone should have the freedom to turn on their tap without the fear they are drinking poisoned water,' he tweeted. 'We need to take immediate action to remove these toxins from our water.'
Experts said the findings were 'frightening' given the scale of the problem and the link between the toxins and serious health conditions like cancer, infertility, birth defects and hormone issues.
Dr. Mercola has a great set of at home water systems, here, and here is an important column on this topic from him.
How Safe Is Your Drinking Water?
If you feel parched nowadays, there are so many beverages available to quench your thirst. However, none of these drinks will ever be able to take the place of good old water.
Water is the still best beverage and the healthiest way to stay hydrated. The reasons are simple. You only need to remember that your body is composed of approximately 60 percent water. Water is a primary component of all bodily fluids, including blood, urine, lymph, digestive juices and sweat. It also supports vital chemical reactions that regulate our body functions.
If you want to stay healthy, maintaining the quality of your drinking water is a must. But you can’t tell if your water is safe by the way it looks, tastes or smells. Water safety experts have recently discovered a new and toxic threat in the water supply – disinfection byproducts (DBPs).
The Dangers of Disinfection Byproducts
Water providers use chlorine as a disinfectant. Aside from chlorine, chloramines and chlorine dioxide are the other common disinfectants used at water treatment facilities to kill harmful, disease-causing microorganisms in the water.
You probably haven’t heard of DBPs before. Disinfection byproducts are formed when the disinfectants react with natural organic matter like decaying vegetation in water and are more than 10,000 times more toxic than chlorine, making them the worst type of contaminants.
Chlorine has been linked to health problems associated with drinking water but the new research suggests that DBPs, not chlorine, are responsible for almost all of the toxic effects of chlorinated water.
The two most common disinfectant byproducts formed when chlorine is used are:
• trihalomethanes (THMs) and,
• haloacetic acids (HAAs)
Trihalomethanes are Cancer Group B carcinogens, meaning they’ve been shown to cause cancer in laboratory animals. DBPs have also been linked to reproductive problems in both animals and humans. A study found that men who smoke and drank chlorinated tap water for more than 40 years increased their risk of bladder cancer by 50 percent compared to male smokers who drank non-chlorinated water.
Another study showed that individuals on a low-fiber diet and consumed chlorinated water for more than 40 years doubled their risk of rectal cancer.
But drinking chlorinated water is not the only way DBPs can get inside your body. You’re also exposed to trihalomethanes if you shower, bathe and swim in chlorinated water. The cancer risk from skin exposure while swimming was over 94 percent of the total cancer risk resulting from being exposed to THMs!
Trihalomethanes in chlorinated swimming pools have also been linked to spontaneous abortion, stillbirths and congenital malformations.
To give you an idea how dangerous THMs are, Environment Protection Agency (EPA) regulations only allow water providers to have a THM level of 60 parts per billion. However, water companies are resisting this regulation because they feel it would be more expensive to remove DBPs from their water and are pushing to elevate the EPA standard.
Ideally, the safest DBP level should be ZERO. This goal is likely impossible to achieve.
If you get your water from a private well, DBPs are not an issue because most, if not all, private well water systems do not use chlorine.
Other Contaminants in Your Water
Aside from DBPs, a comprehensive survey of drinking water in the U.S. reveals that your drinking water may also contain a number of pharmaceuticals and hormonally active chemicals, including:
• Atenolol – a beta-blocker used to treat cardiovascular disease
• Atrazine – herbicide banned in the European Union linked to the decline of fish population and in changes in animal behavior
• Carbamazepine – a drug used to treat bipolar disorder • Estrone – an estrogen hormone blamed for causing gender changes in fish
• Gemfibrozil – a fibrate (drug used to lower lipid levels)
• Meprobamate – a tranquilizer used by psychiatrists
• Naproxen – a painkiller and anti-inflammatory linked to an increased number of asthma cases
• Phenytoin – anticonvulsant used to treat epileptics
• Sulfamethoxazole – an antibiotic • TCEP – a reduction agent used in molecular biology
• Trimethoprim – another antibiotic
Water safety expert Robert Slovak’s advice is to request a water quality report from your local water provider at least once a year to see how safe your tap water is. He recommends using a reverse osmosis filter to help remove DBPs and various pharmaceutical agents from your water at home.
Using a reverse osmosis filter is an important decision you can make but it may not be enough to protect you from water contaminants because you’re still exposed to toxins whenever you shower or bathe, wash your hands, rinse fruits and vegetables and clean dishes, glasses and other utensils.
This is Jennifer again right here! I cannot get out of this blue box.
So, in summary, do whatever you can to protect your family and your pets from this utter poisonous, life altering nonsense! Please share in the comments what systems you may have and how they are faring for you. God gave us a noggin to use to protect ourselves and to live in the healthiest state of being and while we still have the freedom to choose a safer option, why not take the time to do so! Your life depends on it!
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