Is my water safe to drink?

[Aoie_Emesai]

Originally Posted by Ledgem

I think you meant water with fluorine in it. Water is chlorinated as part of the purification process is many purification plants, but the water should be dechlorinated before it goes out. Fluorine is added to the water in many parts of the US as part of an effort for... oral hygeine, I think it was... (there are many conspiracy theorists who claim it's for something else.)

Is that true?? Dam, i've been using the wrong thing for all my life then >.<

[Ledgem]

Well you can test it to be sure. Bottle some of your tap water next time you go to a pool. Sample your bottled water, and then sample the pool water. If they taste identical, you should probably write to some authority figure to fix your water supply. Chlorine, if taken internally in very dilute concentration, won't harm you. But you don't exactly want to be drinking bleach, and in theory subjecting your skin/hair to high levels of chlorine could be harmful. Have you ever seen professional swimmers? Whether they're blondes or brunettes, their hair always becomes this silverish-goldish tint after a while (even Asian swimmers).

It's actually funny, there was a case in one of the Nordic countries, perhaps Sweden (or Switzerland, I can never remember which one), where something wasn't being filtered out of the water properly. I don't recall whether it was copper, or perhaps if they were adding excessive amounts of fluorine... either way, people knew that something was wrong becaues everyone who was showering/bathing using that water noticed that their hair started taking on a greenish tint.

[reflection]

Thankfully, I'm living in the lower mainland of beautiful British Columbia, Canada. Yay, for water quality! I guess that makes up for all the rainfall we have. As for the additives in water, it is indeed fluorine, not chlorine. (Note that not everyone receives fluoridated water.) Fluorine prevents tooth decay, so it's for dental hygeine. You still need your toothpaste of course. Also, you might want to be cautious if you determine that your water is over fluoridated. Unsafe levels of fluorine will cause skeletal problems. And of course, high levels of minerals, depending what they are, will each of their negative effects.

[guest]

What do you propose to purify the tap water?

I just use the commercially available filters (Pure?). Is that good?

I drank plain tap water for like a month just a while ago. I have to say, it tasted just awful. But one day, I swear I don't know what was in it. It was something colorless, like a thin film, small, and tasteless. That is why I couldn't detect it ahead and just swallowed it. I still don't know what I had back then. One got to think about the ancient pipe problem in this house in Boston.

I have been drinking filtered water ever since.

[Dkong1026]

I feel safer getting a Brita pitcher and filtering tap water with that.

[Hotaru Suzume]

Water is just water. It's supposed to have 'impurities' and dangerous things such as bacterium in it; if it wasn't, things like that wouldn't be in it.

[Ledgem]

Originally Posted by Ewoud

Water is just water. It's supposed to have 'impurities' and dangerous things such as bacterium in it; if it wasn't, things like that wouldn't be in it.

There are certain bacteria, viral particles, and minerals in water that, up to certain quantities, our bodies can tolerate. However, to feel that any water, anywhere, is safe to drink, is a very dangerous misconception. There are such things as waterborne diseases and parasites that people do come into contact with, particularly when they're out in nature and drinking from natural bodies of water. Our water infrastructure (including wastewater) is a rather marvelous thing that has arguably saved more lives than the field of modern medicine.

And on a practical note, what water has in it impacts its taste, texture, and smell. Ideally these should be pleasant.

[CeDeR]

just drink the water from the toilet...

[Hotaru Suzume]

Originally Posted by Ledgem

There are certain bacteria, viral particles, and minerals in water that, up to certain quantities, our bodies can tolerate. However, to feel that any water, anywhere, is safe to drink, is a very dangerous misconception. There are such things as waterborne diseases and parasites that people do come into contact with, particularly when they're out in nature and drinking from natural bodies of water. Our water infrastructure (including wastewater) is a rather marvelous thing that has arguably saved more lives than the field of modern medicine.

And on a practical note, what water has in it impacts its taste, texture, and smell. Ideally these should be pleasant.

Disease and parasites are natural. We overpopulate this planet as a race and it appears that our concern for cleanliness contributes to this...

Also, I've never been bothered by what water tastes like, it's all the same to me, yup yup.

[arcadeplayer987]

Originally Posted by CeDeR

just drink the water from the toilet...

lol. that is an option indeed

[Ledgem]

Originally Posted by Ewoud

Disease and parasites are natural. We overpopulate this planet as a race and it appears that our concern for cleanliness contributes to this...

Also, I've never been bothered by what water tastes like, it's all the same to me, yup yup.

Overpopulation contributes to the spread of disease and parasites, if that's what you mean. More hosts equates to more breeding grounds for parasites.

But just because they're "natural" doesn't mean that they can't harm you, cause you tremendous pain, or kill you. There's a reason why you have diarrhea upon consuming unclean water - it's your body reacting to matter that it isn't used to ingesting, and trying to flush out whatever it was that you just drank that wasn't good for you. In some cases, it's the parasites manipulating the cells along your large intestine. The reason for that, evolutionarily speaking, is that those parasites reproduce and are distributed to new hosts in your feces, so the more you're defacating, the better for them. Of course, your body is losing a lot of water in the process. In the past, when water was not so plentiful, people with extended bouts of diarrhea died of dehydration. Thanks to the structure of modern society, diarrhea has been reduced to nothing more than a word that children laugh about, rather than a condition that people could die from. Those parasites are more or less only considered able to induce abdominal pain and diarrhea, and are cured rather easily with modern medicine.

Be careful about what you're putting into your body. Keep in mind that nature doesn't care about individuals.

[Hotaru Suzume]

Originally Posted by Ledgem

Overpopulation contributes to the spread of disease and parasites, if that's what you mean. More hosts equates to more breeding grounds for parasites.

But just because they're "natural" doesn't mean that they can't harm you, cause you tremendous pain, or kill you. There's a reason why you have diarrhea upon consuming unclean water - it's your body reacting to matter that it isn't used to ingesting, and trying to flush out whatever it was that you just drank that wasn't good for you. In some cases, it's the parasites manipulating the cells along your large intestine. The reason for that, evolutionarily speaking, is that those parasites reproduce and are distributed to new hosts in your feces, so the more you're defacating, the better for them. Of course, your body is losing a lot of water in the process. In the past, when water was not so plentiful, people with extended bouts of diarrhea died of dehydration. Thanks to the structure of modern society, diarrhea has been reduced to nothing more than a word that children laugh about, rather than a condition that people could die from. Those parasites are more or less only considered able to induce abdominal pain and diarrhea, and are cured rather easily with modern medicine.

Be careful about what you're putting into your body. Keep in mind that nature doesn't care about individuals.

You seem to misunderstand me.
My point is that if you die, ultimately, from drinking water, then so be it, you die. And if we all drank the sort of water found in rivers and lakes, it'd help keep the human population down.

It may also be worth pointing out at this moment that I drink water from a tap like most humans in the developed world.

[Ledgem]

Well I understand that, but I don't really understand why you bring it up in a topic where people are asking about water safety Are you advocating that people drink any water they come across with no regard for safety, and if they die as a result, so be it?

It's a semi-rhetorical question, no response is necessary.

[Hotaru Suzume]

I'm bad at making my point in my first post. D:

My original point was that it's very far from necessary to filter water is all, you'll still live a long life full of fun whether you filter your water or not. Filter it if you want, it's just a preference like many things in this world.

And a mass genocide by water would just be funny... and ironic.

[Asai]

Ewoud, I suppose you've never heard of things like Cholera. It's easily spread (granted, also easily prevented) and can also be promptly fatal. It's just one of many potential issues with water, yet people like yourself seem to take drinking water for granted when going to foreign countries or even remote areas within their own, away from clean, processed water, when things like this exist. It's mind boggling.

If you live in a place with good quality tap water, and never intend to travel to places that don't, then it's fine to continue living blissfully ignorant, but if you ever intend to travel to any so called 'third world' countries, then you should be a bit more careful. Hell, it doesn't even have to be a third world country, as I said. There can be issues with water anywhere, really. It pays to be a little cautious.

When your water 'tastes funny' you should probably stop drinking it, or filter it. IMO if there's -any- discolouration at all, you shouldn't drink it. I found water in QLD to be dirty and refused to drink it. It was muddy and gross. And as I've said in a previous post, I found water in Perth to be too mineral heavy, thus I filtered it because I didn't like the taste. But even then, perfectly clear, 'normal' tasting water can still carry nasty stuff. But for the majority of it you'll see or taste the impurities, generally a clear warning sign.

[Ancient Death]

My mother is against Fluorine cuz it's bad for your body...I come from the country of Yacolt (nowhere in America X3) where I grow up drinking water from the well. I did have trouble with city water cuz it taste so horrified...Now I'm a college student and I drink water bottles for my sake.

[Ledgem]

Originally Posted by Ewoud

My original point was that it's very far from necessary to filter water is all, you'll still live a long life full of fun whether you filter your water or not. Filter it if you want, it's just a preference like many things in this world.

That's arguably true - there are places where water filtration and purification doesn't exist and people still live. Apparently, anyone from a society where the water is filtered will have a low tolerance for the impure water initially, but will develop a tolerance for it eventally. That's not to say that people in those countries are drinking water that's been contaminated with feces, of course.

Then there's the issue brought up by Asai - serious water-borne diseases. In those undeveloped areas, plagues and such are less of a threat due to a smaller population that isn't very dense in its distribution. When the population reaches high density, it's at greater risk for a massive disease outbreak. Such dense population levels are likely what Ewoud was referring to as unnatural. Again, arguably true - if we were living purely by nature, we probably wouldn't achieve those population levels as disease would keep it in check, as would other natural resources.

As the world is now, however, water filtration and purification adds to quality of life. Those of us who are young and healthy can handle less pure water, but the elderly and those with frail bodies rely more heavily on pure water. I also wouldn't really like the thought of getting sick from bathing, washing dishes, cooking, or just drinking. Given the way society is now, if water filtration were to disappear, you wouldn't see the human population kept in check. Rather, you'd see a greater strain on the medical system, and likely an increasing demand for plumbers

Originally Posted by Death Angel

My mother is against Fluorine cuz it's bad for your body

In high enough amounts, fluoride could be bad for you. A quick google to see people's opinions on it shows that it's more of a concern for growing children, though. What's added to the water varies from city to city, so you'd have to check with your local area to see what and how much is being added to your water.

[Roselyd]

It totally depends on where you live and where's the resource of water. If it's green, and coming by pipe, it's ok.
But really not a question easy to answer. Many specialists said we can't eat or use this and that, but we still.

[Ledgem]

Originally Posted by Roselyd

If it's green, and coming by pipe, it's ok.

Just because it's coming through a pipe does not mean that it's OK. There have been a number of scenarios in the US (and in other countries, I'm sure) where a water purification plant failed, for some reason or another, and harmful elements entered the water supply. This doesn't happen often, and I'm not suggesting that people test their water every time they want a drink. Just don't be complacent about it. If it seems unusual or like something isn't right, investigate it. Water travels through a lot of infrastructure to reach you, and it's possible that there was a problem along the way.

[Hotaru Suzume]

Originally Posted by Asai

Ewoud, I suppose you've never heard of things like Cholera. It's easily spread (granted, also easily prevented) and can also be promptly fatal. It's just one of many potential issues with water, yet people like yourself seem to take drinking water for granted when going to foreign countries or even remote areas within their own, away from clean, processed water, when things like this exist. It's mind boggling.

If you live in a place with good quality tap water, and never intend to travel to places that don't, then it's fine to continue living blissfully ignorant, but if you ever intend to travel to any so called 'third world' countries, then you should be a bit more careful. Hell, it doesn't even have to be a third world country, as I said. There can be issues with water anywhere, really. It pays to be a little cautious.

When your water 'tastes funny' you should probably stop drinking it, or filter it. IMO if there's -any- discolouration at all, you shouldn't drink it. I found water in QLD to be dirty and refused to drink it. It was muddy and gross. And as I've said in a previous post, I found water in Perth to be too mineral heavy, thus I filtered it because I didn't like the taste. But even then, perfectly clear, 'normal' tasting water can still carry nasty stuff. But for the majority of it you'll see or taste the impurities, generally a clear warning sign.

Why do some seem to think that I'm saying that no matter what water one drinks, they won't die? Of course you run the risk of death from drinking stagnant brown lake water. But I'll still drink the African tribesman's water if he will...
Also, my water doesn't ever taste funny to me, so, like... eh. Filters are just some kind of ergonomic American invention as far as I'm concerned.

Anyways, this perpetual ranting goes beyond the original purposes of this thread. Please try not to quote my posts, but help the person who started the thread with your own opinion, etc. I fast become discontent with debating.