Drugs Found In Most Cities’ Drinking Water
A new study found traces of common drugs including: an anti-seizure medication, a mood stabilizer for treating bipolar disorders, ibuprofen and naproxen, and an antibiotic typically given to cattle in the water of 24 out of 28 US metropolitan areas.
Most wastewater and drinking water treatment systems are incapable of removing those drugs. Some scientists said there is probably little human health risk; others fear chronic exposure could alter immune responses or interfere with adolescents’ developing hormone systems
WTF?
That sounds scary.
I bet the anti-seizure medication that doubles as a treatment for bipolar disorder is a drug called lamictal which I’m currently taking. it works wonders for my manic depression. It’s perfectly safe though, I’ve been taking it for 3 years with no adverse effects.
Good to hear the anti-seizure medicine is working for you, but I would rather my children not be drinking traces of it everyday, no matter how small the traces supposedly are. I found more information about how to remove these drugs from the water at http://www.aquasana.com/contamination_drugs.php
Actually, reverse osmosis will remove drug traces. I had a reverse osmosis system for several years, until the storage tank burst. I’ve dug out that system, ordered new filters, membrane, and tank for it. I have been buying fill-it-yourself drinking water for quite some time, and the water dispenser at Wal-mart is the output of a large reverse osmosis system. I’m also going to add a UV light to the output of my system, and an online THM monitoring system, so I know when the membrane is going bad.
[...] recent revelation by The Associated Press that our tap water contains traces of pharmaceutical drugs, hormones and disinfectants elicited a bit of “I told you so!” from The Environmental Working Group when I spoke to them [...]