“Now I’ll tell moms right now, and I don’t want to hedge on this: I don’t think you should be bathing your kids in the tub unless you know that water is clean.”
This is just one of the crucial warnings Dr. Oz issued during his groundbreaking episode on the state of our nation’s water supply. If you assumed (like most people) that in modern day America, the water coming from your tap is safe to drink or even bathe in, then I hope this post will raise some thought-provoking questions. If you’re already convinced and you’re ready to take action, be sure to check out the end of this post to learn how you can win a free carbon shower filter for your home (a $60 value).
Over the summer, New York Times investigative journalist Charles Duhigg published a series of articles on America’s toxic water supply. His reporting reveals that in spite of a marked increase in environmental awareness in recent years, the quality of our water supply has taken a disturbing hit since the late 1990’s.
Time for some boring (and at the same time, blood-curdling) statistics. Records show that the Clean Water Act was violated over half a million times since 2004, and that number only includes incidents that were self-reported by the polluters! Less than three percent of violators were fined or otherwise punished, even though sixty percent of those violations were deemed “significant noncompliance” (i.e significantly dangerous to our health).
Statistics are important, but these violations are hurting real people in real ways –oftentimes, without them even knowing it. To learn about their stories, read Duhigg’s New York Times articles for yourself at the following links.
Clean Water Laws are Neglected at a Cost in Suffering
Debating How Much Weed Killer is Safe in Your Water Glass
Health Ills Abound as Farm Runoff Fouls Wells
(as if you need any more reasons to eat grass-fed meats)
Regulators Plan to Study Risks of Atrazine
Cleansing the Air at the Expense of Waterways
E.P.A. Vows Better Effort on Water
The New York Times also created an interactive database where you can look up water violations in your hometown. (I was shocked by what I found in my stomping grounds, and you might be, too.).
It’s easy to feel overwhelmed when confronted with a massive national problem such as this one, but thankfully there are small effective steps you can take to protect yourself and your loved ones.
1. Educate yourself on the state of your current water supply. Dr. Oz says that DIY water quality test kits
2. Find a safe and effective drinking water system for your home, whether it’s an under-sink filter or a water delivery service. Sniffing the tap water prior to taking a sip is not an effective method.
3. Install a carbon filter on your shower head. I know it looks like all that water simply repels off your body and runs straight down the drain, but your skin is like a sponge and it soaks up a lot of the chlorine, fluoride, and whatever other chemicals happen to be mixed in with your water supply (but you already knew that, didn’t you?). Shower filters are simple to install and they only have to be changed twice a year. Register to win your own Mulit-Pure shower filter (a $60 value) at Kelly the Kitchen Kop’s blog. Entries must be submitted by midnight EST on Oct. 30th.
4. Tell a few friends about Dr. Oz’s water alert (an extra thank you if you forward them this post!). The New York Times report concludes that change might not occur without public outrage. The more people are aware of the hidden dangers in our national water supply, the better our chances of overcoming them.
Why a carbon shower filter works for me; this post is a part of Works For Me Wednesday hosted at We Are THAT Family.
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It's easy to assume the water is safe, but I always knew it was something I should probably look into a little closer. Thanks for that little shove. I hope I win the filter!
I'm with you, Leigh. I suspected my water wasn't the purest, but I didn't take that extra step of installing a shower filter until after I figured out I have fluoroderma (acne caused from fluoride exposure).
At least we get there eventually, right?
I used to not think much about the content of water, and that it was just "water." There's so many crazy chemicals that are added to it. I don't know too much about it, but I know I would never ASK to take a bath in chlorine. I'm sure chlorine and other added chemicals are important in some respects, but I would think it can lead to other problems as well. Maybe someday there will be better alternatives.
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