Drugs In Our Drinking Water

MikeURL alerts to a AP story just published after a months-long investigation on the vast array of pharmaceuticals present in US drinking water. These include antibiotics, anti-convulsants, mood stabilizers, and sex hormones, as well as over-the-counter drugs. Quoting: "To be sure, the concentrations of these pharmaceuticals are tiny, measured in quantities of parts per billion or trillion, far below the levels of a medical dose. Also, utilities insist their water is safe. But the presence of so many prescription drugs — and over-the-counter medicines like acetaminophen and ibuprofen — in so much of our drinking water is heightening worries among scientists of long-term consequences to human health."

Comments

Perspective

[gnick]

I'd like to see the levels present in the average American's blood-stream.

Re:Perspective

[socz]

When I spent about a year in Mexico, I was surprised (for some reason) that every house had a filter on any tap that would draw drinking water. After months of wondering what type of miracle filter that apparently didn't have to be cleaned often was in the tall 750ml filter container of stainless steel, I opened that bad boy up with permission and found a rock.

It was a little slimy and probably ready for its cleaning, which I performed. But it still amazes me that they can have this in place, where those of us in the US have to use these disposable filters that are expensive.

Now I really don't know how effective those rock filters are, but one thing is for sure: people don't get sick when they drink water that's been through that filter.

I have yet to see a filter like that here in Los Angeles and will gladly buy several when I do. I haven't been back to Mexico for a while but when I go back to visit, if I haven't gotten a filter here i'll definitely buy on there. The only draw back is that water comes out a little too slow for me. But that's why you let it go for a while and fill up extra water jugs and what not.

One last thing probably worth mentioning is that there was always this "crazy talk" about amoebas in the water," and that is why you couldn't drink water straight from a tap without a filter. For the entire time in Mexico and all the places I visited, I never got sick from drinking the tap water. I even got to see the source of the water from the river that flowed from mountains!