Disadvantages of Tap Water? Is It Safe To Drink?

disadvantages-of-tap-water.Are you the kind of person who thinks that tap water is safe for drinking and doesn’t think twice before filling your glass of water from the tap? Then think again.

Although you might have heard that the tap water is regulated on an annual basis, it solely depends on the kind of region you reside in so we cannot say for sure and give a generalised statement that overall, the tap water is safe to drink and has no disadvantages at all. Recently, it has been proven to be more hazardous to health and could have prolonged effects.

Disadvantages of Tap Water

The effects of chlorine & other chemicals

You must know about the government checking the water that you get through your tap being tested and purified before reaching you but other factors have to be kept in check as well. For instance, if you live in an area with a lot of trees, the leaves that fall in the pipelines or get in the pipelines through washing may get in your water supply system.

In addition, the use of chlorine to clean and purify the water changes the chemical composition of water and increases the number of impurities in it, and makes it a risk to drink. Not to mention that the water can be easily infiltrated with chemicals such as lead and pesticides making the water entirely chemical infused.

Posing a health risk

So if you consider the above mentioned issue, this makes tap water basically toxic for people who don’t have strong immune systems such as patients, people with disabilities, women with sensitive conditions, and babies. It is known to cause birth defects and developmental issues in children.

More chances of bacterial presence

We are not talking about the good bacteria here! The bacterial presence in the tap water is fairly high, according to studies, that accounts for more than 2000 impurities and contaminants that are not visible to the naked eye. This is the case in most regions of the world and America is no exception. With the increase of new types of bacteria and viruses, tap water cannot be trusted without actually confirming that the water is tested or purified before usage, especially for intake.

Tap water for external use

If you have been feeling like your skin or hair products are not performing well or causing you irritation and allergies, it’s actually not them, it’s your tap water that contains chemicals which destroy your natural skin barrier. Because the water contains an excessive amount of chlorine and other chemicals such as lead (picked up from pipelines), the tap water poses a great risk to your skin and hair as well as teeth health.

Is tap water purified everywhere?

Most of the consumers who think tap water is safe to drink reside in big cities, we are talking about as large as NYC. So it’s not possible that every other city, especially in the southern or rural part of the region will get the same amount of safe and pure water. Because the tap water cleaning process takes a lot of time, we are talking about long processes of disinfection and pathogen removal which a lot of small cities cannot afford in the first place.

Mishaps

Not to mention the tap water usage is prone to risks such as mishaps arising from broken water pipelines or some kind of failure at the water treatment plan which might add more contaminations to the tap water instead of purifying it.

FAQS

What kind of bacteria are found in tap water?

Tap water, if not purified or filtered properly, has a number of bacteria and viruses such as hepatitis, rota, and most commonly coliform which is mostly present in the soil and causes a number of digestive tract problems in humans as well as animals.

Can I get any infections if I continue drinking tap water?

It totally depends on where you live. If you live in a rural area with less chances of your tap water being clean. The possible infections you can get are headaches, fever, diarrhoea and mostly stomach related ailments.

Why does tap water smell different?

It is usually due to the presence of purifying chemicals such as chlorine which is used in an excessive amount in an attempt to clean the water from any impurities but it ends up being more harmful to our health.

Final Thoughts

Most people base their water usage habits on their personal preference, those who live in big cities and have the benefit of getting purified and filtered water from the tap prefer to use tap water as their main source of washing and quenching thirst. While it cannot be said for the majority of people especially those who do not have the means of obtaining filtered water or cannot afford to do so. Many homes in the US have old pipelines which are made from materials like lead , which is a threat in itself and that adds up to the disadvantages of tap water.

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