Chlorine in Tap Water: Is It Bad for You?

Is It Bad to Drink Tap Water?

Is a question I'm often asked. The answer is, in a word, is yes. Filtered water, spring water, and distilled water are all better choices. Let's look at some problems of drinking tap water

Chlorine in Tap Water

Tap water in the US and many industrialized countries has chlorine added to it. Chlorine, though an element, is a chemical and not found naturally in any foods grown naturally or found in any water supply. Chlorine is indeed an ingredient in salt, which is found naturally, however, the chlorine is attached to sodium, in which case the compound is a solid, and is fine. Chlorine, by itself, however, is very dangerous and toxic to the human body. Chlorine is a gas and has a very low freezing point. There are several diseases linked directly the dietary intake of chlorine.

Let's look at what Wikipedia says about chlorine: "It has a disagreeable, suffocating odor that is detectable in concentrations as low as 1 ppm,^[1] and is choking and poisonous. Chlorine is a powerful oxidant and is used in bleaching and disinfectants." Is this what you want to put in your body?

Chlorine is also used as a chemical weapon and was used in the Iraq war. This is used in our water supply to kill bacteria and also used in our swimming pools. Since it's a gas, it evaporates slowly and more chlorine will need to be added to the pool. Would you drink a bottle of chlorine that you put in the pool? Of course not. Would you drink pool water? Of course not. So, why would you drink tap water that also has chlorine in it? Did you know that chlorine mixed with other elements creates one of the only acids that can disintegrate gold? Did you know that chlorine can attack and destroy metals left in a swimming pool? Did you indoor swimming pool roofs have collapsed because of the chlorine in the air?

Drinking chlorinated water won't kill you now, but it will lead to many thyroid, liver, lung, heart, and several other problems throughout the body. These problems can lead to obesity and disease. I drank tap water for over 30 years. When I was younger we had well water, so that was fine, and very healthy. However, when we got "city water" I started drinking chlorine. I will do so no longer unless in emergencies.

Another Silent Killer: Fluoride

Also, fluoride is in our tap water. Why? Well, since chlorine is in the water to kill the germs, someone had the bright idea to put fluoride in the water too? Why? It's allegedly good for our teeth. Consult a dentist on that one. I do believe it is good for teeth, however, I don't think it's necessary. Animals don't get cavities and they don't drink fluoride, so why do we need it? Well, excuse me for saying so, but it's because we eat crap. We eat too much sugar and drink too much tooth-dissolving chlorine (again, my opinion).

Recently, dentists are debating whether or not fluoride is actually good for your teeth or not. When the idea to put it in toothpaste was brought forth in the 1930s, the American Dental Association wouldn't stand behind it for over a decade! Why? They thought it was dangerous!

Conclusion

Now a days, these chemicals abound in our water supply, cleaning solutions and showers (which we breath the gas), our swimming pools, our toothpaste, and even in our Listerine (see the new Listerine Total Care with fluoride). Should you consume these chemicals? I wouldn't advise it and I avoid them myself most of the time. Do what you can and avoid them when possible. Buying jugs of filtered water would be a good start. I'm leery as to how much chlorine and fluoride these filters remove, though, so buy distilled or spring water. If you distill tap water though, it may still contain chlorine! There is no perfect solution. Just do as good as you can.

Buying water or using filtered water will reduce your chlorine and fluoride intake by 50-75%, or more (depending on what study you agree with). If you believe you need fluoride for your teeth, remember, it's in nearly all toothpastes anyway, so is that not enough?