water wellness series: part 1
hello! hi. it’s been a hot minute. how are you??
let’s just say, regularly posting on my blog is clearly not my strength. instagram tends to take up most of my content creating energy, but to be honest, I prefer this space and have a vision for posting here on the reg.
lets get to it…
today’s post is part of a five part series (aiming for five anyway!). over the last 2+ years, i’ve immersed myself in all things water and health. what i’ve learned: like all subjects, there is a ton of myths, propaganda, and wrong information out there. most of the water we have access to does more harm than good to our bodies.
most people don’t think much about the water they consume, despite being 70-80% water. water carries nutrients to our cells, aids in digestion, flushes out toxins, and is key to our body and brain functioning properly.
if you change your water, you change your life.
so let’s break it down: today we will talk about tap water, bottled water, reverse osmosis water systems, and gravity fed filtration systems.
tap water
the dirty secret about government drinking water standards: Legal doesn’t mean safe.
according the the environmental working group, there have been over 315 pollutants found in drinking water across America. over half are completely unregulated. so while most people’s drinking water gets a passing grade from the federal government 🥴, research shows that the water still poses a health risk.
so what’s in the water? a toxic stew of pollutants… fluorinated chemicals called PFAS, lead from old pipes, pharmaceuticals, radioactive materials, and runoff from farmland that carries millions of tons of pesticides and fertilizer chemicals… to name a few.
it’s easy to take your tap water for granted. and I 100% get it… tap water is incredibly convenient. you turn the faucet on, the water comes out, and you go on with your life. at what cost though? the cost of our health, and our children’s. cancer. disease. premature aging. DNA damage. reproductive damage.
so what’s in your water? you can easily find out by entering your zip code on the EWG database. you can do that here. i'd love to hear in the comments below what you find out!
bottled water
ahhh bottled water. it’s everywhere. when I lived in NYC we would all carry our bottled water everywhere. I always bought the kind that was “created by rainwater that seeps very slowly underground through porous layers of lava rock.” most of what bottled water companies tell you about their water is complete BS. they are very skilled at marketing.
a study conducted by the National Resources Defense Council showed that one third of bottled water has contaminants that exceed allowable limits.
some crazy facts:
one million bottles of bottled water are purchased every minute globally.
the average person consumes 70,000 micro plastics per year.
single use plastic waste is killing marine life and sea birds at a scary rate.
the FDA allows for levels of fecal materials and e.coli to be present in bottled water… and there is no requirement for bottled water to be tested. that blows my mind.
many of the most popular bottled waters are simply filtered tap water!
chemicals within the plastic seep into the water, giving you a dose of toxins with each sip. yes, even BPA free plastic is problematic. phthalates, PVS, and BPS are cancer causing and hormone disrupting. no one should be putting these chemicals into their body.
lastly, and i’m not sure why I even have to say this at this point after all of the above— bottled water does not have health benefits. alkaline bottled water is touted as healthy by many conscious individuals, but it’s really just filtered water with baking soda added into it (check the ingredients on the backside of your body). baking soda water is not only not healthy, it can have serious side effects.
bottled water is overpriced. it costs more than gasoline. lol. if you’re a bottled water drinker, add up how much you’re spending on bottled water. you can save thousands of dollars on a home system, but we will talk about that in part 2!
reverse osmosis water systems
Reverse Osmosis is a filtering process which may be effective in areas that do not receive municipally treated water and is commonly used in bottled water facilities. The problem with this process is that dangerous chemicals like pesticides, herbicides, and chlorine are molecularly smaller than water and can pass freely through the filter.
but the real issue with reverse osmosis water is the following: it removes healthy, naturally occurring minerals from your water. These minerals not only provide good taste, they also serve a vital function in the body's system. When stripped of these minerals, water becomes unhealthy. Also, 2-3 gallons of water are wasted for every gallon of purified water produced.
RO water is either void of minerals or has a low level of minerals added back into the water (a remineralization process that does not do as good of a job as nature). Electrolytes are minerals that our body needs to function. Our cells cannot function properly without proper minerals and electrolytes. When we do not receive the proper minerals in our water, our bodies leach electrolytes from the soft tissue of our intestines. This process is inflammatory and increases cortisol levels (stress hormones) within our body. It also inflames our cardiovascular system. reverse osmosis water has even been shown to leach minerals out of metal pipes and pots. so not only will this water not supply you with vital nutrients, it can leach the minerals out of your bones. your body wants to survive. it will cannibalize itself in order to do so.
Multiple studies have shown adverse effects of demineralized water on humans and animals (damage to your heart and cellular function being the main ones in addition to more broken bones), and according to the World Health Organization, RO water should not be consumed… yet it’s consumed all across america and given to developing children. as a mother, this terrifies me.
gravity fed filtration systems
Gravity filtration is a method of filtering impurities from water by using gravity to pull liquid through a filter. you can spend $20 on a basic pitcher kind or hundreds on a fancy countertop kind. some of these filters will remove contaminants better than others (i.e. you get what you pay for).
while there are better water systems for your longterm health, which we will get to in part two of this series, I do think that well made gravity filters are incredibly useful in emergency situations like hurricanes where water is unsafe to drink. if you have one and want to upgrade your everyday drinking water, I’d still recommend keeping your gravity fed filter in your bug out bag!
and that is it for today. the next part of this series will discuss in home water ionizers.
until then,
lindsay :)
