The importance of Water | Part 1
Quality from the source to your tap
Back in my youth when I was a child water seemed to be free. If I wanted some it was as easy as walking into the kitchen, cracking open the tap in the sink, and voila. Ditto for when I had to use the rest room and shower. It was free flowing at will. Now there would be the occasion where the power would go out and the electric water well pump would not work due to lack of electricity. But other than that, water seemed like a non-issue.
Then at some point in my early teen years I started to see water that had been bottled and put for sale. I was like, “Wait what...? Paying money for water put into a plastic bottle...?!” It really was pronounced when I accompanied a friend to a rather large destination type amusement park. It was with his sister, and her boyfriend. This memory was so vivid due to the seemingly distant relationship he had with his sister. Coupled by the fact that her boyfriend didn't seem cool to us. On top of all that, my buddy was really into amusement parks, which threw me for a loop as he came off more as a bad ass. I wasn't into these places but wanted to support my friend, so I agreed to tag along. It was there when this bottled water for sale thing really hit me. So cutting through the weirdness of that day among all those thoughts, the prices they were charging...for water. The fact that there were still perfectly good water fountains nearby. I was confused.
This idea of selling bottled water to me seemed doomed for failure. Surely the general public would think it is just as preposterous as I did.
Fast forward to when I purchased my very own townhouse and I started to get really interested in the quality of the water since I was paying good money every month on its mortgage. Oh, and particularly because the water quality was suspect. It would stain white clothes, dishes, the bathroom tub, sinks, you name it. Once the owner’s association had a meeting with the company that maintained our water supply and the delivery system...about said water quality. We learned that it was untreated or unfiltered from the well. The staining I mentioned was from the minerals that were still present in solution. For the first time ever, I had purchased a water filter for I did not feel safe drinking straight from the tap. Also at that time, shower filters barely existed so I was forced to bathe in this water which I was not happy about. Every now and then, while rinsing out my mouth after brushing my teeth, I would reflexively spit out the water onto the vanity mirror. In that instant, I would discover it smelled of sulfur or tasted of bleach. An occurrence that has happened living in many different apartment complexes over the years.
Regardless, I still thought bottled water for sale was absurd. However, I do think it did spur on the water filtration industry. Thankfully this was near full force in my early 20's so my water became drinkable at least.
A few years after living in this townhouse, quality shower filters came into the marketplace. Immediately after purchasing one, my hair and skin came into a better state. Some years after that, the original style pitcher filter I used started to mess with my body. So, I found an even better one that just about cleans out all the bad stuff while not messing with me.
Between the two, I have had the opportunity to have high quality drinking and bathing water. And it reflected in my overall health.
Water itself is such a fundamental staple of life. Civilizations from the past highlighted how important it is by developing dwellings near water sources and invented plumbing systems as we know it. Which, of course, allowed such dwellings to be further away from a stream, lake, river, or ocean. Soon enough, geologists found out that water can be sourced from beneath the earth’s surface. Such an amazing discovery and technological feat of its day which has primed modern societies to move forward.
But what was going on with my experience with water quality, and why did entities feel propelled to sell it...?
That is an interesting question in and of itself. It could be because capitalism finally found its way into a commodity that was unmolested. For once upon a time, selling water in plastic bottles was a new idea and a new profit venture. Perhaps it took on a life of its own with folks who had water quality issues like I had, which is understandable. But, over time society started to figure out that the plastic those bottles were made from were leeching into the water it was containing. Which spurred on another industry, that of BPA free plastics.
Most plastics are made from petroleum. This fact means that many of those bottles are not very biodegradable. Which is why plastic trash in the oceans is such a problem.
My grandparent’s home in Greece is about a 15-minute drive away from the beach. When I visited there at the age of 14 it was pristine. During a visit at 19 it was more or less the same but plastic bags and bottles were around for a few years by that point. Some evidence of this started to show as trash on said beach at that time. Then during a visit at 27 I was left appalled. My cousin and I went to this beach later in the day, when it was cool. It was an overcast day, and we just wanted to get out a little. There were hardly any beachgoers which was not how I remembered it. And the water had plastic trash in it from the Mediterranean. It was very sad.
Thankfully, plastic bag bans have been becoming more commonplace. I believe when we purchase produce in grocery stores those plastic bags are at least biodegradable. However, plastic bottles are still around which is a concern.
All this being said, the quality of water you ingest from drinking and cooking, as well as the water you bathe and frolic in can have a negative impact on your health if you're not careful.
Municipal water supplies have been known to contain trace elements of pesticides from agricultural runoff, pharmaceuticals from pills and things dumped down the drain, fluoride, and chlorine. Chlorine is used by law to sanitize the water supply from bacteria present in it (most municipal water supplies treat wastewater...yes poo water…as part of a water reclamation effort). Fluoride is done by law in many municipalities for improved dental hygiene.
Well water supplies comprise of water runoff from rain, and wastewater filtered from the soil. High levels of minerals from the earth can be present in such wells. Bacteria like coliform, salmonella, and even E.coli can be found in well water.
Modern plumbing and water treatment systems do a good job of scrubbing those very harmful bits making water relatively safe to consume and bathe in. However, we can take things a few steps further.
The reason I thought to filter my own water was to get the smell out, and, if it was staining thing’s I didn't want whatever that was (most likely iron) in my body. However, as mentioned rotten egg smells were present, which points to sulfur. The bleach I would often taste when brushing my teeth was due to the water treatment people 'shocking' the well. This means, they would poor a small quantity of bleach into the well after it was suspect to contamination, like after servicing its pump or something. Problem is, they would not give any notice and the bleach would make its way to the tap of course. Chlorine would be present as well, on a consistent basis it seemed.
Since, I have learned that the high-quality pitcher filter I was using did in fact take all that stuff out, including fluoride, bacteria and other nefarious things mentioned above. They were for drinking water only, and took 15- minutes or so to produce about a gallon of water. The shower filter I used did not scrub the water as fine, therefore was not necessarily drinkable. But, it did take all the harsh minerals and chlorine out instantaneously without a loss of water pressure. This is huge for your skin and hair health.
Where I live now uses a well as a source of water. The water is filtered to remove large sediment particles only, then the harsh minerals (like iron) that are in solution are taken out via a process called water softening. Only specific regions of the world need this process done. On its way to the tap from here, the water is passed through an infrared light to kill any harmful bacteria present.
One can purchase expensive under the sink filters for their kitchen and bathrooms. Or, you can install a reverse osmosis system for your home. However, reverse osmosis is thought to scrub the water TOO much since it does remove absolutely every last trace of vital minerals in solution that your body actually needs.
All water filtration options commercially available are affordable and a wise investment. For certain, it can improve the quality of your health especially if your water supply is suspect. At the very least, it will offer a little extra insurance. You can even purchase easy to carry water bottles with filtration devices built in. These are useful for your place of work or school.
Bottom line, PAY ATTENTION TO YOUR WATER QUALITY.
In part 2, I will discuss the importance of regular water consumption for your overall health.
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