The ingredients of tap water should be H2O and trace elements or electrolytes, such as sodium and potassium. In some areas, the mineral content includes calcium and magnesium. In others, elements such as lithium and manganese are present.
Those are all natural substances, just like lead, a heavy metal, and arsenic, a poisonous metal. Lead is found in surface and groundwater, because it is present in soil and stones. Arsenic is found in some water wells because it is also present in the soil.
When the ingredients in tap water are things like lead, arsenic, and even lithium, they are called contaminants. Purity standards vary, of course, and some people think that only demineralized waters are “pure.”
However, most health experts agree that trace mineral content is best, as the human body was designed to drink naturally. There is no natural water on the planet that does not have at least a slight trace of minerals.
Therefore, my purity standard is H2O with a trace mineral content that is free of chemical contaminants and the heavy metal lead. Also, I prefer not to drink cysts (parasites that cause gastrointestinal illnesses that range from mild to fatal).
Unfortunately, almost all publicly treated supplies, including the one that serves my home, have numerous chemical contaminants as well as traces of lead, and occasionally cysts are present, although the “count” is usually not high. So those would be the ingredients of the tap water in my house, if I had not installed effective purifiers.
There was a time when exposure to small amounts of lead was believed to be “safe.” Now, doctors have seen that lead stays in the body for many years. It accumulates in the organs and can be measured in the bloodstream. Various health and behavioral problems are seen in people with trace amounts of lead in their blood.
Aggressive and antisocial behaviors, as well as learning problems have been seen in adolescents. In adults, they have seen high blood pressure and heart disease. They believe there may also be a link to Alzheimer’s.
There was a time when exposure to small amounts of chemical contaminants, in parts per trillion, was believed to be “safe.” Now, researchers have shown that those chemicals also accumulate in our bodies over time. Many of the chemical ingredients in tap water cause cancer and exposure to them increases an individual’s lifetime cancer risk.
You don’t need an expensive reverse osmosis system to purify your home’s water. You need a device with a submicron filter to remove cysts, an ion exchange step to remove lead, and a two-stage carbon and media block to remove chemical contaminants.
The ion exchange also helps to balance the mineral content and improve the flavor, as well as the pH level. You don’t have to worry about the ingredients in your tap water if you have an effective home filtration system like mine. You can drink to your heart’s content, worry free.