Learn What May Be in Your Tampa Bay, FL Drinking Water

Chlorine is a calcium antagonist, long-term consumption of chlorinated water has been linked to the loss of calcium in bones. Chlorinated tap water has also been linked to childhood and adult asthma and allergies. The EPA allows a higher chlorine level in tap water (4 parts per million/ppm) than the recommended chlorine levels for public swimming pools (1-3 ppm).

• Chlorine can cause many harmful effects when consumed through drinking water. Moderate to heavy consumption of chlorinated tap water by pregnant women has been linked with miscarriage, birth defects, heart problems, cleft palate, and significant brain defects.
• The presence of chlorine in tap water has also been linked to the dramatic rise of heart disease in the United States. Scientists argue that chlorine is a primary cause of the development of atherosclerosis or the hardening of the arteries.
• Studies show chlorinated water is toxic to human intestinal bacteria, the body’s natural flora that converts organic compounds in our food into necessary nutrients.
• The American Journal of Epidemiology contains one of several studies that report chlorine disinfection byproducts (DBPs) are responsible for the increase in rectal and bladder cancers.
• Several research journals, including Environmental Health Perspectives, call the chlorine disinfectant byproduct Mutagen X (or MX) one of the most deadly carcinogens in tap water.
• After large rainstorms, your municipal water center may add more chlorine to the water supply to treat the potentially more significant number of microorganisms due to runoff or sewage discharges.
• During the summer, surface water used for drinking contains more organic material, and, as a result, DBP levels are often higher than they are in the fall and other times of the year.
• Chlorinated water increases the number of heavy metals such as lead and copper leached from pipes into tap water.

Chloramines

Chloramine is mainly used as a secondary disinfectant. Secondary disinfectants are added to water that has already been disinfected with a primary disinfectant, often chlorine (chlorine can be both a primary and a secondary disinfectant.) Secondary disinfectants help protect treated water from recontamination with pathogens as they flow through the distribution network to the consumer.

• Chloramine is lethal to aquatic animals and, like chlorine, must be removed from tap water with treatment products readily available from pet stores.
• Like chlorine, chloramine must be removed from municipal water before it is used for kidney dialysis. Chlorine and chloramine can harm kidney dialysis patients during the dialysis process if they permeate the dialysis barrier and contact with the blood of a dialysis patient.
• Chloramines are all respiratory irritants, with trichloramine being the most toxic (order of toxicity: monochloramine < dichloramine < trichloramine, which is the most severe.)

There are Several Forms of Chromium, One Is Good & One Is Bad.
Chromium occurs in the environment primarily in one of two valences. Chromium(VI) and Chromium(III) are used for chrome plating, dyes and pigments, leather tanning, and wood preserving. A less common form used for making steel is metallic chromium(Cr 0). The health hazards associated with exposure to chromium are dependent on its state of oxidation. Nearly 70 million Americans are believed to have hexavalent chromium in their drinking water. A study of U.S. tap water by the Environmental Working Group detected Chromium-6 in the drinking water of 31 of 35 cities tested.

Our leaders have weighed the health factors against the costs of removing the Chromium(VI). You can still expect your water bills to increase significantly to meet the currently inadequate guidelines.

The Good: Trivalent Chromium (III)

Trivalent chromium occurs naturally and is an essential nutrient.
Web MD states, “Drinking hard tap water supplies chromium to the body.” Web MD also states, “Chromium is a mineral our bodies use in small amounts for normal body functions, such as digesting food. It exists in many natural foods including brewer’s yeast, meats, potatoes (especially the skins), cheeses, molasses, spices, whole-grain bread and cereals, and fresh fruits and vegetables.” However, Web MD is referring to Chromium(III).

For most people, eating food containing Chromium(III) is the main route of intake because it occurs naturally in many vegetables, fruits, meats, yeasts, and grains. Chromium(III) is an essential nutrient for humans, and shortages may cause heart conditions, disruptions of metabolisms, and diabetes. However, too much Chromium(III) uptake can cause health effects such as skin rashes and other problems.

Chromium (VI)/Hexavalent Chromium: A Danger to Human Health
The most important thing you can do is limit your exposure to contaminated water. Hexavalent chromium is the same cancer-causing contaminant called the “safe” chromium by PG&E, and a judge ordered a settlement of 333 million dollars in 1993.

How does Chromium(VI) get into my water supply?
Chromium(VI) can occur naturally and might be present in some groundwater aquifers. Most Chromium(VI) reaches water supplies from industrial uses such as metal plating, stainless steel production, etc. Chromium compounds have been released into the environment via leakage, poor storage, or improper disposal practices. In short, Chromium(VI) occurs in nature, but it’s also a by-product of industry usages, such as chrome-plating.

According to an article by ATSDR :
“It can be absorbed by the lungs and gastrointestinal tract, and even to a certain extent by intact skin. Human occupational experience indicates that, when inhaled, chromium compounds are respiratory tract irritants, resulting in airway irritation, airway obstruction, and lung, nasal, or sinus cancer. Dose, exposure duration, and the specific compound involved can determine chromium’s adverse health effects.” Dose, exposure duration, and general sensitivity of the individual involved can determine chromium’s adverse health effects.

Health Risks of Showering/Bathing in Chromium?
What are the health risks from bathing/showering in water contaminated with Chromium(VI)? Skin exposure to high levels of Chromium(VI) may cause skin irritation. In some individuals, skin exposure to Chromium(VI) may cause allergic contact dermatitis. A scientific study showed that a person is not exposed to a significant amount of Chromium(VI) from breathing steam while showering (Finley et al. 1996).

“The respiratory tract is the major target organ for Chromium(VI) following inhalation exposure in humans. Shortness of breath, coughing, and wheezing were reported in cases where an individual inhaled very high concentrations of chromium trioxide,” according to the ATSDR. “Other effects noted from acute inhalation exposure to very high concentrations of Chromium(VI) include gastrointestinal and neurological effects, while dermal exposure causes skin burns in humans,” also stated by ATSDR.

Chromium can be measured in hair, urine, and blood. If you are experiencing any of the following, inform your doctor!

Chromium Allergic Dermatitis Is Characterized By:

• Dryness
• Erythema
• Fissuring
• Papules
• Scaling
• Small Vesicles
• Swelling
• Cancers: lung, nasal, sinus, respiratory, lung (if exposed greater than 20 years)
• Breathing problems, such as asthma, cough, shortness of breath, or wheezing.
• Pulmonary sensitization
• Severe dermatitis & painless skin ulcers
• Renal tubular damage
• Liver abnormalities
• Cardiovascular collapse

Various types of bacteria and viruses are categorized as pathogens or disease-causing organisms found in pre-treated and/or inadequately treated water. Here is a list of EPA-regulated bacteria/viruses in drinking water and their health risks:

• Legionella, a bacteria found naturally in the environment — typically in water, thrives in warm waters; this bacteria in the water is a health risk if aerosolized (e.g., in a shower or air conditioning system) and inhaled, resulting in a type of pneumonia known as Legionnaires disease.
• Enteroviruses are small viruses, such as polioviruses, echoviruses, and coxsackieviruses, living in the intestines of infected humans or animals; the three different polioviruses are 62-nonpolio enteroviruses that can cause disease in humans ranging from gastroenteritis to meningitis.

Bacteria and viruses can also be listed as “indicators,” which at a level outside of identified limits, may reflect “a problem in the treatment process or the integrity of the distribution system,” according to the EPA. Here is a list of EPA-regulated viral/bacterial indicators and their potential problems:

• Turbidity refers to the cloudiness of water and, although not a bacterium/virus, can hinder disinfection, provide an environment for microbial growth, and indicate the presence of bacteria/viruses and other disease-causing organisms that can produce symptoms such as nausea, diarrhea, cramps, and headaches.
• Coliforms are bacteria naturally present in the environment and used as indicators that other possibly harmful bacteria may be present (a warning sign is if coliforms are found in more samples than allowed).
• Fecal indicators, Enterococci or coliphage, are microbes that can indicate human or animal wastes in water. They can cause short-term health effects, including cramps, nausea, diarrhea, headaches, and more. They may pose a greater risk for people with severely weakened immune systems, including the elderly, young children, and infants.
• E. coli and fecal coliform are bacteria whose presence can indicate water contaminated by human or animal wastes, causing short-term health effects, including cramps, nausea, diarrhea, headaches, and more; they may also pose a greater risk for people with severely weakened immune systems, elderly, young children and infants