Byproducts of the Water Purification Process
Using chemicals to lower the amount of contaminants in water is somewhat effective, but the byproducts that occur from these processes can create another set of health risks altogether. These byproducts are produced when purification disinfectants, such as chlorine, react with natural compounds in the water.
This article will address the four most common byproducts that come from adding chemicals to water. These byproducts are:
- Trihalomethanes (THMs) is a broad term describing four different chemicals that are formed when chlorine and other disinfectants react with decaying vegetation in lakes and reservoirs. Chloroform is the most recognizable of these chemicals which evaporate quickly when exposed to air, but if it seeps into soil and percolates down into groundwater, it remains in the water for many years.
The health effects of chloroform and other THMs in drinking water vary significantly depending upon how long you have been exposed. Short-term exposure is known to cause fatigue, dizziness, nausea, and headaches. Long-term exposure has been known to cause cancer and tumors of the liver and kidneys, impaired function of the bladder, liver, and kidneys, and it may be linked to developmental difficulties in unborn children.
- Haloacetic acids are another byproduct that is formed when chlorine and other disinfectants react with organic compounds in water. Science is still discovering the impact that haloacetic acids have on our health, but experiments conducted by Canada�s National Water Research Institute indicate that:
- - They may cause cancer.
- - They may adversely affect the brain, testes, and eyes.
- - They may be responsible for damage to reproductive organs.
- Bromate is formed when ozone is used as a water disinfectant and reacts with naturally occurring bromides. Bromate has been known to cause nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and abdominal pain as well as problems with the nervous system, kidneys, and loss of hearing. Scientists suspect, but are not certain, that bromate may also cause cancer if ingested over a long period of time.
- Chlorite is a byproduct of using chlorine dioxide to disinfect water. Short-term health effects include lesions in the mouth and respiratory tract. Long-term effects include impaired function of the thyroid gland, kidneys, testes, and perhaps other reproductive problems.
Summary
Very few of us are at risk for short-term health problems from ingesting these disinfection byproducts, but medical researchers are far more concerned about what problems may occur after decades of exposure.
Chlorine and other disinfectants have been very successful at removing the pathogens that cause typhus, cholera, amebic dysentery, and other maladies that have plagued mankind for centuries. But science has yet to determine the full scope of how these disinfectant byproducts impact human health.
Some studies have referred to the drinking water in our cities and towns as �chemical cocktails� due to the variety of substances commonly found in a glass of tap water. While these byproducts are well down the list of dangerous water contaminants, they certainly remain a cause for concern.