Note: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. (source, source) Other toxins in drinking and bath/shower water that can effect your health: 1. Research presented at the American Chemical Society (back in) 1986 demonstrated that showering in tap water leads to greater exposure to toxic chemicals than drinking the water.. As we get older, our bodies are less able to detoxify them, allowing them to roam our bodies and – in some cases – cause dementia-like symptoms. Thus, if you need to choose between one or the other, I would go with whichever you take more often—showers or baths. Environmental risks might include working long-term as a lifeguard at an over-chlorinated swimming pool, working as a Laundromat attendant, or working in an industry that allows regular exposure to chlorine gas. If you like the convenience of having chlorine-free water at all the faucets in your home, you might want to invest in a whole house water filter system. 2. © COPYRIGHT 2019 UHR. Bath Water Filter Reviews and Recommendations, Shower Filter Reviews and Recommendations, Whole House Water Filter Reviews and Recommendations. Soaking up water in this way is especially dangerous because the chlorine goes directly into your bloodstream. It may seem counterintuitive, but showering in chlorinated water can lead to more chlorine absorption than drinking chlorinated water. A few simple rules can help keep pool water safer. The Australian Drinking Water Guidelines recommend a safe chlorine to water ratio of 5mg to every litre. Most of the studies focus on long-term exposure. Having hot showers can increase your intake as the steam produced will contain chlorine in a gas form. Chlorine is without a doubt the most typically used drinking water disinfectant in all parts of the world. So reducing the amount of unintentional chemicals introduced into the pool water can help keep the water safer for everyone. The most current findings from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) indicate that virtually every home in America has a detectable level in the air of chloroform gas — a derivative of chlorine and a known carcinogen — due to chlorine and showering. Chlorine is a useful chemical that is used to sanitize tap water and make it safe for drinking. Leclerc is passionate about teaching individuals how to be safe in & around the water, & contributing to prevent drownings. Your skin will get much more saturation of the chlorine in water during a bath vs a shower. This article is focused primarily on the health risks associated with bathing and showering in unfiltered chlorinated water. In addition, bottled water companies have to use some form of disinfection—and chlorine is the cheapest. As we become more conscious of the health risks related to chlorine in our water supply, more people every day are turning to water filters to provide them with clean drinking and shower water. Normal tap water is pretty safe to use within a day, the bigger concern is the pressure from the shower head. When you see chlorinated water flowing through the hose; be careful, as it could cause eye/skin irritation or damage/stain your clothes. It may come as a shock, but the very method most people use to keep their bodies clean could be exposing them to unforeseen health risks. The chlorine vapors almost always make me cough or “catch my breath.”. Unfortunately it is also a toxic substance that is extremely irritating on human skin and lungs. The organism may also be found in warm pools that are not properly chlorinated, and in water heaters, the CDC says. However, during a shower, you will inhale more of the chlorine by-products. For example, when chlorine is added to water, it creates Trihalomethanes (THMs), such as chloroform. When you see chlorinated water flowing through the hose; be careful, as it could cause eye/skin irritation or damage/stain your clothes. So, even though the health hazard is not urgent, the magnitude of the problem is severe. The Facts are in. Our recommended bath water filters range in price from about $30 to $60, and the filters last from 6 to 18 months, depending on your usage. The water that you bathe or shower in will likely contain chlorine and be absorbed by your skin. Recently, experts have linked chlorine to … I have had a propensity for respiratory issues and I can definitely tell the difference when I shower in unfiltered tap water. Public health officials heralded water chlorination as one of the greatest public health achievements of the millennium. The introduction of chlorine was revolutionary to the water industry in the UK in the late 1800s. Given that the virus is a new one, experts cannot say with absolute certainty that it will be safe. While you may spend more time swimming or hanging out in pool of chlorinated water than you do in the bath or shower, the results of this study,published at PLos One, is disturbing. Chloroform, and other THMs, increase the number of free radicals in the body, which can cause cellular damage and are considered highly carcinogenic. Inhaling shower water also allows exposure to volatile organic chemicals (VOCs). * Chlorinated water also can irritate the eyes, leaving them red, itchy and burning. We are in our sixties and in very good health. And then there is the cosmetic effect of chlorine—it strips the protective oils from the skin and hair, causing excess drying and wrinkling of skin, itching and rashes, as well as dry and brittle hair. In any case, the best idea is to eliminate chlorine from your shower water altogether. Think-Outside-the-Book Publishing, LLC The Public Health Act 2010 requires all drinking water suppliers to implement a quality assurance program for the safe supply of drinking water. Remember, chloroform is a carcinogen, and it’s also linked to excessive free radical formation, cell mutation, and the oxidation of cholesterol. So, if your home water system is treated with chlorine, and you take baths or showers without some sort of filtration system specifically designed to weed out the chlorine, you’re chronically exposed. Fortunately, the solution for reducing exposure to chlorine and its by-products while bathing and showering is fairly simple and relatively inexpensive. Research has demonstrated that the cancer risk associated with chlorinated water may actually be due to showering and bathing, rather than drinking the disinfected water. Chlorine in shower water also has a very negative cosmetic effect, robbing our skin and hair of moisture and elasticity, resulting in a less vibrant and youthful appearance. Luckily, there are shower head attachments you can equip to reduce the number of contaminants you are showering in. I have found that many people understand that drinking chlorine in tap water is unhealthy and have invested in drinking water systems that filter out the chlorine and its by-products or they drink bottled water (which is not a viable solution since up to 40 percent of bottled water is unprocessed tap water).