AlkalizerH2O.com - Toxic Chemicals and Medical Drugs Found in Tap Water and Bottled Water!

BOTTLED WATER FACTS

The two-year study was done by the Washington-based Environmental Working Group, an organization founded by scientists that advocates stricter regulation. It found the contaminants in bottled water purchased in nine states and Washington, D.C.

Source - Fox News - 2008

The study's lab tests on 10 brands of bottled water detected 38 chemicals including bacteria, caffeine, the pain reliever acetaminophen, fertilizer, solvents, plastic-making chemicals and the radioactive element strontium. Though some probably came from tap water that some companies use for their bottled water, other contaminants probably leached from plastic bottles, the researchers said.

Source - Environmental Working Group - 2009

According to government and industry estimates, about one fourth of bottled water is bottled tap water (and by some accounts, as much as 40 percent is derived from tap water)—sometimes with additional treatment, sometimes not.

Source - Environmental Working Group - 2009

According to a study by the Environmental Working Group, bottled water is just as polluted as a tap water. In fact, twenty percent of bottled water has more chlorine than California's state regulations will allow in tap water.

Source - Environmental Working Group - 2009

"Bottled water isn't any safer or purer than what comes out of the tap," says Dr. Sarah Janssen, science fellow with the Natural Resources Defense Council in San Francisco, which conducted an extensive analysis of bottled water back in 1999. "In fact, it's less well-regulated, and you're more likely to know what's in tap water."

Source - LA TIMES 2008

Bottled water, which is regulated by the Food and Drug Administration, "is not tested as thoroughly or as frequently" as tap water, which is regulated by the Environmental Protection Agency, Coifman says. "It's not that bottled water is going to kill you. … But there's also no reason to believe it's better," despite marketing that is all about "health, wholesomeness and purity."

Source - LA TIMES 2008

When you buy single-serve bottles of water, your money is actually purchasing water regulated less than tap, plus advertising. For that, you’ll pay more than three times for H₂O what you pay for gasoline—$12 per gallon.

Source - Business Week - 2010

Single-serving bottled water costs up to 4,000 times as much as tap. It’s not only the cost, of course, that’s the problem. Cities must filter and disinfect tap, which comes from surface water. No federal filtration or disinfection requirements exist for bottled water.

Source - Business Week - 2010

BOTTLE WATER CONTAINS BPA

MOVEMENT TO BAN BPA: Legislators in many states have started movements to ban BPA, and U.S Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) has introduced legislation to ban BPA in infant products throughout the United States. In Canada, law makers indicated in April 2008 that they intend to ban BPA in baby bottles.

Although the FDA has defended the safety of BPA and indicated that it is safe to use in baby products, many retailers, such as Wal-Mart and Toys “R” Us have stopped selling any baby bottles that contain the BPA chemical.

BPA has been shown to cause changes in the genital tract, a decline in testicular testosterone, decreasing maternal behaviors and changes in breast tissue, predisposing it to carcinogens.

Source - AboutLawsuits.com - 2008

Bisphenol-A [is a] a chemical that mimics the female sex hormone estrogen and is used to make consumer products ranging from plastic baby bottles to the linings of tin cans.

Source - Brenda Watson and Leonard Smith, The Detox Strategy: Vibrant Health in 5 Easy Steps

You should be drinking a lot of water, but please beware of plastic water bottles. Plastics made from polycarbonate resin can leach Bisphenol-A (BPA), a potent hormone disruptor. BPA may impair the reproductive organs and have adverse effects on tumors, breast tissue development, and prostate development by reducing sperm count. BPA can leach into water bottles through normal wear and tear and exposure to heat and cleaning agents.

Source - C. W. Randolph, M.D., From Belly Fat to Belly FLAT: How Your Hormones Are Adding Inches to Your Waistline and Subtracting Years from Your Life

A 2007 review of 700 studies involving BPA, published in the journal Reproductive Toxicology, found that infants and fetuses were the most vulnerable to adverse effects from this toxic substance.

Source - Samuel S. Epstein, Randall Fitzgerald, Toxic Beauty: How Cosmetics and Personal Care Products Endanger Your Health . . . And What You Can Do about It

The plastic industry will tell you that small amounts of BPA are nothing to worry about. A study published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives, however, suggests that when mice are exposed to low levels of BPA for several days, they develop insulin resistance. What is so alarming about this discovery is that the levels of BPA used in the experiment would be considered safe for humans by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Source - Joe Graedon, M.S. and Teresa Graedon, Ph.D., Best Choices From the People's Pharmacy

Lets call recycling what it is- a fraud, a sham, a scam perpetrated by big business on the citizens and municipalities of America. Look who sponsors the National Recycling Coalition: behind America Recycles Day: Coca-Cola, Pepsico, Anheuser-Busch, Coors, Owens-Illinois, International Bottled Water Association, the same people who brought you that other fraud, Keep America Beautiful.

Recycling is simply the transfer of producer responsibility for what they produce to the taxpayer who has to pick it up and take it away.

Source - TreeHugger.com

Myth: Bottled water is convenient.

Reality: What is more convenient than nearly-free water running from your kitchen tap, and from public sources in schools, parks, offices, and sports stadiums? Sadly, we have come to confuse "disposability" with convenience; but there is nothing convenient about shipping water thousands of miles from its source, or all the waste and other costs associated with needless production and disposal of plastics. More convenient than buying bottled water is buying a reusable bottle and filling it from public sources. The leading organizations that promote reusable bottles recommend stainless steel or lined aluminum as sturdiest and safest.

Myth: Plastic bottles are recyclable, and are being made with thinner plastics, making them increasingly "green."

Reality: Some 4 billion PET bottles end up in the U.S. waste stream each year, costing cities some $70 million in cleanup and landfill costs.4 A plastic water bottle can take up to 1000 years to degrade in a landfill;5 when plastic is burned in incinerators, it releases dioxins, some of the most harmful manmade chemicals that exist. And most recycling is actually downcycling: making lower quality products than the originals, and requiring the addition of virgin plastics and toxic chemicals in the process.6 There is nothing green about that.

Myth: Still, bottled water is green. I mean, it’s got to be, it’s water…

Reality: It takes about three liters of water and approximately 3.4 megajoules of energy to produce and sell a single liter of water in a plastic bottle.7 The 31.2 billion liters of bottled water consumed annually in the United States require more than 17 million barrels of oil to produce.8 According to the Container Recycling Institute, in the U.S. an estimated 144 billion containers were wasted in 2005.9 While recycling the bottles offers moderate environmental benefits, drinking tap water has a MUCH lower carbon footprint than drinking bottled water.10 That makes drinking tap water one of the best, and easiest, things we can do to reduce global warming.

Myth: Public water systems are inefficient and wasteful

Reality: When the rubber hits the road, it is government spending on public works that has always bailed our economy out during fiscal crises. As part of the recent Stimulus Package, for example, the Senate appropriated $6.4 billion for clean drinking water projects11 – because these projects create jobs and long-term benefits. At the same time, public sector workers are a priceless resource, holding important knowledge and skills for efficient, effective water management. The answer to complaints that public agencies are not efficient enough is not to underfund and eliminate them, but to improve them. We should be investing more in public services, and investing more power in ordinary citizens to regulate them…not less.

Myth: The bottled water industry is merely meeting consumer demand.

Reality: It is not meeting consumer demand – it is creating it. Let’s repeat: Between 10 and 15 percent of the price of a bottle of water goes to advertising costs. Effective marketing of bottled water has contributed to undermining confidence – and investment – in public tap water and encouraging underfunding of public agencies.

Myth: Okay, but still…public water fountains are kind of gross.

Reality: With enough water pressure and proper design, lips don’t touch the spigot. And even if they do, municipal water supplies are chlorinated to kill bacteria. Just let some water run out before drinking, put that water in a reusable bottle, and you’ve got convenience that can’t be beat.

Myth: Putting a price on water makes people value it more, and thus conserve it.

Reality: Bottled water is, by and large, an unnecessary product that encourages wasteful consumption – and it takes water, a public good and a common need – and submits it to the whims of the market. Price is not equivalent to value, and some resources, in order to be valued properly, must be regulated outside of the market. In the U.S. there are many examples, such as libraries, public schools, parks, highways, and public hospitals. Water is not a commodity to be bought and sold for profit – it is a human need, and must be regulated as such.

4. http://www.productpolicy.org/

5. http://www.container-recycling.org/

6. See McDonough and Braungart, Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things (2002).

7. http://www.container-recycling.org/media/newsarticles/ plastic/2009/1-22-BottledWaterCreates.htm

8. http://www.container-recycling.org/media/newsarticles/ plastic/2009/1-22-BottledWaterCreates.htm

9. See Container Recycling Institute, Water, Water Everywhere, February 2007.

10. See "Life Cycle Assessment of Drinking Water Delivery Systems: Bottled Water, Tap Water and Home/Office Delivery Water," Oregon Department of Environmental Quality, http://www.deq.state.or.us/lq/ sw/wasteprevention/drinkingwater.htm

11. http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/2009-02-12-stimulus-plan-breakdown_N.htm

Source - Storyofstuff.org

Myth: Bottled water is always safer than tap water.

Reality: Not necessarily. Bottled water is regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which has established water quality requirements similar to those established by the EPA for public water supplies. Bottled water products and public water supplies are not required by either agency to be 100% free of contaminants. However, the end product should always meet all federal, state, or provincial drinking water standards.

Tip: To learn more about your local water quality, contact your municipal water supply and request a free copy of their annual water quality report. You can also contact your favorite bottled water company to see if they have a similar report available. These reports should identify the contaminants present and the amounts detected, if any.

Source - www.nsf.org

Myth: Water will purify itself, so we don't need to worry about it.

Reality: We cannot take the quality of our drinking water for granted. Every pollutant we put into the environment potentially can make its way to our drinking water supplies. It is important that we protect our water resources from contamination and ensure that our public utilities and private well owners have adequate resources to be able to provide safe drinking water supplies.

Source - www.nsf.org

High Level of Bacteria Found in Bottled Water in Canada

ScienceDaily (May 26, 2010) — A Montreal study finds heterotrophic bacteria counts, in more than 70 percent of bottled water samples, exceed the recommended limits specified by the United States Pharmacopeia (USP). Researchers from Ccrest laboratories report their results May 25 at the 110th General Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology in San Diego.

"Despite having the cleanest tap water a large number of urban Canadians are switching over to bottled water for their daily hydration requirements. Unsurprisingly, the consumer assumes that since bottled water carries a price tag, it is purer and safer than most tap water," says Sonish Azam, a researcher on the study.

Regulatory bodies such as Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Health Canada have not set a limit for the heterotrophic bacteria counts in bottled drinking water. However, according to the USP not more than 500 colony forming units (cfu) per milliliter should be present in drinking water.

The study was initiated in response to a Ccrest employee's complaint of fowl taste and sickness after consumption of bottled water at the company. Azam and her colleagues Ali Khamessan and Massimo Marino randomly purchased several brands of bottled water from a local marketplace and subjected them to microbiological analysis. They discovered more than 70 percent of famous brands tested did not meet the USP specifications for drinking water.

"Heterotrophic bacteria counts in some of the bottles were found to be in revolting figures of one hundred times more than the permitted limit," says Azam. In comparison the average microbial count for different tap water samples was 170 cfu/mL.

Azam stresses that these bacteria most likely do not cause disease and they have not confirmed the presence of disease-causing bacteria, but the high levels of bacteria in bottled water could pose a risk for vulnerable populations such as pregnant women, infants, immunocompromised patients and the elderly.

"Bottled water is not expected to be free from microorganisms but the cfu observed in this study is surprisingly very high. Therefore, it is strongly recommended to establish a limit for the heterotrophic bacteria count as well as to identify the nature of microorganisms present in the bottled water," says Azam.

Source - The above story is reprinted (with editorial adaptations by ScienceDaily staff) from materials provided by American Society for Microbiology, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.

People Think Bottled Water Is Healthy ... Sort Of

ScienceDaily (July 8, 2009) — A small study has shown that people tend to believe that bottled water is somehow healthier than water from the tap. However, the research also shows that people are unsure exactly what these benefits might be and that they are rarely the main reason for choosing bottled.

Lorna Ward led a team of researchers from the University of Birmingham who carried out interviews with users of the University's sports centre. She said: "The majority of participants believed that bottled water has some health benefits, but that they were not necessarily significant or superior to the benefits provided by tap water. Convenience and taste were more influential factors for participants when deciding to buy a bottle of water".

Bottled water was described as being more 'pure' than tap water, and was also described as containing more 'minerals'. As one respondent put it,

"I mean I know it's good but I'm not sure why it's good"

However, most participants expressed doubts as to the extent of the health benefits of bottled water compared with tap water, believing that bottled water did have health benefits, but that these benefits were negligible. The most commonly cited reason for purchasing bottled water was convenience. The researchers conclude that, "Our results suggest that the recent surge in bottled water consumption may not be motivated by beliefs about health benefits associated with bottled water".

Source - The above story is reprinted (with editorial adaptations by ScienceDaily staff) from materials provided by BioMed Central, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.

Early Death Comes From Drinking Distilled Water
Dr. Joseph Mercola

During nearly 19 years of clinical practice I, Dr. Joseph Mercola, have had the opportunity to observe the health effects of drinking different types of water. Most of you would agree that drinking unfiltered tap water could be hazardous to your health because of things like parasites, chlorine, fluoride and dioxins.

Many health fanatics, however, are often surprised to hear me say that drinking distilled water on a regular, daily basis is potentially dangerous.

Paavo Airola wrote about the dangers of distilled water in the 1970's when it first became a fad with the health food crowd.

Distillation is the process in which water is boiled, evaporated and the vapor condensed. Distilled water is free of dissolved minerals and, because of this, has the special property of being able to actively absorb toxic substances from the body and eliminate them.

Studies validate the benefits of drinking distilled water when one is seeking to cleanse or detoxify the system for short periods of time (a few weeks at a time).

Fasting using distilled water can be dangerous because of the rapid loss of electrolytes (sodium, potassium, chloride) and trace minerals like magnesium, deficiencies of which can cause heart beat irregularities and high blood pressure. Cooking foods in distilled water pulls the minerals out of them and lowers their nutrient value.

Distilled water is an active absorber and when it comes into contact with air, it absorbs carbon dioxide, making it acidic. The more distilled water a person drinks, the higher the body acidity becomes.

According to the US Environmental Protection Agency, "Distilled water, being essentially mineral-free, is very aggressive, in that it tends to dissolve substances with which it is in contact.

Notably, carbon dioxide from the air is rapidly absorbed, making the water acidic and even more aggressive. Many metals are dissolved by distilled water."

The most toxic commercial beverages that people consume (i.e. cola beverages and other soft drinks) are made from distilled water. Studies have consistently shown that heavy consumers of soft drinks (with or without sugar) spill huge amounts of calcium, magnesium and other trace minerals into the urine.

The more mineral loss, the greater the risk for osteoporosis, osteoarthritis, hypothyroidism, coronary artery disease, high blood pressure and a long list of degenerative diseases generally associated with premature aging.

A growing number of health care practitioners and scientists from around the world have been advocating the theory that aging and disease is the direct result of the accumulation of acid waste products in the body.

There is a great deal of scientific documentation that supports such a theory. A poor diet may be partially to blame for the waste accumulation. Meats, sugar, white flour products, fried foods, soft drinks, processed foods, alcohol, dairy products and other junk foods cause the body to become more acidic. Stress, whether mental or physical can lead to acid deposits in the body.

There is a correlation between the consumption of soft water (distilled water is extremely soft) and the incidence of cardiovascular disease. Cells, tissues and organs do not like to be dipped in acid and will do anything to buffer this acidity including the removal of minerals from the skeleton and the manufacture of bicarbonate in the blood.

The longer one drinks distilled water, the more likely the development of mineral deficiencies and an acid state. I have done well over 3000 mineral evaluations using a combination of blood, urine and hair tests in my practice. Almost without exception, people who consume distilled water exclusively, eventually develop multiple mineral deficiencies.

Those who supplement their distilled water intake with trace minerals are not as deficient but still not as adequately nourished in minerals as their non-distilled water drinking counterparts even after several years of mineral supplementation.

The ideal water for the human body should be alkaline and this requires the presence of minerals like calcium and magnesium.

Distilled water tends to be acidic and can only be recommended as a way of drawing poisons out of the body. Once this is accomplished, the continued drinking of distilled water is a bad idea.

... Disease and early death is more likely to be seen with the long term drinking of distilled water. Avoid it except in special circumstances.

Zoltan P. Rona MD MSc

REFERENCES

Airola, P. 1974. How To Get Well. Phoenix, AZ: Health Plus Publishers.

Baroody, Dr. Theodore A. Jr. Alkalinize or Die. California:Portal Books, 1995.

Haas, Elson M. Staying Healthy with Nutrition. The Complete Guide to Diet & Nutritional Medicine. Berkeley, California:Celestial Arts, 1992; p. 22.

Rona, Zoltan P. and Martin, Jeanne Marie. Return to the Joy of Health, Vancouver: Alive Books, 1995.

Rona, Zoltan P. Childhood Illness and The Allergy Connection. Rocklin, California:Prima Books, 1996.

Here are some bullet points to consider in comparing Enagic® ionizers to IonWays ionizers:

Filtration: Biostone filtration system is available in 1 micron and .01 micron levels of filtration. Both options have calcium and tourmaline to improve performance (Enagic® does not have a .01 Biostone or the Calcium or Tourmaline). The replacement filter for the Biostone filter is also set at an honest retail price.
Installation: the IonWays Athena can be installed three ways including undersink and directly to the cold water line.
Functionality: the IonWays Athena has increased functionality in terms of a flow control valve that operates independently of the tap (Enagic® flow is controlled by tap).
Cleaning: the IonWays Athena and Delphi have a patented reversible chamber so you can ALWAYS get alkaline or kangen water even while the machine is cleaning (with Enagic® models you have to wait while unit is cleaning).
Performance: the IonWays Athena, ISIS and Delphi in side by side comparisons has been proven to be at least equal to the Enagic® Levelluk DX II. The Athena and Delphi, will most likely outperform Enagic® (not tested yet against Enagic®). All IonWays ionization plates and chambers are made in Japan. Emco Tech research laboratory in Japan employs over 10 PhDs to ensure that Emco Tech continue to led the way in technological innovation. Emco Tech also manufactures in Japan large commercial water ionizers (up to $500,000) that are sent to companies around the world.
Cutting Edge Technology: Emco Tech's latest models have new patented features to further distinguish them in value and capability. Features like:
1) The new mesh plating (increases surface area of electrode creating a stronger water). This means that Emco Tech is able to achieve a higher ORP and pH output without having to increase the size of the plates. Larger and more plates means more electricity and more wear. As in all advanced electronic technologies - the size of the components decrease over time, not increase. There are a number of new ionizer companies (especially from China) who boast that their plate sizes are larger - in electronics larger is not necessarily better.
2) A New patented SOL automatic valve system to optimize ORP at lower levels of pH (Enagic® doesn't have a valve other than the tap!)
3) The New patented DARC cleaning system which eliminates mineral deposits ensuring more power and longer plate life.
Manufacturing Standards: Emco Tech's parent company makes Medical Equipment and Emco Tech has been manufacturing ionizers since 1982. Emco Tech manufactures in a state of the art ISO 9001 certified and ionizer-dedicated plant (they do not make anything else). ISO is the world-recognized certification for quality standards in manufacturing (see: www.iso.org). Certification is very expensive and time consuming. IonWays products are additionally CE, UL and RoK2 certified.
Reliability: Emco Tech has the lowest return rate for service in the industry (less than 1%). When something does need repair, we have two repair and fulfillment facilities on both coasts ensuring prompt service.
Good Looks: IonWays machines (particularly the latest models) are sophisticated, stylish and contemporary looking.
Support: All units come with a half hour DVD that shows how to install and get the best alkaline or kangen water out of your ionizer. They also come with a free DVD (that cost over $40,000 to produce) on the benefits of alkaline water. Professional, trained staff are available to answer any questions.
Value: When you buy a IonWays ionizer, you buy top quality at an honest, retail price. To compare with latest models Click Here

TAP WATER FACTS

Myth: Bottled water tastes better than tap water.

Reality: In taste test after taste test, people can’t tell the difference. Corporate Accountability International’s "Think Outside the Bottle" campaign has held countless taste tests comparing bottled water to tap water, as have many media outlets, from The New York Times to Cleveland’s local TV news channel. The results generally favor the tap. Ultimately, however, the point isn’t whether one tastes better than the other—its how our tastes are shaped by advertising, rather than by what’s good for us. Between 10 and 15 percent of the price of a bottle of water goes to cover advertising costs.1 We not only buy their myths, it turns out we pay extra for them.

"In some cases, it appears bottled water is no less polluted than tap water and, at 1,900 times the cost, consumers should expect better," said Jane Houlihan, an environmental engineer who co-authored the study.

Myth: Bottled water is safer than tap water.

Reality: In the US, tap water is regulated by the EPA,2 while bottled water is regulated by the FDA. Unlike the FDA,3 which has no reporting requirements, EPA requires your local utility to provide an Annual Water Quality Report, also called a Consumer Confidence Report, which must show any violations of drinking water quality standards. Local health departments also often provide testing services or have lists of accredited labs that do water testing.

1. Ferrier, Catherine, "Bottled Water: Understanding a Social Phenomenon," World Wildlife Fund, April 2001, 18.

2. http://www.epa.gov/

3.http://www.fda.gov/

Source - Storyofstuff.org

Associated Press in 1998 found traces of pharmaceuticals in drinking-water supplies that serve more than 41 million Americans

Here's the list of metropolitan areas, with the number of pharmaceuticals detected and some examples of specific drugs that were found, or where tests were negative, not conducted or awaiting results:

Albuquerque, N.M.: tests negative

Arlington, Texas: 1 (unspecified pharmaceutical)

Atlanta: 3 (acetaminophen, caffeine and cotinine)

Austin, Texas: tests negative

Baltimore: no testing

Birmingham, Ala.: no testing

Boston: no testing

Charlotte, N.C.: no testing

Chicago: no testing

Cincinnati: 1 (caffeine)

Cleveland: no testing

Colorado Springs, Colo.: no testing

Columbus, Ohio: 5 (azithromycin, roxithromycin, tylosin, virginiamycin and caffeine)

Concord, Calif.: 2 (meprobamate and sulfamethoxazole)

Dallas: results pending

Denver: (unspecified antibiotics)

Detroit: (unspecified drugs)

El Paso, Texas: no testing

Fairfax, Va.: no testing

Fort Worth, Texas: no testing

Fresno, Calif.: no testing

Honolulu: no testing

Houston: no testing

Indianapolis: 1 (caffeine)

Jacksonville, Fla.: no testing

Kansas City, Mo.: no testing

Las Vegas: 3 (carbamazepine, meprobamate and phenytoin)

Long Beach, Calif.: 2 (meprobamate and phenytoin)

Los Angeles: 2 (meprobamate and phenytoin)

Louisville, Ky.: 3 (caffeine, carbamazepine and phenytoin)

Memphis, Tenn.: no testing

Mesa, Ariz.: no testing

Miami: no testing

Milwaukee: 1 (cotinine)

Minneapolis: 1 (caffeine)

Nashville, Tenn.: no testing

New Orleans: 3 (clofibric acid, estrone and naproxen)

New York City: no testing

Northern New Jersey: 7 (caffeine, carbamazepine, codeine, cotinine, dehydronifedipine, diphenhydramine and sulfathiazole)

Oakland, Calif.: no testing

Oklahoma City: no testing

Omaha, Neb.: no testing

Orlando, Fla.: no testing

Philadelphia: 56 (including amoxicillin, azithromycin, carbamazepine, diclofenac, prednisone and tetracycline)

Phoenix: no testing

Portland, Ore.: 4 (acetaminophen, caffeine, ibuprofen and sulfamethoxazole)

Prince George's and Montgomery counties, Md.: no testing

Riverside County, Calif.: 2 (meprobamate and phenytoin)

Sacramento, Calif.: no testing

San Antonio: no testing

San Diego: 3 (ibuprofen, meprobamate and phenytoin)

San Francisco: 1 (estradiol)

San Jose, Calif.: no testing

Santa Clara, Calif.: no testing

Seattle: no testing

Southern California: 2 (meprobamate and phenytoin)

Suffolk County, N.Y.: no testing

Tucson, Ariz.: 3 (carbamazepine, dehydronifedipine and sulfamethoxazole)

Tulsa, Okla.: no testing

Virginia Beach, Va.: tests negative

Washington, D.C.: 6 (carbamazepine, caffeine, ibuprofen, monensin, naproxen and sulfamethoxazole)

Wichita, Kan.: no testing.

About the study:

At least one pharmaceutical was detected in tests of treated drinking water supplies for 24 major metropolitan areas, according to an Associated Press survey of 62 major water providers and data obtained from independent researchers.

Only 28 tested drinking water. Three of those said results were negative; Dallas says tests were conducted but results are not yet available. Thirty-four locations said no testing was conducted.

Test protocols varied widely. Some researchers looked only for one pharmaceutical or two; others looked for many.

Some water systems said tests had been negative, but the AP found independent research showing otherwise. Both prescription and non-prescription drugs were detected.

Because coffee and tobacco are so widely used, researchers say their byproducts are good indicators of the presence of pharmaceuticals. Thus, they routinely test for, and often find, both caffeine and nicotine's metabolite cotinine more frequently than other drugs.

Source: The Associated Press

Fluoride is TOXIC.

Fluoride has been shown to cause everything from allergies, including bone cancer, skeletal fluorosis, arthritis, impaired thyroid hormone status, impaired neurodevelopment of children, and calcification of the pineal gland.

These are not small issues to brush aside. Each one of them have effects that cause severe damage to our body.

Source - Rethinking Flouridation By Peter and Tim Montague, eds.
Environmental Research Foundation, August 2, 2007

Private Drinking Water Supplies Pose Challenges to Public Health

ScienceDaily (Apr. 6, 2010) — An estimated three to four million people -- about one in every eight Canadians -- drink water from private supplies.

Infrequent testing and maintenance puts consumers of these water supplies at greater risk of contamination than public systems, states an article in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal). It goes on to state people need to take personal responsibility for their water quality and governments need to provide better oversight and resources in order to improve the case.

Water-borne disease outbreaks are common in the developing world but can also occur in affluent countries. In the United States, 19.5 million water-borne illnesses occur every year (all sources) and three quarters (76%) of drinking water outbreaks are associated with groundwater sources.

A study from the United Kingdom found outbreaks of water-borne infectious diseases among people with private water supplies were 35 times greater than among consumers of publicly-supplied water.

While most Canadians are supplied by regulated public municipal water systems, people who live in rural areas often rely on private supplies, most of which are groundwater sources such as wells. These may not be well-maintained or regularly tested for water quality. An Ontario study found that only 8% of private water systems met the current provincial recommendation for frequency of testing.

"The perception that private systems, the majority of which come from groundwater in rural and small towns, yield higher water quality compared to municipal sources is unclear and unfounded," writes Dr. Jeffrey Charrois a research scientist with Alberta Innovates -- Technology Futures and an adjunct assistant professor with University of Alberta. "The provision of safe, secure drinking water is necessary for protecting public health and requires an understanding of the responsibility, proper technical training plus the dedication to carry out those tests."

Contamination of wells can occur from bacteria, enteric viruses and protozoa -- pathogenic organisms capable of causing water-borne-illnesses -- as well as chemicals such as pesticides, nitrate, and naturally occurring arsenic. A review of 288 water-related infectious disease outbreaks in Canada over a 27 year period found that two-thirds were associated with private or semi-private supplies. In another survey of 1292 drinking water wells on farmsteads in Ontario, 40% of the wells were found to contain one or more contaminants at levels above maximum acceptable concentrations.

Water quality oversight of public systems typically rests with the ministry of health or environment, depending on the province or territory. "Issues related to the quality of water from private wells are clearly not on the radar of most Canadians," writes the author.

"Owners of private systems must take personal responsibility for their water quality, but they need more information and better resources," concludes Dr. Charrois. "Local, provincial and federal governments must develop and deliver the education, awareness and innovative programs that encourage people to take the steps to ensure that their private water systems are safe."

Source - The above story is reprinted (with editorial adaptations by ScienceDaily staff) from materials provided by Canadian Medical Association Journal, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.

Kangen vs Enagic® Q&A and FAQ

Enagic Corporation of Japan is the owner of US registered trademarks KANGEN WATER and ENAGIC. This interest in kangen, in the USA, coincided with a push into the alkaline water market by the MLM (Multi Level Marketing) company Enagic®. Enagic corporation has been doing a fantastic job of introducing the concept of alkaline and acid water to many people who otherwise would not know about the wonderful, healthful benefits of such treated water.

Kangen produced by Enagic® Corporation's water ionizers is different from alkaline, ionized water produced from other manufacturers' water ionizers.
Answer: Enagic® water ionizers produce the same type of alkaline and acidic water in that their machines contain a filter and ionizing chamber just like all other alkaline water ionizers.
The ionizing chamber in an Enagic® brand basically uses the same technology as do all other water ionizers to split the water into acid and alkaline streams. Kangen is taken as simply another name for ionized, alkaline water. Nowhere will you be able to find a definition of kangen that is different than alkaline water made from a typical ionizer because there is not any.
In trying to make a difference where there is none, one Enagic® representative's web site trys to describe Kangen by saying, "technically, in order to be classified as Kangen Water®, it needs to show a negative ORP (-ORP) in the range of -200mV to -450mV, while typical Ionized Alkaline Water shows anywhere between +100mV and -100mV, depending on the quality of the machine". Even most water ionizers from China can get at least a -250mV ORP reading (and it should be noted that IonLife's and Jupiter ionizers can get over -800mV ORP.)
That been said, Enagic® through its MLM is doing a fantastic job of introducing the concept of alkaline and acid water to people who otherwise would not know about it.

Kangen is better than alkaline, ionized water.
Answer: No, they are basically the same thing as discussed above. There are two ways the quality of kangen or alkaline water are measured - by how acid or alkaline the water becomes (pH) and by how much ionization occurs (ORP).
For example, independent tests carried out by ex Enagic® representatives (concerned about the high prices been charged), showed that the Jupiter Science Melody produced as high an ORP (negative ionization) as did the tested Enagic® model. Also when salt was added to the calcium port in the Melody, it produced a stronger acidic water than that achieved by the tested Enagic® machine.
Unfortunately when there are very high prices there can also be a need to justify the difference - such as in the following comment from an independent representative's website:
"This water technology is practically non-existent outside Japan. ... Even worse, there are some people who are trying to sell (the) cheaper Ionized Alkaline Water machines as if they were at the same or a similar level as with the Kangen Water® machines, only cheaper."

Some Enagic® representatives' websites claim that their Enagic® units and kangen are recognized and approved by the Japanese Health Department, unlike all other ionizers.
Answer: In the 1980s the Japanese Health Department recognized that ionized alkaline water from water ionizers had proven health benefits and described water ionizers as health devices.
Major Korean corporations who also manufacture in Japan such as Hyundai, LG and Samsung use standard Jupiter Science parts to manufacture their own ionizers and all have approval from the Japan Ministry of Health.
We challenge anyone to be able to produce a document or page from any government web site that say specifically that their water ionizers were the only ones approved as Health Devices by the Japanese Government.
Below are examples of comments from an Enagic® web site and ones that are often voiced.
"The Enagic® is approved by The Japan Ministry of Health, as a top quality medical device" or "Enagic® units and kangen water® are recognized and approved by the Japanese Health Department".

The well known authorities on ionized water endorse or recommend Enagic® ionizers rather than other ionizers.
Answer: The best known authorities in the USA such as Dr. Robert Young (author of The pH Miracle), Dr. Theodore Baroody (author of Alkalize or Die), and Sang Whang (author of Reverse Aging) all recommend and sell Jupiter Science water ionizers because they want to give their customers high quality kangen or alkaline water ionizers at an honest price. Other well know alkaline authorities that endorse and use Jupiter Science water ionizers include Daniel Reed (author of The Tao of Detox), Harald Tietze (author of Youthing) and Ian Hamilton (author of The Untold Truth...).

Kangen or Enagic® ionizers cost more than Jupiter Science water ionizers because they are better.
Answer: No, expensive is not better.
The IonWays ISIS is priced at $1495 and offers some important user friendly features that are missing with the Enagic® products (see below).

MLM "reps" typically do not have a thorough technical understanding of the properties of kangen, ionization and how the two together produce health benefits. In Multi Level Marketing (MLM), there are exceptions; reps who have really rolled up their sleeves and educated themselves, but the fact remains there can be a lot of "bogus" information fed to people who have been to MLM presentations. Going to a few MLM presentations does not make one an expert in something, especially something as complex and technical as ionization. MLM "reps" can be innocently fed misinformation and led to believe in half truths. Then these misinformed "reps", who are motivated by the MLM dream, go forth and perpetrate these inaccuracies and mislead naïve customers into falsely thinking they are getting something of great value. The price of Enagic® models has more to do with compensating the Enagic® MLM reps than the actual cost or the comparative technology inherent in their ionizers. To verify that, simply ask Enagic® about their compensation plan and see how much money is paid to the various levels of the network organization when one machine is sold.

It is estimated that Enagic® pays out well over $2500 on each ionizer sale to its downline (and this does not include the profit made by the company itself). The highest retail price you pay for a IonWays water ionizer is less than $2,695. You do the math.

Enagic® Corporation of Japan has been marketing "Kangen Water®" ionizers for 30 years.
Answer: Our research has led us to believe that what became the Enagic® brand was initially manufactured by Toyo Metal a/k/a Toyo Aitex who recently sold marketing rights to Enagic® (also called the Thohan Kiden organization). Toyo Metal water ionizer were called the Apex, Pure Porte 11 or Protec units and these early models were manufactured by and sold for less than $1000 in the USA. A company called HydroAnalytics previously imported, distributed and did hands-on repairs on this unit from Japan for the US, Western Hemisphere and European market before it was withdrawn from the US market, presumably due to lack of market penetration. In Japan the Thohan Kiden organization manufactures units, that are not sold through the Enagic® Corporation of Japan for similar prices to other alkaline water ionizer in the US market.

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