In my last post, I blogged about the dangers of chlorine byproducts. These chemicals are also known as Disenfection Byproducts, or DBPs, and they’re 10,000 times more toxic than chlorine itself. Of all the common tap water toxins, DBPs are arguably the most dangerous.

Nearly all water treatment plants use chlorine to kill germs, and when chlorine reacts with organic matter in water, it forms DBPs like trihalomethanes (THMs) and haloacetic acids (HAAs). DBPs have been linked to cancer and reproductive problems.

Specifically, chlorination byproducts have been linked to bladder cancer, colorectal cancer, breast cancer, pancreatic cancer, brain cancer, childhood leukemia, and other cancers.

Acccrding to the National Resources Defense Council, there is no known safe level of THMs and HAAs, but these chemicals have been found at levels of high concern in the following cities: Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Houston, Los Angeles, Newark, Philadelphia, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, and Washington DC.

DBPs are even more dangerous when they’re absorbed through the skin. That’s why it’s so important to have a shower water filter in addition to a drinking water filter.

And don’t think for a second that chlorinated swimming pools are safe! THMs in chlorinated pools have been linked to cancer as well as spontaneous abortion, birth defects, and stillbirths.

According to New Scientist, additional common tap water toxins include prescription medications and other chemicals such as:

Altenolol – a beta-blocker used to treat heart disease
Atrazine – an herbicide that has been banned in Europe
Carbamazepine – a mood-stabilizer used to treat bipolar disorder
Estrone – an estrogen hormone implicated in gender change among fish
Gemfibrozil – an anti-cholesterol drug
Lead – can cause severe development delays and learning disorders
Meprobamate – a tranquilizer
Naproxen – an anti-inflammatory and painkiller
Phenytoin – an anticonvulsant
Sulfamethoxazole – an antibiotic
Trimethoprim – an antibiotic

To avoid these chemicals in your drinking water and your shower, you must install home water filters.

When I first got into the water filter business about a year ago, I had no idea that showering could be so dangerous. I’ve certainly learned a lot since then. A typical shower exposes you to ten times the amount of chlorine that you’d get from drinking unfiltered water all day! In the shower, you not only absorb chlorine and other toxins through the skin, but you also inhale them as vaporized molecules.

What’s so bad about chlorine?

Municipal water authorities add chlorine to our water to kill germs. As defined by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), chlorine is a pesticide.

Why do our elected officials add a dangerous chemical pesticide to our water? Well, it’s the cheapest way to kill germs. Americans have been essentially pouring bleach into their water since the 1800s. It’s not safe, and it’s not even the most effective way to kill germs – but it’s cheap.

Chlorine destroys life, and when we consume chlorine, it destroys some of our life, too – by damaging cells and tissue. If you’ve ever spent a lot of time in a chlorinated swimming pool, you know that chlorine can quickly dry out your skin and hair. Chlorine can also trigger asthma attacks and eczema.

But that’s not the worst part. When chlorine combines with steam and common organic molecules, it produces dangerous chlorine byproducts like chloroform and trichloroethylene (TCE). These chemicals are known carcinogens; they can cause cancer, liver disease, kidney disease, respiratory disease, heart disease, and other serious health problems.

Breast cancer, which affects one in eight women in America, has also been linked to chlorine. One study carried out in Hartford, Conneticut found that “women with breast cancer have 50% to 60% higher levels of organochlorines [chlorination byproducts] in their breast tissue than women without breast cancer.”

“Cancer risk among people drinking chlorinated water is 93% higher than among those whose water does not contain chlorine,” according to the U.S. Council of Environmental Quality.

But remember: We’re exposed to chlorine not only by drinking it, but also through skin absorption and inhalation. In fact, you’re even exposed to chlorine when someone else showers in your home.

Dr. Lance Wallace of the EPA explains, “Showering is suspected as the primary cause of elevated chloroform in nearly every home because of the chlorine in the water. Chloroform levels increase up to 100 times during a ten-minute shower in residential water.”

Up to 2/3 of our exposure to chlorine comes from showering. Hot water opens up the pores, allowing chlorine and other toxins to easily bypass the skin barrier. And the steam we inhable in the shower can contain up to 50 times the level of chemicals in tap water. When we inhale chlorine gas (chloroform), it goes directly into the blood stream. When we drink chlorinated water, at least the kidneys have a chance to filter out some of the toxins.

Dr. Robert Carlson of the University of Minnesota said that “chlorine is the greatest crippler and killer of modern times!”

In a telling sign, most poultry farmers use dechlorinated water because solid research has shown that it produces healthier chickens. Sadly, most Americans continue to drink and shower in chlorinated water every day, despite the ominous research. But, hey, at least those chickens are healthy, right?

If you want to decrease your risk of cancer and be as healthy as a spring chick, invest in a shower water filter today.

(A drinking water filter would be a good idea, too, if you don’t already have one.)