Water Filter Information

Significant exposure to lead can cause some of the most severe and even fatal health effects possible.

Parents (unknowingly) may be exposing and even encouraging their children to take lead into their bodies each and every day. Where does this lead come from and why does nobody seem to know about it? The seemingly safe tap water of most homes in the United States contains lead. When we drink this water untreated, we are consistently allowing lead to poison the inner workings of our bodies.

From the pipes to the faucet, lead infiltrates our drinking water and makes its way into our bodies and our children's bodies. Municipal water treatment plants cannot control for this contaminant in water; as a result, lead continues to make its way into our water, with little or no regulation. In order to remove this dangerous contaminant from drinking water, it is doubtless vital to employ a point-of-use water filter.

General Health Effects of Lead
Lead poisoning is a leading cause of high blood pressure, one of the current deadliest conditions for individuals in the United States. Consistently rising numbers of high blood pressure and anemia cases--syndromes that have not traditionally been connected to lead poisoning--should without doubt be considered when discussing the role of lead ingestion on the body.

Effects of Lead Poisoning on Babies and Young Children
Concerning the impact of lead poisoning on children, the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency recently stated, "Childhood lead poisoning remains a primary environmental health problem in the U.S." According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, approximately one out of every 22 children has high levels of lead in his blood.

Diagnoses of hyperactivity and learning disabilities are growing by leaps and bounds in public schools, perhaps because of so much unknowing exposure to lead and increasing cases of lead poisoning. The younger the child is, the more damaging lead poisoning can be. The ingestion of lead is notably harmful to babies during the critical third trimester of pregnancy. Lead can also pass into a baby's body through breast-feeding.

What You Can Do
There are several approaches--all of them important--that you can take now to protect yourself and your family. Firstly, it is mandatory to keep your home clean and dust-free because much of your child's exposure to lead comes from dirt and dust on the floor. It is also incredibly important to have your child tested for lead poisoning if you suspect or notice any of the symptoms.

It is also without doubt vital to begin, or continue using, a home water filtration system. Untreated tap water is likely the culprit of the majority of you and your child's exposure to lead. Every parent wants to give her children every opportunity possible to succeed; taking a few minutes to provide clean, healthy water to drink is one of the best and easiest ways to bring about this goal.

Vanessa Lausch is a writer for http://www.historyofwaterfilters.com/ - online source for water information.

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