Is your drinking water safe?

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Noor H. Salem, Certified Integrative Nutrition Health Coach

You’ve undoubtedly learned this in elementary school: water is essential in order for your body to survive and function proficiently. Your body is made anywhere between 60-75% water. Without proper water intake, your health can begin to deteriorate. In fact, when I work with clients who complain about headaches, I advise them initially that before reaching for pain relief medications, to drink efficient water. When you dehydrate, one of the early reactions is headaches. Without adequate water, your body can reach mineral imbalance, feel fatigue, and not digest comfortably either. If you exercise, are pregnant, or fall ill, your recommended water intake level will differ. Your water intake should vary in the hot summer months, versus the winter.

I’m sure you’ve seen it, a debate excelling whether to drink bottled water, filtered tap, boiled water, or just plain old tap water. There definitely needs to be safety precautions taken when it comes to your drinking water; after all water is what replenishes your cells and keeps your body systems operating properly at all times.

The answer I can give is that there is no concrete answer to which is best. It depends on where you live, and the availability of water you have. Tap water is safe in some cities that have wonderful purification systems, and in some cities it’s not so clean to drink from directly. Your tap water may come along with lead, bacteria, or even chlorination by-products. How would you know whether it’s safe or not to consume? The Environmental Protection Agency releases what’s called a Consumer Confidence Report. It will assure you that your tap water is safe to drink without filtering, or advise you to not drink directly from the tap. Check it out, and see how your city rates. If your tap isn’t purified through the city’s water system, then purchase a good quality water filter to do the job for you.

Bottled water has its own concern too, ranging from the chemicals in the plastic to the planet. If you absolutely need to drink from bottled water, never keep them in your car while it’s sunny out. The plastic in the bottle along with all the chemicals leach into your water. I use to keep an entire pack of bottled water in my car’s trunk back when I was in college. When it came to the summer I refused to keep them in my trunk. I later opted for a thermo cup instead for safety assurance, which is steel and much safer to use. Another concern with bottled water is that the FDA allows fluoride to be added within limits they set, which brings about another debate as to whether it’s necessary and safe for us or not. If you do purchase bottled water due to your tap not being safe, or because you’re traveling, or at an event without another option, do try your best to recycle the bottle afterwards. You might think that one bottle won’t make a difference, but that one bottle adds up when everyone is doing so. Drinking bottled water when you have no other option is a much better decision than not drinking water at all.

Let’s not forget, the damage that the tons of plastic water bottles consumed are doing to our environment. If you do happen to purchase bottled water, do recycle once you finish. Being an environmental friendly individual is a part of our faith. We need to care for our planet, and recycling is a great method.

Make sure you’re drinking safe and clean water, check your cities purification system ratings, and replenish your body well for optimum health.

Editor’s Note: Noor Salem is a Certified Integrative Nutrition Health Coach, and is CEO of her own wellness practice, Holistic Noortrition, LLC. Noor specialized in women’s health, weight loss, and food intolerance versus allergies. She offers individual and group health coaching programs, and is a speaker on the topic of holistic health at workshops and seminars. To learn more about her work visit her website at www.holisticnoortrition.com or find her on Twitter, @NoortritionLLC. The views expressed here are her own.