More Than One-Half of Americans Are Drinking Radioactive Tap Water

If 170 million Americans are doing it regularly, it can’t be too bad, right?

Wrong.

According to the Environmental Working Group (EWG), approximately 170 million Americans are drinking radioactive tap water on a daily basis. That’s more than one-half of the population.

Well, then radioactive tap water can’t be all that bad for us, right?

Wrong.

Radioactive contaminants above the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) limits – including radium-226 and radium 228 – can cause serious health problems. They include depression of the immune system, anemia, eye issues and fractured teeth.

Radium Found in Water Systems

How did the EWG reach this conclusion? They examined 50,000 public water systems in the U.S. and found that 22,000 water utilities reported radium in treated water.

And that’s AFTER water was treated, not before.

Radium is actually a naturally occurring radioactive element residing on the Earth’s crust. And when it stays there, there’s no problem.

But when they mine for uranium or dig for oil or gas, exploration companies disturb Earth’s geology. This produces radiation called “ionizing.” This process releases electrons from atoms and molecules, turning them into ions

The EPA has classified all ionizing radiation as carcinogenic.

Federal Guidelines Are Outdated

But wait. Maybe the radium levels still aren’t high enough to affect people’s heath.

Wrong.

The EWG found that contaminants exceeded the federal legal ceiling for radium-226 and radium-228 in 158 public water systems serving about 276,000 Americans in 27 states.

It gets worse. The federal guidelines used by the EPA are outdated. They’re more than 40 years old!

The EPA might say that certain levels of radium-226 and radium-228 are not harmful. But they’re basing that opinion on old data.

Some states including California have much more current and realistic standards for contaminants. In fact, California’s standards are hundreds of times more strict than current federal limits for radium-226 and radium-228.

A Difference Between “Safe” and “Legal”

Here’s what Scott Faber, vice president of government affairs at EWG, told Newsweek magazine:

“What the data show are that many consumers are receiving (treated) drinking water that has radium above the levels set by the federal government.

“And many more Americans are receiving (treated) tap water with radiological elements above the level scientists have deemed safe.”

“There’s a difference between safe and legal, which is an important distinction,” he added.

The bottom line is, more than one-half of Americans are drinking water that has been contaminated by radium.

Government Still Asleep Despite Wake-Up Calls

If you’re thinking, “That’s unacceptable,” I agree.

And it’s not like we haven’t had our wake-up calls. Remember the Flint, Michigan water crisis? That’s where they discovered that both children and adults were drinking water contaminated with dangerous levels of lead.

And not only in Flint. It’s happened in plenty of other places. And they keep finding more and more contaminants in our water.

Radium, lead, fluoride, chlorine, chromium, arsenic, mercury… It never ends.

Will the government come to the rescue? Don’t count on it. They can’t even figure out what levels of contaminants are harmful and what aren’t.

A Problem Too Expensive to Fix

And even if the government truly recognized what a serious problem this is, they probably wouldn’t or couldn’t do anything about it.

The problem runs too deep. The nation’s water infrastructure is too old. And it’s rusted. And it’s breaking down day by day.

It will cost trillions of dollars to repair. And that’s just not in the federal or local budgets.

Our bodies are 55 to 60 percent water. Our health depends on drinking clean water every day, not “mystery” water that comes out of our taps with who knows what contaminants in it.

So what’s the answer?

More and more Americans are realizing that they can’t stand by and rely on the government to fix this issue.

Even using bottled water is not the answer. MANY brands of bottled water are simply tap water in the first place. The industry is barely regulated.

The obvious solution is to take it upon yourself to filter your own water, but there are so many different (and often ridiculous) options out there. It’s enough to make your head spin. And many of them don’t even make a dent in the truly harmful stuff that you’d never want to drink.

A lot of people like the convenience and affordability of water filter pitchers that fit directly in the fridge.

But finding a water pitcher that filters out radiological contaminants is easier said than done.

In fact, there is only 1 filter pitcher on the market that filters out radiological contaminants. NO other filter pitcher on the market does this.

And that’s the Patriot Pure Water Pitcher.

Just listen to what Ishmael is saying about his Patriot Pure Pitcher:

“I got this, due to the Fukushima fallout. The water tested in Idaho is full of radioactivity, though the powers that be are keeping it quiet. If nothing else, I feel I’ve done “everything” I can for my 3-year-old and can feel a little peace about it. Had water tested from the tap and from the filter and the filter did in fact remove the harmful materials, including the cesium!! It’s official, it works.”

See what people are raving here