The idea of finding drugs in drinking water sounds like fodder for a Hollywood movie. The startling truth is that this is the reality we live in. Traces of everything from ibuprofen and acetaminophen to prescription sex hormones antibiotics and even mood stabilizers have been found in municipal water supplies. There are few to no requirements that even mandate that tap water be tested for these drugs.

While the amounts of drugs in drinking water are far smaller than the average medical dose, we drink great quantities of water every day and ingest these drugs with every glass. The antibiotics in tap water are found to be one of the three leading contributors to the outbreak of MRSA or medication resistant staph infections. These infections are making a large number of Americans sick every day, and in many cases can even be fatal.

The sources of these drugs are many. A great portion of them come from human waste. When we swallow a pill, while we absorb some of it, a great deal of it is passed through the body unchanged and removed in our waste. Other sources of the drug are flushed pills and runoff from pharmaceutical plants.

Ingesting small amounts of a medication over time can lead to a resistance to the drug. This especially true of antibiotics, but applies to other drugs as well. A decreased response to antibiotics means more severe and longer lasting infections as well as infections that do not respond to antibiotics at all. This is very dangerous and could eventually lead to a whole host of illnesses that we have no ability to fight. This may sound like it comes straight from a science fiction movie, but it is entirely factual. I urge you to do the research for yourself.

You may wonder what you can do about this. Personally, I ensure the safety of my family with a whole house multi-stage water filtration system. This system removes the drugs found in drinking water as well as other chemicals and bacteria not removed by chlorine. It also removes the chlorine left behind after city treatment. These systems also allow your water to retain valuable trace minerals such as potassium and magnesium that are needed by the body to ensure proper health.

My multi-stage system filters the water that flows into every faucet in my home. It keeps rust particles from yellowing my laundry and removes all of the hundreds of chemicals from my water that I take in when drinking or showering. I pay a little more for this benefit, but it only comes to about ten cents a gallon, which is a very worthwhile price to remove the drugs in drinking water.

I never would have believed only a few short years ago that I would need to filter my own household water. In fact, I assumed that the water bills I paid ensured my water was safe from all chemicals and drugs. I was wrong. With so many drugs found in drinking water, it is high time we all take steps to ensure the health of our families and loved ones. I urge you to look into a filtration system. It may be the best decision you ever make.