There are no benefits of drinking water that has been contaminated with chemicals, drugs, carcinogens and the other toxins that are present in our freshwater sources. The importance of drinking water cleanliness is sometimes overshadowed by the other needs of industry and society in general.

What can you do?

That's what everyone should be asking, but most people simply look for someone to blame. Let's stop doing that.

This is one matter that you can take into your own hands and into your own home. You can help protect yourself and the environment.

There are many health benefits of drinking water, but if toxins are present, it becomes a problem. The human nervous system is like a tiny waterway in which signals are passed along from one part of the body to another.

Toxins cause the waterways to thicken. Nerve signals become interrupted.

You may experience sharp pains for no reason. This could be a factor in many chronic conditions like fibromyalgia, cluster headaches and migraines.

The importance of drinking water, free of contaminants, is relevant to many health conditions.

Several physicians have written books about the benefits of drinking water for a variety of reasons. For example, it naturally aids weight loss efforts. But, primarily we need it for proper hydration.

Without adequate fluid intake, our bodies cannot excrete waste products. They build up within the system and we become toxic to ourselves. If we are constantly ingesting toxins along with our fluids, then our body is working much harder than it has to.

Proper hydration is not only achieved by consuming fluids, but also by consuming adequate amounts of electrolytes. That explains the importance of drinking water with a trace mineral or electrolyte content.

The two most important electrolytes to the human body are sodium and potassium.

There are many other benefits of drinking water, but let's get to what you can do about contamination. We have the technology to remove nearly 100% of all the contaminants that are present in our freshwater sources.

Water treatment centers have not upgraded, because it is expensive in a large scale facility.

In the home, the technology is very inexpensive: it costs much less than buying bottled waters.

The taste and quality is better than bottled. And, environmentalists are pleading with people to stop buying so many of those bottles. The cost to the environment of creating and disposing of all of those bottles is enormous.

Thus, the importance of drinking water purification in the home is an environmental, as well as a health issue. You should choose a purifier that removes chlorine, THMs, VOCs, lead, cysts, pesticides, herbicides and herbicides.

The best ones can do all of that and still leave a healthy electrolyte content.

Some purifiers remove all traces of minerals and electrolytes. That's really "too pure" for the human body. It can lead to nutritional deficiencies, dehydration or even hyper-hydration.

To sum it up, here are the benefits of drinking water that is purified in your home: you save money, protect and improve your health and help to protect the environment.

I hope you will take the next step. Take the time to find the best water filtration system to help protect you and your family.

Are you worried about chlorine in drinking water? Did you hear about the drugs found in drinking water samples taken all over the world? Medications in the water I drink? Oh boy, what next?

You may have read the reports and felt somewhat relieved by the fact that there were only "minute" traces of drugs found in drinking water, not enough for a full dose. And, that's how water authorities wanted you to feel. They want you to believe that you are safe. They don't want to start a national or world-wide panic.

When studies were released that chlorine in drinking water was a contributing factor in a large number of new cancers every year, there was some petitioning to stop using the chemical for public disinfection purposes. Usually, it is environmentalists and consumer action groups that petition the government to "do" something. But, nothing is done.

The report about drugs found in drinking water is news to some of us, but environmental groups have been aware of the problem for years. The Environmental Protection Agency has been quietly monitoring the problem. That's how the AP investigative reporters were able to collect the data. In some areas, samples are taken regularly.

The EPA is also responsible for monitoring the level of chlorine in drinking water, but individual facility workers take the samples and report the results. The levels they report are always just under the "safe" margin. But is that really safe and are the reports accurate?

Another group of investigative reporters found that some facilities "throw out" the highest readings, in order to get a pass from the EPA. When it comes to the drugs found in drinking water, most facilities are not required to test for them.

When it comes to chlorine in drinking water, they are required to test on a quarterly basis and report the "highs and lows". The problem is that the levels can change on a daily basis. It could exceed the maximum safe level at any time and no one would know.

When it comes to the toxic metal lead, facilities are required to test homes that are considered "at-risk". But, sometimes they don't and sometimes they throw out the results. In one instance, the facility claimed that the homeowner did not follow the correct protocol and did not request retesting.

When the homeowner was contacted, she said that they followed the instructions exactly and were never contacted by the facility concerning the results. The lead problem is directly related to the presence of chlorine in drinking water. The chemical erodes the pipes and allows lead that was used to make them to seep into the water, as it passes through the piping.

Before the reports about the hormones and drugs found in drinking water were released, there were numerous scientific reports about fish mutations that were caused by exposure to human hormones in the rivers, oceans and bays. Now, we know that those hormones increase the growth of cancer cells in the laboratory.