Chlorine‚ Cancer And Heart Disease
"We are quite convinced‚ based on this study‚ that there is an association between cancer and chlorinated water." Medical College Of Wisconsin‚ Senior Research Team
The addition of chlorine to our water began in the late 1800s and by 1904 was the standard in
water treatment‚ and for the most part remains so today.
We don‘t use chlorine because it‘s the safest or even the most effective means of disinfection‚ we use it because it is the cheapest. In spite of all our technological advances‚ we essentially still pour bleach into our water prior to use. The long-term effects of using chlorinated water have just recently been documented.
It is not uncommon to find more chlorine in tap water than is recommended safe for a swimming pool. A simple chlorine test kit from the local discount department store‚ around $6.00‚ will typically yield surprising results.
According to the U.S. Council of Environmental Quality‚
"Cancer risk among people using chlorinated water is as much as 93%
higher than among those whose water does not contain chlorine."
There is a lot of well-founded concern about chlorine. When chlorine is added to our water‚ it
combines with other natural compounds to form Trihalomethanes (chlorination by-products)‚ or
THMs. These chlorine by-products trigger the production of free radicals in the body‚ causing cell damage‚ and are highly carcinogenic. Chlorine is also suspected to contribute to hardening of the arteries‚ the primary cause of heart disease.
"We are learning the hard way that all the time we thought we were preventing epidemics of one
disease‚ we were creating another. Two decades after the start of chlorinating our drinking water the present epidemic of heart trouble and cancer began." - Dr. Joseph M. Price‚ PhD
"One common factor among women with breast cancer is that they all have 50-60% higher levels of these chlorination by-products (THMs) in their fat tissue than women without breast cancer..."
BreastCancerFund.org
"Up to 2/3 of the harmful effects of chlorine are due to
inhalation and skin absorption while showering."
- The American Journal Of Public Health
