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There's Medicine in Our Drinking Water
An Associated Press probe has found traces of pharmaceuticals in the water supply of 41 million Americans. The amounts of individual medications in the drinking water is tiny but they include a wide range of meds including antibiotics and sex hormones.
A vast array of pharmaceuticals - including antibiotics, anti-convulsants, mood stabilizers and sex hormones - have been found in the drinking water supplies of at least 41 million Americans, an Associated Press investigation shows.
To be sure, the concentrations of these pharmaceuticals are tiny, measured in quantities of parts per billion or trillion, far below the levels of a medical dose. Also, utilities insist their water is safe.
But the presence of so many prescription drugs - and over-the-counter medicines like acetaminophen and ibuprofen - in so much of our drinking water is heightening worries among scientists of long-term consequences to human health.
Here's how the drugs get into the drinking water.
People take pills. Their bodies absorb some of the medication, but the rest of it passes through and is flushed down the toilet. The wastewater is treated before it is discharged into reservoirs, rivers or lakes. Then, some of the water is cleansed again at drinking water treatment plants and piped to consumers. But most treatments do not remove all drug residue.
It's very disturbing. No one wants to imagine drinking traces of all sorts of drugs when they are taking a drink. This is going to drive up the demand for bottled water - except that water contains drug traces too.
Even users of bottled water and home filtration systems don't necessarily avoid exposure. Bottlers, some of which simply repackage tap water, do not typically treat or test for pharmaceuticals, according to the industry's main trade group. The same goes for the makers of home filtration systems.
Concerned citizens need to pressure lawmakers to require stricter filtering of our drinking water.
Environmental News Service says the AP probe confirms a 2002 report by the U.S. Geological Survey that was the "first nationwide study of pharmaceutical pollution in the nation's rivers and streams."
Posted on March 10, 2008
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15 Ways to Live Longer
Forbes.com has an interesting article (on MSNBC.com) that offers advice for living a longer and healthier life.
"There's a saying that genetics load the gun, but it's the environment that pulls the trigger," says Dr. David Fein, medical director at the Princeton Longevity Center, a clinic in Princeton, N.J., which focuses on quality of life and prolonging it. "You can have the gene for a certain disease, but it doesn't mean you're going to get it."
Take heed: Your lifestyle choices are very significant. While there is no way to ultimately defy death, that isn't an excuse to start indulging in vices and neglecting your health. There are plenty of ways to keep the grim reaper at bay -- and many of these "secrets" result in an improved quality of life.
If you really want to live longer, then start with your attitude. Your way of thinking not only improves your outlook on life, but also how long you actually live. In 2002, researchers at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., found that optimistic people decreased their risk of early death by 50 percent compared with those who leaned more toward pessimism.
The article includes these 15 tips for living longer.
Don't oversleep
Be optimistic
Have more sex
Get a pet
Get a VAP
Be rich
Stop smoking
Chill out
Eat your antioxidants
Marry well
Exercise
Laugh a little
Lose weight
Manage stress
Meditate
The Forbes article has an explanation for each of the tips that is worth reading. The article says people can expect to live to about 78 today. Just last month we posted about Aubrey de Grey, a biomedical gerontologist from Cambridge University, who believes the first person to live to 1,000 has already been born. If that's true it will require something more than just following these 15 steps to get there.
Posted on May 19, 2006
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Viruses and Toxins Could Remain Even After Flood Recedes
WebMD has a news story about four cases of waterborne disease in the areas impacted by Hurricane Katrina. WebMD says the CDC is investigation four deaths from Vibrio vulnificus.
Vibrio vulnificus is a bacterium that lives in warm seawater. People usually get it by eating contaminated seafood or by exposure to tainted seawater through an open wound. People with weak immune systems (especially those with chronic liver disease) are more vulnerable to it.
Other threats in the flood waters include high levels of E. Coli and lead. Microbiology professor Elizabeth Alm, PhD lists some of the disease threats from the flood waters like cryptosporidiosis, salmonellosis and Viral gastroenteritis. She says these kinds of threats could linger even after the flood waters dry out.
"All of these things could persist in the environment around the flooded area for quite some time," even once the water is gone, says Alm.
"There have been a number of scientific studies that have shown that these bacteria and viruses can persist in sediments [and] soils," she says. "One of the things that we've been looking at in particular is these bacteria. They seem to be pretty stable in the environment."
Other concerns like mold in business and homes that had water in them could also persist post-flood. Many people have allergies to different kinds of molds. Alm also said that some of the toxic chemicals like pesticides and oil could linger in the environment.
Posted on September 7, 2005
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