Nitrates Pose Large Health Risk to Infants

KEARNEY, NE - In large farming and rural communities found throughout the Kearney area, waterborne contamination remains a constant risk. News cycles are filled with stories about herbicides, pesticides and pharmaceuticals that leech into drinking water sources – but area residents are reminded that all-natural elements do not equal worry-free.

Nitrates are organically created compounds found throughout the country’s watersheds, and can be extremely dangerous when found in high levels. Crop plants actually need large amounts of nitrogen and nitrates to sustain large yields, while fertilizers, manure and animal feedlots are also all common sources of nitrates.

With no taste or smell, nitrates can have adverse health effects if unchecked in your water. Infants, for example, cannot safely absorb nitrates because their stomach acid is not strong enough to convert it. Methemoglobin, or blue baby syndrome, should be of particular concern to parents living in areas with a history of nitrate problems.

“I have customers with high readings all over the Kearney area. For example, we recently had a customer that had a nitrate level of 26 milligrams per liter, when the allowable limit is 10 mg/l,” says Bronson Bosshamer, general manager of Culligan of Kearney. “Nitrates can be found in many different areas. Different variables need to be taken into consideration, and that is partly why we offer free testing here at Culligan.”

Bosshamer pointed out the fact that the EPA’s 1974 Safe Drinking Water Act supervises nitrate levels in municipal and city water utilities, but does not oversee private wells that serve less than 25 people.

“The burden is on the individual to ensure water quality for people who rely on a private well,” adds Bosshamer. “Consistent testing and vigilance will allow you to manage the risks and stay healthy.”

New York Times Has Water High on Its Agenda

It popped into my Google Alert on Saturday afternoon: "Toxic Waters" by the New York Times. Interest piqued. I went on to read the series, and the depth and detail of the data belie how water has wandered into the paper's cross hairs. Here are just some of the Gray Lady's observations:

- 1 in 10 Americans drink contaminated water

- Well water is more at risk than municipal-provided water. (This is a point I can't urge strongly enough. Some state DNRs think less than 10% of people actually test their wells.)

- An estimated 19.5 million Americans "fall ill" every year to contaminated water.

These are just the latest in a series of stories about the water quality in the US, and people have taken notice. Atrazine was one of the big targets a few weeks ago, which quickly prompted a strong reaction from local, state and federal authorities all over the country.

Remember, the data above is just a sampling of the investigation, and I encourage everyone to do their research into their area's water history and issues.

Move that Bus! Culligan Delivers Big to Extreme Home Makeover

ROCKFORD, IL – Starting September 9th, the Rockford area will be playing host to the cast and crew of ABC’s Extreme Home Makeover – and Culligan will be playing its part. This morning, the Stott family of Lena, Ill. was notified they had been selected to be the recipients of the show’s newest structure.

Rock Valley Culligan will be installing a commercial grade water softener, and a reverse osmosis filtration system to the 3,400 square-foot home. The R.O. will provide clean drinking water for the kitchen sink, as well as water for the refrigerator dispenser and ice maker. The Culligan dealer from Freeport, Ill. will also be providing drinking water and volunteers.

According to an Extreme Home Makeover press release, “the Stott family are wonderful ambassadors of the spirit of community in northwest Illinois.” The family had experienced a house fire and a bout with leukemia.

“We are very excited to be able to contribute to such a great project that rewards such wonderful area residents,” says Jeff Larson, general manager of Rock Valley Culligan. “My staff and I are ready to work alongside our neighbors in the community to help a family in need. We are very excited to begin the installation.”

While the project begins September 9th, Culligan will be doing its part of the construction a few days later on the 12th.

Arsenic and H1N1

Recent studies show a link between H1N1 and high levels of arsenic. Officials and your local Culligan dealer urge you to get your well tested.

Agrichemicals and Your Water

Lately, there has been a good amount of buzz surrounding a weedkiller called atrazine. It's been used for years as a very effective herbicide, and treating corn producers to a much higher yield of crop.

But as the New York Times reported, atrazine has leeched into many of the nation's reservoir's and watersheds. Places like Indiana and Ohio were the hardest hit according to the National Resource Defense Council, which is no surprise given the area's high corn production. But if you are not a Midwest resident, you should still keep an eye on your water quality.

So why should you care? Well, atrazine has a bit of a checkered past. Atrazine research has documented reports of hormone disruption and birth defects in expectant mothers. The Center for Biological Diversity warns

New research on birth defects at extremely low concentrations and documentation of widespread ground- and drinking-water contamination has strengthened the case for banning the toxic compound atrazine, the most commonly used herbicide in the United States

Now lawyers are getting involved as atrazine-maker Syngenta-AG is being pulled into a lawsuit over atrazine's rampant drinking water contamination.

Officials warn women who may be pregnant to keep an eye on chemicals like atrazine in their water supplies, and further urge them get their water tested on a regular basis.

This story follows a long line of coverage on pharmaceuticals and pesticides in the water. The common theme here is modern chemistry is moving at a much faster pace than previous contaminants.To stay ahead of these issues, a proactive approach is always a good idea.

There are consumer options out there for you to ensure water quality - especially if you are an expectant mother. If you email me at this blog, I would be happy to get you in touch with a water expert at Culligan to talk about solutions.

How Water Affects Babies.... from the New York Times

Is It Safe for Babies to Drink Water?
By The New York Times


A. Is it safe for babies to drink water? I heard there’s a 1 percent chance they could get encephalitis.
D.J., New York, N.Y.

Dr. Alan Greene responds:

Even though water may be the safest and healthiest everyday beverage for older children and adults, water can be dangerous for young babies.

During the months before starting solid foods, the amount of water already present in breast milk or formula usually provides all of the water that healthy babies need both to grow and to replace the water they normally lose through their urine, stool, skin and lungs.
Dr. Alan GreeneDr. Alan Greene. (Tami DeSellier)

Water intoxication

Too much water can cause water intoxication in babies. Each time a baby pees, he or she loses not only water but sodium and other electrolytes. But unlike with adults, who tend to get too much sodium in our diets, babies usually get just the electrolytes they need from breast milk or formula. Too much water and they lose too much sodium. The sodium levels in their blood can plummet and cause irritability, brain swelling, unresponsiveness and seizures. (Note: Water intoxication also involves other factors, but that’s more detail than I can go into here.)

The risk of water intoxication is especially high if the baby is losing both water and electrolytes from diarrhea. Fluid losses should be replaced with breast milk, formula or perhaps a rehydration solution. Don’t give plain water for rehydration.

The risk is also high if formula is diluted with too much water in a misguided effort to save a little money.

What about hot weather?

In very hot weather, when babies may be losing extra water without urinating more, it can be O.K. to offer a bottle-fed baby a small (2 to 4 ounce) bottle of water between formula feedings – but there is no need to force this. Most will do well with just a little extra formula if they seem thirsty. Breast-fed babies are even less likely to need extra water.

What about dehydration?

If you are concerned that your baby is getting dehydrated, contact your health care provider. We expect babies to pee at least once in the first 24 hours of life, at least twice in the second 24 hours, and at least three times every day thereafter.

What about encephalitis?

Encephalitis is inflammation of the brain. It’s closely related to meningitis, or inflammation of the tissues protecting the brain, and the two often go together. Infections are a major cause of encephalitis.

When people think of encephalitis infections, they often think of mosquito-borne infections like West Nile Virus. But waterborne encephalitis infections are also possible, though they are quite rare in the United States.

All tap water from public water systems in the United States must adhere to Environmental Protection Agency safety standards and is usually free from infection-causing organisms. Nevertheless, infections sometimes occur and are especially likely during a natural disaster like a flood or earthquake, when public and private water supplies may become contaminated.

For those with strong, healthy immune systems, infections from drinking water are usually minor and are often limited to the digestive tract, causing symptoms like diarrhea. In young babies younger than a month or two and in those who are immunocompromised, the infections are more likely spread to other parts of the body, including the brain.

What about parasites and other organisms in drinking water?

The tiny Cryptosporidium parasite is one of the most common causes of drinking water infections in the United States. Cryptosporidium is not killed by chlorine but is killed by boiling. Advisories to boil water should blanket the local news whenever there is an outbreak in a public water supply, but there may be a delay. The biggest known outbreak occurred in Milwaukee’s city drinking water in 1993, when more than 400,000 people became ill with diarrhea, and it took two weeks to figure out that drinking water was the source.

Most, but not all, home water filters will remove Cryptosporidium and other parasites. Look for filters that have an absolute pore size (not a nominal pore size) of 1 micron or less, or that are reverse osmosis filters, or that have the NSF trademark plus the words “cyst removal.”

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention did a two year survey from 1993 to 1994 to measure the scope of all illnesses from drinking water. They found a total of 30 outbreaks in 17 states that sickened 2,366 people (not counting the huge Cryptosporidium outbreak) – a very small slice of the overall population. One child died from waterborne meningo-encephalitis (from a different parasite — amoebas), but he had been swimming in a waste-water holding pond and in a river that were both contaminated with the organism.

Of the 30 drinking water outbreaks, 20 occurred from well water; one was from commercially bottled water. A median of 33 people were affected in each outbreak. Giardia (another parasite) was the second most common organism, followed by Campylobacter. And Shigella, Salmonella and cholera were responsible for one outbreak each. For the other five outbreaks, the cause was never determined.

Should you boil water given to young babies?

Boiling is the most certain way of killing all of these organisms. Even though the risk of any infection is probably far below 1 percent, I agree with the American Academy of Pediatrics in recommending that sterile water be used for young babies, even when used to prepare infant formula. In practice, this usually means boiling the water for one minute, at least for the first couple of months.

When does water become a positive good?

After the immune system has matured a bit, and solid foods have started, breast milk or formula should still be the primary beverages. But if a baby still seems thirsty between feedings and doesn’t want to nurse more, or is already getting 32 ounces of formula a day, water is the very best additional beverage. If this is the case, offer 2 to 4 ounces of water between feedings, especially in hot weather.

As children continue to grow, water remains an excellent beverage.

Too much fruit juice is not good for babies or toddlers, but that’s another story.

What the heck is reverse osmosis?

Recent reports have brought up more questions than answers about drinking water, either from the tap or bottled. It is vital to take steps towards improving the water you drink, especially with the constant uncertainty of how clean our drinking water is. Installing a reverse osmosis system in your home, at your kitchen sink, is a convenient and logical solution to ensuring your clean water.

You may be asking yourself, what does a reverse osmosis system actually do? If my water needs to be filtered, why not use one of those water pitchers, my refrigerator filter or a screw-on faucet filter?

To understand the benefits of reverse osmosis, and what differentiates it from a filtered water pitcher, begin with understanding the process of osmosis. Osmosis is the natural movement of a lesser concentrated liquid through a semi-permeable membrane, into a solution of a higher concentration. Osmosis equalizes the concentration of the liquid on both sides of the membrane. Simply put, it mixes clean purified water with contaminated water.

Reverse osmosis reverses this process by creating pressure to force the contaminated water through a semi-permeable membrane that removes the gunk and junk; thus producing delicious drinking water. Moreover, a reverse osmosis system is made up of four carbon filters. Each filter removes specific contaminants from the water.

Function of each filter:

o Filter One: This filter removes sediment; the big stuff.

o Filter Two: Allows the sediment-free water to travel through the filter, trapping and removing organic chemicals and chlorine. These are the smaller particles that water pitchers, refrigerator filters, and screw-on facet filters definitely miss.

o Filter Three: This membrane removes 90-98 percent of the chemicals left in the water, depending on the water pressure and temperature. The trapped sediments are then dumped into a drain. The filtered water flows into a two to three gallon storage tank.

o Filter Four: When the water is ready to be enjoyed, the stored water flows through this final carbon filter removing any possible taste and odor left in the water. Essentially, polishing the water.

A reverse osmosis system’s filter process pushes water through four filters, in comparison to a filtered water pitcher, refrigerator filter and a screw-on faucet filter that runs water through a carbon filter once. A reverse osmosis system, like Culligan’s AC-30, provides you with an endless-supply of clean, safe drinking water right at your kitchen sink.