Chlorine

Chlorine. Friend or Foe?

With the specter of the Walkerton tragedy lurking as a not so distant memory, a recent national study asked Canadians how confident they felt with their water. Canadians were, generally, fairly pleased with the quality of their drinking water. When asked what troubled them about their water, answers ranged from taste and smell to concerns about chemical additives, agricultural run-off and contamination from industrial waste.

According to this study, the most common cause of complaint among Canadians was chlorine. Reasons for adverse reactions to this additive were based on concerns over flavour and odour as well as concern over long-term health effects.

Canada has been chlorinating its water supplies for over one hundred years. It is through this treatment method that we have been able to virtually wipe out water-borne diseases such as cholera and typhoid fever.

It is what lies beneath the surface of the population’s concerns over taste and odour that has sparked heated debate. Debate centered on the safety of chlorine with respect to its potential as a carcinogen. Chlorine has been linked to cancers, miscarriages, heart disease, asthma and premature aging.

According to the U.S. Council of Environmental Quality, “Cancer risk among people drinking chlorinated water is 93% higher than among those whose water does not contain chlorine.” When chlorine is added to water, it combines with other natural compounds to form Trihalomethanes (or THMs). These chlorine byproducts initiate the production of free radicals in the body, causing cell damage, and are highly carcinogenic.

The Health Canada Website states, “Lab animals exposed to very high levels of THMs have an increased risk of cancer. Several studies on humans have also found a link between long-term exposure to high levels of chlorination by-products and a higher risk of cancer. For instance, a recent study showed an increased risk of bladder and possibly colon cancer in people who drank chlorinated water for 35 years or more. High levels of THMs may also have an effect on pregnancy. A California study found that pregnant women who drank large amounts of tap water with high THMs had an increased risk of miscarriage.” In fact, at least ten major peer-reviewed epidemiological studies, including a Canadian study by Dalhousie University, have shown elevated risks of birth defects and miscarriages for women drinking chlorinated tap water.

Breast cancer, which now affects one in every eight women in North America, has recently been linked to the accumulation of chlorine compounds in the breast tissue. A study carried out in Hartford Connecticut, the first of it’s kind in North America, found that, “women with breast cancer have 50% to 60% higher levels of organochlorines (chlorination byproducts) in their breast tissue than women without breast cancer.”

Dr. Joseph Price wrote a highly controversial book in the late sixties titled "Coronaries/Cholesterol/Chlorine" and concluded that nothing can negate the indisputable fact, the base cause of atherosclerosis and resultant ailments such as heart attacks and stroke, is chlorine.

Dr. Price later headed up a study using chickens as test subjects, where two groups of several hundred birds were observed from hatching through to maturity. One group was given water with chlorine and the other without. When autopsied, every specimen of the group raised with chlorine showed some level of heart or circulatory disease, the group without had no incidence of disease. The group with chlorine under winter conditions showed outward signs of poor circulation, shivering, drooped feathers and a reduced level of activity. The group without chlorine grew faster, larger and displayed vigorous health. This study was well received in the poultry industry and is still used as a reference today. As a result, most large poultry producers use dechlorinated water.

One of the most shocking components to all of these studies is that up to two thirds of our harmful exposure to chlorine is due to inhalation of steam and skin absorption while showering. A warm shower opens up the pores of the skin and allows for accelerated absorption of chlorine and other chemicals in water. Inhalation is a much more harmful means of exposure since the chlorine gas (chloroform) we inhale goes directly into our blood stream.

When we drink contaminated water the toxins are partially filtered out by our kidneys and digestive system. Chlorine vapors are known to be a strong irritant to the sensitive tissue and bronchial passages inside our lungs. In fact, it was used as a chemical weapon in World War II. The inhalation of chlorine is a suspected cause of asthma and bronchitis, especially in children, that has increased 300% in the last two decades.

Chlorine in shower water also has a very negative cosmetic effect, stripping skin and hair of moisture and elasticity, resulting in a less radiant and youthful appearance.

The good news is that chlorine is one of the easiest substances to remove from water. There are many types of water filtration systems available for whole home usage or for drinking water or shower specific applications. Health Canada cautions, however, “the manufacture and sale of water treatment devices are not regulated in Canada. Health Canada recommends the use of products that are certified to health-based standards. The Standards Council of Canada can provide information on the certification process.”

Chlorination is an inexpensive and effective means of sanitizing water supplies. Even municipalities that use alternative methods of disinfection, such as ozonation or ultra-violet technologies, chlorinate water to keep it from picking up pathogens while it travels through pipelines from the treatment plant. To protect ourselves from its inherent dangers, our only real option is to filter out chlorine once it has reached our homes.