Thousands of American municipalities add chlorine to their drinking water to get rid of

microbes. But this inexpensive and highly effective disinfectant has a dark side.
Chlorine, added as an inexpensive and effective drinking water disinfectant, is also a known
poison to the body, says Vanessa Lausch of filter manufacturer Aquasana. It is certainly no
coincidence that chlorine gas was used with deadly effectiveness as a weapon in the First World
War. The gas would severely burn the lungs and other body tissues when inhaled, and is no less
powerful when ingested by mouth.
Lausch adds that researchers have now linked chlorine in drinking water to higher incidences of
bladder, rectal and breast cancers. Reportedly chlorine, once in water, interacts with organic
compounds to create trihalomethanes (THMs) which when ingested encourage the growth of
free radicals that can destroy or damage vital cells in the body. Because so much of the water
we drink ends up in the bladder and/or rectum, ingestion of THMs in drinking water are
particularly damaging to these organs, says Lausch.
The link between chlorine and bladder and rectal cancers has long been known, but only recently
have researchers found a link between common chlorine disinfectants and breast cancer, which
affects one out of every eight American women. A recent study conducted in Hartford,
Connecticut found that women with breast cancer have 50-60 percent higher levels of
organochlorines (chlorine by-products) in their breast tissue than cancer-free women.
But don't think that buying bottled water is any solution. Much of the bottled water for sale in the
U.S. comes from public municipal water sources that are often treated with, you guessed it,
chlorine. A few cities have switched over to other means of disinfecting their water supplies. Las
Vegas, for example, has followed the lead of many European and Canadian cities in switching
over to harmless ozone instead of chlorine to disinfect its municipal water supply.



Negative Effects of DBPs and Chlorine
Unfortunately, we are learning the hard way that our attempts to prevent illness by adding
chlorine in drinking water has contributed to another problemthe increase of cancer and heart
disease. Check out what the experts have to say:
Cancer risk among people using chlorinated water is as much as 93 percent higher than
among those whose water does not contain chlorine, according to the U.S. Council of
Environmental Quality.
According to the BreastCancerFund.org,One common factor among women with breast
cancer is that they all have 50 to 60 percent higher levels of these chlorination by-products
(THMs) in their fat tissue than women without breast cancer . . .
"Long-term drinking of chlorinated water appears to increase a person's risk of developing
bladder cancer as much as 80 percent,as documented in a study published in the Journal of
the National Cancer Institute. Some 45,000 Americans are diagnosed every year with bladder
cancer.
"The drinking of chlorinated water has finally been officially linked to an increased
incidence of colon cancer. An epidemiologist at Oak Ridge Associated Universities
completed a study of colon cancer victims and non-cancer patients and concluded that the
drinking of chlorinated water for 15 years or more was conducive to a high rate of colon
cancer," according to Health Freedom News, January/February 1987.

Bathing and Showering in Chlorinated Water
What most people dont realize is that chlorine in drinking water is not the only problem.
According to the Journal of Public Health, Up to two-thirds of the harmful effects of chlorine
are due to inhalation and skin absorption while showering.
Even though I had filtered my drinking water for chlorine and other contaminants for many
years, it took me a while longer to realize how much chlorine I was being exposed to in an
unfiltered shower. We just dont think about it.
The inhalation of chlorine and other chemical vapors into our lungs means that these
chemicals enter directly into our bloodstream.
In addition, since the shower is warm or hot, our pores are wide open and our skin readily
absorbs the chemicals.
And then there is the cosmetic effect of chlorine it strips the protective oils from the skin and
hair, causing excess drying and wrinkling of skin as well as dry and brittle hair.
Thus, removing chlorine and other volatile chemicals with a quality shower filter is just as
important as removing these chemicals from your drinking water with a tap water filter.

A Better Way to Disinfect Water
The primary reason adding chlorine to water for disinfection has become so widely accepted is
not because it is the safest or most effective way to disinfect water it is the cheapest.
Is there a better way? A handful of cities such as Las Vegas, Nevada, and Santa Clara,
California, have begun treating their water through a process called ozonation. It is more
expensive for the city, but the side effects are minimal.
Ozonation is a step in the right direction for these large cities and I would like to see other
cities follow their example or find other non-toxic disinfection solutions.
For those of us who dont live in these cities, there are a few options. The most powerful and
cost-effective way to get chlorine-free water is to invest in a whole house water filter or to
purchase a drinking and shower combo pack for your home.

A Final Thought
Do you know what happens when you put chlorine into a fish bowl?
All the fish die. That is why fish tanks come with a de-chlorinator.
So then why are we drinking and showering in this chemical that kills another organism in a
matter of hours?



The Ravages of Chlorine
Chlorine added to our drinking water supply is fast becoming a serious health problem, not only here in the U.S., but
world-wide. This addition of chlorine is meant to disinfect our water and water distribution systems, the water pipes
that bring the water to our homes and businesses. Chlorine is not used, however, because it is the most diligent, or
even the safest method of disinfecting our water. Chlorine is used primarily because it is the cheapest way.
This cost-effective tap-water disinfectant is very likely crippling us, and killing us in a number of ways. A sampling
of the diverse conditions and ailments that are more and more frequently blamed on exposure to chlorine in our
water include:
Dry, brittle, lusterless hair
Dry, aging skin
Skin rashes and irritation
Acne
Respiratory problems
Tissue cell damage
Cancer
Cardiovascular disease
The two major killers in the U.S. have, for some time now, been heart disease and cancer. Cardiovascular, or heart
disease, along with an escalating incidence of bladder, colon, rectal, and breast cancer have all been linked to our
continued ingestion of unfiltered, chlorinated tap water.
More Alarming Studies
A recent study by Richard Bull with the Environmental Protection agency supports the earlier findings reported by
Dr. Price in his experiment determining the effects of chlorine on chickens. Mr. Bull, in his similar experiment, used
two groups of pigeons, one of which were given chlorinated water to drink over the course of their lifetimes. As
well, both groups were fed a low-calcium diet. At the conclusion of Bulls experiment, all the pigeons drinking
chlorinated water were noted to have an increase of some 50 % in their serum cholesterol than were the pigeons
drinking non-chlorinated water.
Increased levels of serum cholesterol have long been known to vastly increase the risk of fatal heart attacks in
humans. Based on the experiments by Dr. Price, Mr. Bull, and other more recent and comprehensive studies, it is
becoming apparent to health officials and researchers that diet may not have as much to do with increased serum
cholesterol levels in the body as does drinking chlorinated water.
A Heart Attack Waiting to Happen
Elevated serum cholesterol is a prime suspect, in fact the only suspect in promoting arteriosclerosis, a plaque build-
up in our blood vessels. Often known as hardening of the arteries, arteriosclerosis is the formation of clots of plaque
on the walls of our vascular system. It is these clots that often break away from the blood-vessel walls that are the
prime cause of heart attacks.
Chlorine oxidation and its combination with decaying animal and vegetable matter in our water produce
trihalomethanes (THMs). These THMs, an unavoidable byproduct of chlorinated water, are also known as a form of
free radicals, which are serious impairments to the healthy growth and development of the various tissue cells in our
bodies. Obviously, these tissue cells include the cardiovascular system. Conclusively, drinking chlorinated water is
killing not only chickens and pigeons, but humans as well.