And a bit more on water....

[helwen]

Wanted to note that the second link in my previous post, about the effects of mixed pharmaceuticals in water on people and other living creatures is not just about the U.S. In fact, the first water in the article that they talk about testing was from Italy. It makes sense, really, that drugs can be found in the water pretty much everywhere -- not just because people use them everywhere, but because of how water cycles and moves globally.

From Part 1 of the AP article, while the focus may be on the U.S., they do mention stuff going on in other countries, so for anyone reading this who's not from the U.S. and was previously unaware of the seriousness of this stuff, it's something to take a look for in your country.

Another excerpt, this from Part 1 (bolding for emphasis is mine):

Rural consumers who draw water from their own wells aren’t in the clear either, experts say.

The Stroud Water Research Center, in Avondale, Pa., has measured water samples from New York City’s upstate watershed for caffeine, a common contaminant that scientists often look for as a possible signal for the presence of other pharmaceuticals. Though more caffeine was detected at suburban sites, researcher Anthony Aufdenkampe was struck by the relatively high levels even in less populated areas.

He suspects it escapes from failed septic tanks, maybe with other drugs. “Septic systems are essentially small treatment plants that are essentially unmanaged and therefore tend to fail,” Aufdenkampe said.

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.

Contamination is not confined to the United States. More than 100 different pharmaceuticals have been detected in lakes, rivers, reservoirs and streams throughout the world. Studies have detected pharmaceuticals in waters throughout Asia, Australia, Canada and Europe — even in Swiss lakes and the North Sea.

For example, in Canada, a study of 20 Ontario drinking water treatment plants by a national research institute found nine different drugs in water samples. Japanese health officials in December called for human health impact studies after detecting prescription drugs in drinking water at seven different sites.

In the United States, the problem isn’t confined to surface waters. Pharmaceuticals also permeate aquifers deep underground, source of 40 percent of the nation’s water supply. Federal scientists who drew water in 24 states from aquifers near contaminant sources such as landfills and animal feed lots found minuscule levels of hormones, antibiotics and other drugs.

Other fun things... there’s now evidence that adding chlorine as part of water treatment makes some pharmaceuticals more toxic. Of course water quality isn't affected just by drugs. Fertilizer run-off, cattle being given steroids to bulk them up (10% passes through them - German study).... More pets are being given drugs too, some the same that humans get, which also contributes to the chemical soup (pet pharma industry is up 8% over the past 5 years).

Sewage treatment plants aren't designed to take out drugs, and some drugs are resistant to treatment (and some become more toxic, from exposure to chlorine, as noted above). Reverse osmosis (RO) can do the trick, but is expensive and there are several gallons of unusable water left over to the one gallon that's now drinkable.

Well, talk about your overwhelming in scale problem, eh? Still, I'll be interested to see what the AP study says in the next installment of their article. And in the meantime, diet, exercise, rest, all those good things, so that hopefully I won't need more meds! Those are all good things anyway -- the healthier you are, the more fun you can have :)

Comments

[harpnfiddle.livejournal.com]

Saw part of this on GMA this morning. When one thinks of drug interactions, not knowing what you may be getting in the water can get scary.

[calygrey.livejournal.com]

It's always the same; a creature cannot live in its own excrement.

[joyeuse60.livejournal.com]

The scary thing is that this is not a new problem. When I was doing my masters in the mid 80s..... it was on drugs (one of the most common drugs that was used by people for more than 30 years at that point) in fish and the aquatic system. We already knew that it was a major environmental issue then and had been for the previous 20 years. It is just that no one wanted to deal with the problem. and they wonder why we have super bugs now!!

[helwen.livejournal.com]

Indeed :(

And still, gov'ts will be moving too slowly in response, even now that it's finally front page news... I knew about some of it, but not all. Don't know why it never occurred to me to think about what could happen with multiple types of meds being in the water... really, it's so obvious.

People don't have an even education in things, even people who've gone to college -- can't tell you how many people I've had to explain the importance of taking the full course of antibiotics to, when it's really been necessary for them to have them (just because you _feel_ fine doesn't mean the infection is actually, completely, gone!).

Scaring them with the possibility of a setback that's worse than the initial illness usually does it.... seeing as that's one of the other reasons for super bugs... plus, less of the drugs get flushed directly into the water system that way.

One of the old sayings in some venues (like nuclear for instance) was "The solution to pollution is dilution." No solution at all when everyone's doing it on such a large scale, and more quickly than things can break down and no longer be harmful (Well, and some things should never have been used in the first place).