It’s not hard to understand that babies are highly susceptible to injury from toxins in drinking water. It might be harder to grasp that babies can even be harmed by the same toxins before they are born. Many common drinking water toxins pass right through the placenta and reach developing babies. That’s why it is critical to make sure that your baby and the mother-to-be have the purest water possible available to them.
When babies are exposed to drinking water toxins, their higher water content means that, proportionally, more of these toxins are stored in their bodies. Their little bodies are 75% water compared to an adult’s body being 60% water. Also, babies’ organs and systems are more susceptible to damage and less capable of eliminating toxins.
If you need one more reason to eliminate toxins from a baby’s drinking water, here’s another one: The human body accumulates many of the metals, minerals and toxins in drinking water. Giving babies pure water in their formula and food avoids this accumulation while they are in their years of fastest growth and development.
For all these reasons, it is essential to ensure that babies get the purest drinking water possible, including the water used to mix into baby formula or other food.
5 Contaminants That Deserve Special Attention
With a test of the water in your private well or the water from your municipal supplier, you can tell which of the following contaminants might be in your water. If you find out that they are present, you should make a special effort to remove them as they are particularly damaging to a baby’s health.
Trihalomethanes: These four chemicals are the result of municipal disinfection. They are produced when chlorine disinfectants react with naturally occurring organic matter in the water. The four trihalomethanes are:
- Chloroform
- Bromodichloromethane
- Dibromochloromethane
- Bromoform
Long-term exposure to trihalomethanes increases the risk of cancer and damage to the liver, kidneys, spleen and central nervous system. They also have the ability to damage DNA. Exposure to trihalomethanes during pregnancy has been linked to low birth weight, heart anomalies and defects of the spinal cord and brain.
Lead: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention clearly states that there is no safe level of lead in the blood of a baby or child. Exposure to lead in the environment or drinking water is associated with developmental, learning and behavioral issues. These effects can be permanent and disabling. If there is naturally occurring lead in your well water or if lead is being added to your drinking water from plumbing fixtures, it is vital to remove it.
Manganese: Elevated levels of manganese in your baby’s water can cause problems in behavior, learning and memory. In severe cases, a baby may suffer from walking difficulties and tremors. Manganese can enter a water supply from natural deposits or from industrial processes like mining or steel and aluminum manufacturing. It can also leach from landfills into your groundwater.
Atrazine: Atrazine is a herbicide found at elevated levels in more than 800 drinking water systems in 19 states. It is often found in regions where corn is grown. When a baby is exposed to this chemical in the womb, the result can be low birth weight, premature birth, intestinal birth defects and developmental issues. After birth, atrazine is a hormone disruptor and increases the risk of cardiovascular problems and cancer. Texas, Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri and Ohio struggle with elevated levels of atrazine in drinking water.
PFAS: PFAS is short for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, a large group of chemicals used to make hundreds of different consumer products like non-stick pans, water or stain-resistant fabrics, food wrappers and much, much more. Exposure to these chemicals is associated with cancer, hormone disruption, liver and thyroid problems. This chemical is also associated with childhood obesity and developmental delays.
Find Out What’s In Your Water Now!
If any of these substances are in your water, they should be removed before there is a pregnancy or any babies or children in the home. For a thorough analysis of your well water or community water, check out our Ultimate Water Test which reports on the presence of 249 different substances you don’t want in your water. You’ll get a fast, accurate report that you can use to plan how to provide pure water to your whole family. Order this test today!
