Cryptosporidium – How Does it Affect Your Health and Why is it So Hard to Destroy?
It’s hard to say for sure how many Americans are infected by cryptosporidium per year. This is so because many are infected without consulting a doctor and because the cysts are so hard to detect in the laboratory. A small quantity of cysts in water can be hard to find in a laboratory. Yet a small number of cysts can infect the person who drinks them.
The fact that it resists disinfection and that it can even get through well-operated water treatment systems, means that it is a very big problem facing the clean water industry. What then are the symptoms of the disease known as cryptosporidiosis?
How Can Cryptosporidium Affect My Health?
It only takes a relatively few cysts to infect a person. The incubation period of the illness, cryptosporidiosis, is about one week but can be anywhere from 2 to 25 days. The cyst germinates and reproduces causing symptoms such as severe diarrhea, gas, stomach cramps, nausea, headaches and even slight fever. The degree of intensity varies with the person. Some people in fact have no symptoms. On the other hand, for those with low resistance (HIV/Aids patients, transplant patients, cancer patients) or those vulnerable to dehydration (as small children and pregnant women), the attack of this parasite can be life threatening.
The symptoms last normally a week or two but can last up to a month or longer. There are really no good drugs to cure cryptosporidiosis. Some drugs help with the symptoms. What is important is to replenish your body fluids through drinking water or receiving intravenous fluids, if necessary.
Why Is The Cryptosporidium Cyst So Hard To “Search and Destroy”?
The cysts are so small that they are difficult to find even under a microscope. They are particularly hard to find in water where it takes only a relatively few cysts to infect a person. The Environmental Protection Agency set new standard for this parasite to be met by 2001, for water systems serving the majority of U.S. populations (those serving surface water to 10,000 or more). The new standard says that the parasite should be totally disinfected (killed) or removed by filter from the water. Water treatment systems are required to report the presence of cysts in your tap water.
The cyst is hard to destroy because it is extremely hardy and durable. It can get through chlorine disinfectant treatment in city water systems and make it to your tap. The cyst is encased in a shell-like cover which once in the stomach, is dissolved by the stomach acids and in turn reeks havoc with the intestines and multiplies itself to be discharged in the stool.
The best way to remove it is using the right kind of filter. A filter that is certified to remove cryptosporidium by NSF International is recommended. NSF International has a useful search tool on their web site where you can indicate the contaminants that you want to remove from your drinking water. They will then tell you which filters they have certified to remove those contaminants. The contaminant to check is “Cyst Reduction”.
By: David G Langford
Categories: Water Borne Illnesses Tags: Cysts, Drinking Water, Stomach Cramps
Cryptosporidium – How Widespread is it and How Does One Remove it From Drinking Water?
In 1993, an outbreak of diarrhea and intestinal disorders in Milwaukee, was discovered to be due to cryptosporidium which had gotten into the water system. The Milwaukee water treatment system was functioning well and there was no reason to suspect infection coming through the water; but after weeks of searching, it became clear that cryptosporidium had just caused the largest waterborne outbreak of illness in the history of the United States. It is estimated that 400,000 people were infected.
How Widespread Is the Problem of Cryptosporidium in Our Drinking Water?
It’s hard to say for sure how many Americans are infected per year. Many are infected without consulting a doctor. Also the cysts are so hard to detect in the laboratory. A small quantity of cysts in water can be hard to find in a laboratory yet can infect the person who drinks them. The fact that it resists disinfection and that it can even get through well-operated water treatment systems, means that it is a very big problem facing the clean water industry.
Discussing this and similar hard to detect waterborne diseases, Doctor Robert Morris in his recent book, The Blue Death, says,
So how much waterborne disease is there in the United States? The truth is that we don’t know, but several lines of evidence suggest that millions of cases of waterborne disease, perhaps more than ten million, may be occurring every year in the United States.
How Would One Go About Removing Cryptosporidium from Drinking Water?
When there is an outbreak of cryptosporidiosis in an area due to drinking water, the public is usually advised to boil their drinking water until told otherwise. One should boil the water for a full minute to kill the parasite. This, however, is a short-term solution.
The best long-term solution for protecting you against this and other parasites is that of filtration. There are two kinds of filters that can remove this parasite from your tap water: Filtration (carbon/charcoal) with a pore size of 1 micron or smaller and Ultraviolet water treatment systems that meet Standard 55A of the NSF. Which ever one you choose should not only claim to destroy or remove cysts but also have third party certification of that claim. For example, the NSF International is the organization best suited for certifying water filters.
The NSF International has a useful tool to help you find filters that have been certified by them for “Cyst Reduction”.
By: David G Langford
About the Author:
Categories: Water Borne Illnesses Tags: Water System, Water Treatment System, Waterborne Outbreak
The Truth About Drinking Water Purification Systems
It’s a fact that there are many types of drinking water purification systems on the market today. There is a huge demand for these systems, because consumers want to improve the quality of what they drink. The best way to make an informed decision on which system is best for you is to understand what substances you want to get out and what do you want to keep. With that information, you can select the drinking water purification system that best meets your needs.
The first area of concern is unwanted chemicals. Studies have shown there to be over 2100 potential chemicals in municipal supplies. This wide ranging list includes chlorine, pesticides, herbicides, synthetic organic chemicals and inorganic chemicals. Any one of these could be a health concern, and most drinking water purification systems target the removal of chemicals.
The second area of concern is bacteria and other living organisms. Chlorine is widely used to disinfect water but this heavy use has generated a number of organisms such as giardia and Cryptosporidium which are chlorine resistant. This is a critical area which only certain systems can address adequately.
The third area of concern is heavy metal contamination. Lead is the most harmful of the metals often found today. This metal can cause development issues for children, as well as hypertension in adults. Metal removal is very important for healthy water.
We have covered the primary areas of concern in drinking water today, so what are the key features that can address these areas of concern?
Chemical removal can easily be accomplished by a mechanical filtering system. The filter needs to have pores which are at the submicron level to be most effective.
Metal removal is most efficiently handled when the metal attaches itself to a filter or other physical element within the system.
Removal of organisms like giardia and cryptosporidium are best accomplished by submicron filter elements. The small size of the pores keeps the organisms from passing through the system.
Now that you know the key features needed in a the drinking water purification system, you can do the necessary research. There are some great systems that can help you have the best quality water so focus on the features listed above to get the best results!
By: Andre J. Sylvester
About the Author:
Andre J Sylvester reviews water purification systems available for the community at http://www.best-safe-water-purifier.com. When you visit the site, you will find information that will help you make an informed choice.
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Categories: Water Borne Illnesses Tags: Filter Elements, giardia, Synthetic Organic Chemicals
