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

Water Borne Illnesses

Water Borne Illnesses

Drinking water treatment systems make news all over the world. It is quite clear to me that every home in the world needs its own drinking water purification system. What you don’t see can damage your health and even kill you. There is no way to be truly sure that what you are about to drink is clean and pure just by looking at it.

If you rely on the public drinking water treatment systems to protect your health, then you are making a big mistake. If you have a family, you are putting their present and future health at risk.

Many people are aware of the risks, or at least the unpleasant taste, so instead of purchasing an economical drinking water purification system for their home, they buy bottled. The bottles are causing further pollution to the environment and there is no guarantee of safety.

If you choose to buy bottled, you should call up the company and ask them what drinking water purification system that they use. If they hesitate, then you might want to switch to a different brand. The bottling company may be relying on the efforts made by their local drinking water treatment systems. They are not required to provide something safer than tap-water, only something that is equivalent.

In the United States, the Food and Drug Administration governs the bottled waters industry. They say that it is only practically to assume that a bottle may contain a variety of impurities including traces of E coli.

In that respect, you are better off sticking with what the drinking water treatment systems provide to your home, because they are not allowed to send out anything that is contaminated with E-coli. If there was some kind of problem at the facility, they are required to inform their customers.

But, they are not required to test for or remove cryptosporidium cysts. Some do. Others do not. Cryptosporidium cysts can make you just as ill as E-coli. During an outbreak in Milwaukee, over 100 died from cryptosporidiosis, the disease caused by the cyst. Subsequently, the city’s drinking water treatment systems were changed and one facility was closed.

Accidents happen, but there is no reason to risk being exposed to an accident that could kill you. You buy car insurance. You have health insurance. A home drinking water purification system is inexpensive by comparison. It is far less expensive than buying bottled.

If you have the right drinking water purification system in your home, you can remove cryptosporidium cysts; chlorine, its cancer causing by-products, the toxic metal lead, herbicides, pesticides and a variety of other chemicals that might not kill you quickly, but are likely to cause you health problems down the road.

The only thing that a good point of use drinking water purification system will not remove is E-coli. If you are warned of E-coli contamination, you should filter first and then boil. Please, stop relying on the municipal drinking water treatment systems to completely protect your health. Do it yourself.

By: Judith Pratt

About the Author:

Judith Pratt is passionate about maintaining optimum health naturally.To find the results of her extensive research on the best value for money, top quality, Water Filter Systems at factory prices go to: http://www.clean-water-filtration.com

When it comes to filtering well water, you have many solutions, today. Quite a few more than there were several years ago. In order to find the right filter for well water, you need to have your waters tested. Depending on where you live and the depth of the well, a variety of contaminants may be present or there could be none at all.

Newer wells utilize a “filter pack method” which prevents the presence of sand in well water. This also prevents gravel and other sediment from entering the “pumping area”.

But, in some older wells, you may still have to deal with well water sand. Any effective sediment filter can remove it. If it’s getting into the pump, you may have to call a professional to install a filter pack or even have the depth of your well-hole increased.

If it’s noticeable inside your home, you could have a serious problem, since this type of sediment will eventually burn up your pump and replacement will be required. There are many methods for removing small micron-sized sediments, but your primary concern must be the condition of your pump.

Once you conquer the issue of well water sand, you should still have your waters tested for other contaminants. There could be microbes, like bacteria or cryptosporidium. There may be synthetic chemicals that have been found in groundwater samples.

There might also be naturally occurring, but still dangerous substances. Some of them can be removed in processes similar to the prevention of sand in well water. Others require another solution.

If bacteria are found, filtering well water requires a disinfection step. At one time, the only practical method of disinfection was through the use of chemicals, such as chlorine. Today, there are UV light devices for the home that are easy to operate, install and use.

If cryptosporidium or giardia cysts are found, UV light will not kill them. You would need to install submicron filtration devices on every tap that your family drinks out of. You would also need to make sure that you leave the device in the “on” position when washing fresh fruits and vegetables.

If chemical contaminants are present, you would need a carbon block filter for well water. If other organic substances, such as arsenic, are found, reverse osmosis may be required. Many organic substances can be removed through ion exchange. In order to be sure, consult a professional.

Some public suppliers use groundwater for at least a portion of the waters they provide to homes. Chances are if you are service by a public treatment facility, you have chlorine and chlorine byproducts that should be removed before drinking.

If you are a well-owner and you choose to use chlorine for disinfection, you need to take that same step. There are affordable solutions for filtering well water and surface or groundwater. You simply need to know what steps to take.

By: Larry Fletcher

About the Author:
Larry Fletcher is an avid proponent of water purification and a passionate researcher on its health benefits. To get the facts on how to choose the best water purification system, visit http://www.pure-and-safe-water.com now.

Cryptosporidium is the parasite that shattered our confidence in chlorine as a way of disinfecting our drinking water of all microorganisms. In 1993, an outbreak of diarrhea and intestinal disorders in Milwaukee, was discovered to be due to this parasite 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 cause the largest waterborne outbreak of illness in the history of the United States. It is estimated that 400,000 people were infected.

In this article I want to explain what cryptosporidium is. Also, I will explain the sources of this parasite.

What Is Cryptosporidium?

It is a microscopic parasite, similar to giardia, which is bred and multiplied in humans as well as animals and discharged in their waste or sewage. Cow dung is one of the chief sources of cryptosporidium parvum. It causes an intestinal illness called cryptosporidiosis.

The cyst 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. Then the cycle repeats itself.

How does Cryptosporidium get into our water?

Imagine a herd of cattle that is infected with this parasite. Their dung, filled with the cysts of this parasite, is then used as fertilizer and spread on the fields. Rain and snow come and wash the cysts into streams, rivers and lakes. Other cysts seep into the ground and become a part of ground water, eventually appearing in wells. These cysts are so durable that they can survive in or out of bodies and they can resist disinfectants, such as chlorine.

It’s not just through water that one can become victim of cryptosporidiosis, but there are various ways of being contaminated. Anything that comes in contact with infected human or animal waste can be infected. It enters the body through the mouth. Food that is touched by unwashed hands can infect the eater. Water taken in by accident in a pool or lake can give you cryptosporidiosis.

You can know if Cryptosporidium is present in your drinking water by checking your local Consumer Confidence Report. If it is, the best way to remove it is using the right kind of filter. Use a filter that is certified to remove Cryptosporidium by NSF International. 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 the contaminants you have cited.

By: David G Langford

About the Author:
David G. Langford
http://all-about-water-filters.com
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Don’t buy any drinking water filter system until you have reviewed the performance data sheet for that particular product. The data sheet lists all of the contaminants that the system has been certified to remove, as well as, what percentage of that contaminant is blocked.

You would hope for at least 99% and you might think that any drinking water filter system will do the job. If that’s what you think, then you’re wrong and you could be endangering the health of your family. There are thousands of contaminants in tap water. The biggest immediate threat to your health is very tiny. They are called cysts.

Cysts are actually immature parasites that can live in water. Once swallowed, they can grow inside of your body, causing illness and in some cases death. The FDA says that even the best treatment facilities cannot guarantee the absence of cysts in public drinking water. They also say that there is no “feasible” way to check for them. But, a good in-home drinking water filter system can remove nearly 100% of them.

Treatment facilities add chlorine to the water, because it kills most cysts, bacteria and other living organisms. But, the cyst that grows into the parasite cryptosporidium is resistant to chlorine. Cryptosporidium was responsible for the deaths of over 100 people in Milwaukee. It was in the tap water.

In order for a drinking water filter system to remove cryptosporidium and other cysts, it must contain a micron filter. The product performance data sheet will provide information about cyst removal and much more, but, there’s a catch.

Depending on where the manufacturer is located, they may not be required to provide the information. You should not buy a drinking water filter system that does not include performance data along with its other literature. It’s just not safe.

Most of the other contaminants that a good drinking water filter system should remove are chemicals. In many cases, they are by-products of industrial pollution. But, two contaminants, chlorine and lead, cannot be blamed on pollution.

Chlorine, as you know, is added to the water at the treatment facility. Since, as a disinfectant, it kills bacteria and other living things, why anyone would think that it is safe for human consumption is a curiosity. Only an activated carbon drinking water filter system will remove chlorine.

Lead is a toxic metal. For many years, it was used to line, of all things, water pipes. It was also used as a soldering agent for joints and fittings. Now, because everything eventually seeps into the water, lead has been found in tap water.

Lead paint has been illegal for years. Toys made in other countries are recalled if it is learned that the company uses lead paint. There is no safe level of lead in drinking water, but it may be there. The FDA says that you should get your water tested, if you are concerned.

The other option is to buy a drinking water filter system that is certified to block lead. It’s the safest solution.

By: Ronald Frommert

About the Author:

Ronald Frommert is a baby boomer researcher of water purification issues. Visit his site now at http://www.safewaterpurification.com to get the facts on how to choose the best water purification system.