About one in five Americans drink tap water that is treated with chloramine. It is particularly prevalent in Portland, Oregon and Boston, Massachusetts. Chloramine is a secondary disinfectant that is used to kill bacteria and viruses. Municipal water companies like it because it lasts longer than chlorine. But, the trade-off is it has more serious side effects.
One of the side effects is called nitrification. The use of chloramine causes the growth of certain bacteria that produce nitrites. These nitrites have been linked to health problems because they attack blood cells and disable your blood from being able to transfer oxygen to your muscles.
Another side effect is that people with respiratory issues have reported sensitivity to chloramine. It has also been linked to skin rashes.
There is a group called citizens concerned about chloramine. They believe that there has not been enough adequate studies done on chloramine to verify its safety. They are particularly concerned about people who have immune system issues. Chloramine is not as effective at disinfecting water. Therefore the water that you drink may have more bacteria and viruses. This could impact your health.They are also concerned that chloramine can cause digestive problems. It attacks bacteria in your gut.
People with liver or kidney disease have an increased risk of ammonia toxicity when they drink chloramine.
It is expensive to remove chloramine from your drinking water. You need a multi-stage filtration system. Chlorine is much easier to remove for the average citizen who is concerned about chemicals and their water. Chlorine is also more effective in killing bacteria and viruses.
Because of the ineffectiveness of chloramine to disinfect, it’s link to skin conditions and respiratory conditions, and the potential digestive issues it causes, it is a good idea to remove chloramine from your water. The multi-stage filtration systems in our water ionizers will remove it.
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