12
Parzi
3y

So, i've noticed something:

- My grandfather drinks nothing but the water.
- My grandmother recently increased her water intake due to meds making her retain water way less
- My dad has been drinking more water in an attempt to be healthier.
- I don't drink the house water without boiling it first, as i'm the only one that thinks it smells and tastes like wet dog smells, aside from with like kool-aid or similar where the taste is masked enough to not be detectable.

Well, what does this matter? I'll tell you:
- My grandfather went from fine aside from minor balance issues to totally mentally fried in 24 hours.
- My grandmother is spacing out while driving and falling more and more.
- My dad went from fine to overwhelmed by basic decisions in a couple months of moving here.
- I've noticed a slight decline in my mental health, but this is probably from issues i've had with my college and general stress.

Correlation ≠ causation, but... it's usually-unfiltered water from a well placed uncomfortably close to a lagoon, and it was never tested for safety before use (despite my protests.)

Comments
  • 8
    Don't drink unfiltered water in most places. Reverse osmosis filters are cheap, add one.
  • 1
    @F1973 does it count if it's by necessity only? (i might after the move, since city water is... awful.)
  • 3
    @F1973 "water is water" not when it tastes like fucking dog piss. Or bleach. Or dusty fucking air.

    Water is always water, yes. The extra shit floating around in it (or deliberately added to it) is always the problem.
  • 5
    I just drank almost a pint of vodka, but it’s clear as water lol does that still count as water lol
  • 3
    Where are you based? In the UK many of us drink nothing but tap water straight from the tap, but here it's kinda taken for granted it's drinkable.
  • 5
    Does the water come from your own well or is it supplied by a utility?

    Where I live, the water supply is strictly monitored and incidents are rare. At my current location there is too much smell and bad taste from chlorination, but it evaporates if held in an open jar for some time. It's still perfectly safe to drink and the chlorination is there to guarantee that. I may also be picky as I used to live in a place where the tap water tasted better than bottle water.

    It's a privilege to live in a place where you can trust tap water.
  • 3
    @AlmondSauce True, yet numerous people have had health issues caused by drinking unfiltered hard water (especially tap water you'll get in Southern England) which is sad.
  • 2
    @Berkmann18 Source? Not saying you're wrong, just haven't heard that before.
  • 2
    @AlmondSauce It's mostly anecdotal (namely from uni friends who were ill after they drank tap water in London or in Surrey and people like me having skin problems worsening after too much exposure to hard water, which isn't as much of an issue up North or in countries like France).
  • 3
    @Berkmann18 Have a hard time believing that on the back of anecdotal evidence I'm afraid. If such things really were to do with the water I'd expect to see stupid numbers of studies showing a link.
  • 2
  • 0
    @electrineer it's well water, as stated in OP.
  • 2
    @Parzi yeah, I read it but was wondering because of other comments. It definitely would be wise to test it before the first use, every few years, and if you notice any change in it.
  • 1
    I'm so happy we filter our water by pumping it through the dunes... The only country I've been to that has drinkable, good tasting water is my home country. I always buy bottled water everywhere else tbh
  • 3
    Hallmarks of lead poisoning.
  • 5
    I thought a bit about this issue while at work. Seriously, get a test kit to test your water supply for traces of lead.

    Neurodegeneration due to heavy metal intoxication immediately rings a bell and lead is a common culprit in the US. In your case this could be old pipes.

    At least this is what I immediately think of hearing about your change in environment and the symptoms you describe.
  • 0
    @Maer Our pipes are 100% PVC, though my grandfather's house is probably lead and/or copper, yes. However, Missouri IS covered in lead deposits...
  • 1
    Unfortunately neither boiling nor reverse osmosis is the way to go. Boiling doesn’t take away nasty stuff like lead, reverse osmosis take away everything including the minerals you need. “Mineralizing cartridges” are scam.

    I only drink Vittel.
  • 3
    We just moved away from Vegas, which apparently has the #2 hardest water in the US. We lived off of bottled water.

    Hard water is awful.
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