Researcher suggests purifying tap water

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http://www.kypost.com/2002/mar/27/hudsd032702.html

Researcher suggests purifying tap water

By Starr, Post staff reporter

, president of the Wood Hudson Cancer Research Laboratory and a

cancer researcher for more than 25 years, purifies her water after taking it

from the tap.

She knows first-hand what's in it.

Two chemicals in chlorine-disinfected water - dichloroacetic acid and

chloroform - cause cancer when given in high concentrations to rodents in

the laboratory, and epidemiological studies suggest that chlorinated water

may be associated with a heightened cancer risk in humans.

''So the best thing to do is to have purification processes at home,'' Ms.

said.

No federal agency has recommended water purification of chlorinated drinking

water.

But the EPA is constantly reviewing the toxic potential of dichloroacetic

acid, and the Washington-based International Life Sciences Institute reports

that concerns are rising about the long-term cancer risks that purification

methods pose.

''Before any organization makes a recommendation, there has to be

incontrovertible research showing it has to be a recommendation,'' said Dr.

Pemberton, consulting pathologist at Wood Hudson and medical

director of laboratories at St. Medical Center.

Such a recommendation would have ethical consequences, he added, because of

costs associated with water purification and bottled water.

Pemberton, who uses an osmosis filtration system to purify drinking water in

his home, estimated the cost at $20 to $30 a month.

Drinking water must be treated, or chlorinated, health experts say, to

eliminate the far greater risks of waterborne diseases, including cholera.

''Without chlorination we would die of microbial diseases,'' Ms.

said.

''Water has to be disinfected. We cannot have water running through

pipelines without being treated with chlorine.''

The potential risk posed by chlorination is a focus of ongoing study by Wood

Hudson and the EPA.

Research by Wood Hudson suggest that dichloroacetic acid causes cancer in

mice and rats by preventing the elimination of genetically damaged cells.

Publication date: 03-27-02