Can your family achieve better health through reverse osmosis treatment of your tap water?

The companies that sell home reverse osmosis systems seem to think so. But there are so many disadvantages, and unless you have a specific problem with your water supply, there is no reason to invest in these expensive systems. Plus, you should always remember that home reverse osmosis systems alone won't make your water safe to drink.

First, let's look at what home reverse osmosis systems can do.

They can remove things that are heavier or larger than a water molecule. That may sound pretty small, but when you think about it, chemical contaminants are dissolved within the structure of our water. They are not heavier or larger; they are more or less "attached" to the molecules.

So, that's one reason that you cannot achieve better health through reverse osmosis.

And here’s another:

Trace minerals and natural elements are needed by your body to maintain bone structure, improve joint function, to maintain a regular heartbeat, and for many other purposes. All groundwater has a naturally occurring mineral content.

Minerals are heavier, so home reverse osmosis systems will remove them. So, what you get tastes stale and isn't even good for you. Studies have shown that drinking distilled water, which also has no mineral content, is bad for your digestion and leads to nutritional deficiencies.

So, that's two reasons that there is no good health through reverse osmosis. Ready for the next one?

Bacteria, parasites, protozoa, viruses, fungi and other microscopic organisms are not trapped by home reverse osmosis systems. Any reputable company will advise you that some method of disinfection must be used before the water can be considered safe to drink. They suggest that you use chlorine.

What they don't tell you is that drinking chlorinated water causes digestive problems, and in the long-term may lead to cancer or heart issues. They also fail to mention that when chlorine reacts with biological material (bacteria, etc.), dangerous by-products called THMs are formed.

THMs - trihalomethanes - are hazardous and are classified as known carcinogens. Home reverse osmosis systems do not trap THMs, cannot remove the chlorine, and do not remove bacterial contaminants that cause waterborne illnesses.

So, that's actually three more reasons that idea of health through reverse osmosis treatment is a falsehood. The only good thing that home reverse osmosis systems can do is desalinate. The big desalination plants use them as one step in their treatment plan. Large facilities all over the country use them as one step towards better water quality.

Over 2,000 different chemicals have been found in groundwater, reservoirs, and flowing through the taps all over this country. Many of them are cancer-causing agents. Drugs and hormones have been found by treatment facilities after water is termed "safe" to drink.

Home reverse osmosis systems can remove none of these things.

So, when you think about everything that contaminates our water, and you realize that the expensive reverse osmosis system will not remove them, then you can see that there are multitudes of reasons that you cannot achieve better health through reverse osmosis. There are wiser home water filtration choices for your family.