Is Your Drinking Water Safe?
Our drinking water contains invisible elements.
Feng Shui and the Environment
Last month I taught 2 day long seminars on Feng Shui for architects and interior designers in Dallas & Houston, for Design Arts Seminars. Teaching was great fun (I even hauled out my cowboy boots for the occasion) and I was thrilled the material was so well received . One of the requirements of the course (to receive the Continuing Education Credits these professionals require for maintaining their license), was to include a portion of the day on sustainability. Creating healthy environments is the aim of Feng Shui. The words themselves (meaning Wind & Water) define what’s needed for the very existence of life on our planet. Nothing can survive without clean air and water.
I discussed the properties of each of the 5 Elements (Water, Wood, Fire, Earth and Metal) and how to use them effectively for Feng Shui adjustments, with any design scheme. Then on a less sexy note, we turned our attention to the toxins present our environment and the healthy, sustainable choices we can make. This is the first of 5 newsletters I will dedicate to our personal & planetary health.
We start with WATER Simple Water Conservation We Can All Practice:
- Turn off the water while brushing our teeth to save 25 gallons of water a month per person.
- If building or renovating install low flush toilets.
- Recycle gray water – dish, shower, sink & laundry water comprise 50-80% of residential ‘waste’ water.
- While grey water may look “dirty,” it is a safe, beneficial source of irrigation in a yard. However, remember that it is essential to use “plant friendly” products, those without salts, boron, or chlorine bleach.
7 Toxins in Most of Our Drinking Water: An adult human body is 55-60% water – the brain is 70% & the lungs are 90% water.
- Fluoride – Research has shown that fluoride actually damages tooth enamel, suppresses immune and thyroid function & increases cancer.
- Chlorine – Chlorine has been identified as a leading cause of bladder cancer. It has been associated with rectal and breast cancers, asthma, birth defects and premature aging of skin
- Radioactive Contaminants – Since Fukushima, radioactive fallout from Japan has been detected in drinking water supplies throughout the US.
- Pharmaceutical Drugs – Anything from antibiotics and birth control pills to painkillers, antidepressants and other psychiatric medications are in our drinking water.
- Hexavalent Chromium – Made famous by the movie, Erin Brockovich, this chemical poisoned thousands of people. There are still no regulations for it in drinking water.
- Lead, Aluminum & Heavy Metals – Corrosion of pipes in our plumbing systems leads to lead consumption. This is linked to severe developmental delays and learning disorders in children.
- Aluminum and other heavy metals are linked to nerve, brain and kidney damage.
- Arsenic is a poisonous element known to be extremely carcinogenic. Some 56 million Americans drink water that contain unsafe levels of arsenic.
What Can We Do? For the best filtering, there must be a filter at the point of entry but even one attached to your sink will make a difference. Do your own research!
- Carbon/Activated Carbon: Activated carbon chemically bonds with and removes some contaminants in water filtered through it. Carbon filters vary greatly in effectiveness: some just remove chlorine and improve taste and odor. Others remove a wide range of contaminants including asbestos, lead, mercury and Volatile Organic Compounds or VOCs.
- Reverse Osmosis: This process relies on a semipermeable membrane that retains particles larger than water molecules. Reverse osmosis can remove many contaminants not removed by carbon, including arsenic, fluoride, hexavalent chromium.
I hope this Spring inspires each of us to live in more sustainable and healthy ways (that is sexy!).
Next month I’ll write about Wood & specifically the surfaces we walk on.
À votre santé – to Your Health!
Judith Wendell / Sacred Currents