Stay calm everyone, there's Prozac in the drinking water

[Sara Klein Ridgley, Ph.D.]

For all of you, British colleagues-- Not that it is any different in the
USA....
Stay calm everyone, there's Prozac in the drinking water
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/ ... 1278760,00.
html

Mark Townsend Sunday August 8, 2004 The Observer

It should make us happy, but environmentalists are deeply alarmed: Prozac,
the anti-depression drug, is being taken in such large quantities that it
can now be found in Britain's drinking water.

Environmentalists are calling for an urgent investigation into the
revelations, describing the build-up of the antidepressant as 'hidden mass
medication'. The Environment Agency has revealed that Prozac is building up
both in river systems and groundwater used for drinking supplies.

The government's chief environment watchdog recently held a series of
meetings with the pharmaceutical industry to discuss any repercussions for
human health or the ecosystem.

The discovery raises fresh fears that GPs are overprescribing Prozac,
Britain's antidepressant of choice. In the decade up to 2001, overall
prescriptions of antidepressants rose from nine million to 24 million a
year.

A recent report by the Environment Agency concluded Prozac could be
potentially toxic in the water table and said the drug was a 'potential
concern'.

However, the precise quantity of Prozac in the nation's water supplies
remains unknown. The government's Drinking Water Inspectorate (DWI) said
Prozac was likely to be found in a considerably 'watered down' form that was
unlikely to pose a health risk.

Dr Andy Croxford, the Environment's Agency's policy manager for pesticides,
told The Observer: 'We need to determine the effects of this low-level,
almost continuous discharge.'

Norman Baker, the Liberal Democrat's environment spokesman, said the
revelations exposed a failing by the government on an important public
health issue. He added that the public should be told if they were
inadvertently taking drugs like Prozac.

'This looks like a case of hidden mass medication upon the unsuspecting
public,' Baker said. 'It is alarming that there is no monitoring of levels
of Prozac and other pharmacy residues in our drinking water.'

Experts say that Prozac finds its way into rivers and water systems from
treated sewage water. Some believe the drugs could affect their reproductive
ability.

European studies have also expressed disquiet over the impact of
pharmaceuticals building up in the environment, warning that an effect on
wildlife and human health 'cannot be excluded'. 'It is extremely unlikely
that there is a risk, as such drugs are excreted in very low
concentrations,' a DWI spokesman said. 'Advanced treatment processes
installed for pesticide removal are effective in removing drug residues,' he
added.
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

[Angela Blaen]

Dear Sara,

Thanks for this - we've known about oestrogen in the tap water for a
long time but this is another shock.

Fortunately, I have a well for my only water supply but it's only a
matter of time ...............

Angela

Dr Angela Blaen, BA, PhD, BRCP (Energy Medicine)
Director
The Assemblage Point Centre Ltd.
The Assemblage Point Association
The Energy Medicine Association
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[Bill Giman]

I personally have been drinking steam distilled water for a long time.

FYI, you do not get minerals from the water you drink. You get your minerals from the food you eat, since the plants chelate the minerals to their organic material. That's why its best to eat organic fruits & veggies, since they have the most minerals in them. Fertilizers seem to strip away much of the minerals.

Bill G

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[andyh]

***** Bill, do you hold any viewpoint about the degree of stripping by
osmosis that happens when distilled h2o is the only water used. It
would seem that it would become mixed in with all fluids (blood, lymph,
digestive juices, etc) and thus not cause osmotic stripping and
excretion. But if it is the only fluid used (apart from fluids in food
itself), there would seem to be a general tendency toward some
demineralization over time. Have pondered this question, do not know
answer. Any comments..

Also interesting about minerals from food only and not from water.
This viewpoint posits that inorganic minerals are not at ALL available
to the organism. Surely they are be less assimilable. What is the
evidence that they are NEVER assimilable?

These ain't a contentious questions by the way (in case wondered):-) I
really do not know the answers, and want to. Spring water in plastic
jugs is a very poor long term substitute for well water (plastic
compounds very nasty, including estrogen mimickers, etc, not to mention
prozac et al). Want to know if distilled is really a good longterm
option. Have ruled it out before on osmotic grounds but then rainwater
is probably pretty close to demineralized?? in cleaner areas (eg
islands), though not without pollutants anymore, both organic and
inorganic. So there is a natural source of "non-mineral water" that
used to be a big human source as cisterns have been used since time
immemorial.

These are important questions. Comments appreciated.

Best,
Andy