1. Chlorine

Chlorine has disinfectant properties that make it useful for cleaning products and swimming pools. It’s added to drinking water as a purification technique, despite not being completely safe. As a reactive chemical, Chlorine bonds with water, including the water in your gut, to produce poisonous hydrochloric acid. Chlorine exposure can cause respiratory problems and damage cells. Long-term effects include memory loss and impaired balance. Chlorine not only kills the bad bacteria that can make us sick, but also the good bacteria on which our skin relies. Chlorinated water destroys most of the beneficial intestinal flora that help with the digestion of food and the production of vitamins B12 and K. It also destroys vitamin E and polyunsaturated fatty acids. All of these factors have been shown to result in acne and other skin irritations, including eczema and rashes.

2. Chloramine

Chloramine is a corrosive and toxic mix of chlorine and ammonia, which results in a dangerous chemical called monochloramine. This toxic nerve gas is very irritating to the skin and mucous membranes. Unlike chlorine, chloramine does not dissipate from water and can cause leaching of lead from lead pipes and soldering, resulting in lead poisoning. Lead in water can cause neurological damage and other health serious problems; even death in young children. Chloramines can also aggravate skin conditions such as eczema and psoriasis, as well as digestive disorders.

3. Lead

Lead is the main toxin causing problems in Flint, Michigan. Corroded city main line pipes are releasing up to 10x the allowable amount of lead into the water. Lead is toxic to almost every organ and affects children the worst. Development issues such as: stunted growth, deafness, behavioral problems, learning disabilities and brain damage can all result from exposure to lead. If digested during pregnancy, lead can cause premature birth. Lead exposure has been linked to autism, prostate cancer, and reproductive problems for both men and women.

4. Mercury

Mercury is extremely toxic and can cause brain damage, blindness, nerve damage, cognitive disability, impairment of motor functions, headaches, weakness, muscle atrophy, tremors, mood swings, memory loss, and skin rashes.

5. MtBE

MtBE or methyl teriary-butyl ether is a gasoline additive that can contaminate large quantities of groundwater, making it completely undrinkable. MtBE is known for getting into ground-water through underground gas station tank leaks or improper waste storage.

6. PCBs

PCBs or polychlorinated biphenyls are chemicals used for industrial items such as insulation, machinery, oil, paints, adhesives, electronics and fluorescent lights. PCBs break down slowly and infiltrate the environment, and have been found in snow and seawater thousands of miles away from where they were produced. Tests havefound PCBs to cause cancer and negatively affect the immune, reproductive, nervous, and endocrine systems.

7. Prescription drugs

Prescription drugs enter our water supply when patients release traces of their urine or flush unused medication down the toilet. Drug companies also dump large amounts of their own pharmaceuticals into water supplies every year nationwide, many of which serve as drinking water for millions of people. The health impact of long-term exposure to varying mixtures of these compounds is unknown.

8. THMs

THMs or trihalomethanes are the result of a reaction between chlorine used for disinfecting tap water and natural organic matter. At elevated levels, THMs have been associated with negative health effects such as cancer and adverse reproductive outcomes.