You might have seen the article in your local paper last week: AP Probe Finds Drugs in Drinking Water or Drugs in Your Drinking Water. The Associated Press National Investigative Team found pain killers, hormones, psychotropics, bronchial dilators, antibiotics, and even veterinary medications in 24 major metropolitan areas out of only 28 water providers tested (although 62 were contacted). Some of the more common drugs were ibuprofen, aspirin, caffeine, nicotine and Salinomycin (a growth hormone for farm animals), with 56 pharmaceutical chemicals found in Philadelphia’s water supply. More than 41 million Americans from Louisville to Detroit to Northern New Jersey are effected by the waters tested.

“Members of the AP National Investigative Team reviewed hundreds of scientific reports, analyzed federal drinking water databases, visited environmental study sites and treatment plants and interviewed more than 230 officials, academics and scientists.” AP

And if you thought bottled water was any safer, you ought to read this article. There is no legal standard for testing for bottled water. Luckily, the amounts of these chemicals found in the water were measured in parts per billion. The EPA’s Bottle Water Basics is a helpful guide to buying clean water. To ensure pure water in your home you could invest in a very fine filter for your faucet, buy your water in 5 gallon jugs from a water store (my family uses The Pure Water Shop), or collect and purify your own rainwater. When it comes to disposing of medication, put them in a plastic bag with your coffee ground or kitty litter. Both absorb the medication’s chemicals and prevent them leaking into groundwater.