A few years ago, my big sister decided to go for compulsory youth service in a very rural area against all our advice, we didn't want her to stay in that village because of her health and that place was just too backward, but she wanted to gain the experience of that region, so sh decided to stay there, she said the water consumed by the villagers was a random stream, unkempt water, but for the special visitors a borehole was created, she had to contact someone to regularly bring in drinking water from her from the city, but she was so concerned about the safety of the kids she thought, that she choose to do a water project for them, but the village head declined her offer with the promise that he had plans for them, we haven't see the plan actualize up till date anyways.
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Water is very important, we cannot exist as humans without drinking water, and when there is no source for a good/clean water, people go for any available option they may have, which could even be contaminated. With the intention of drinking water in order to survive, there are diseases that come with drinking dirty water, these diseases now combined with the absence of medical facilities leads to even more desperate situations. Some of the harmful diseases that can be transmitted through drinking water are; Typhoid, Dysentery, Diarrhea, cholera as well as polio.
The health effects of consuming contaminated water do not always present themselves immediately, some of the symptoms only begin to show later on. Other factors like; age, physical condition, immune system strength helps in the determination of the level of effect the infection would have on the human. While you may want to boast about how there is no current effect on you consuming contaminated water, bear in mind that there are certain effects that do not come to play immediately.
Salmonella is one of the most common bacteria's found in untreated water, there are over 2,500 types of the salmonella bacteria and it could cause quiet a rang of illnesses, when a person is suffering from salmonella infection, they often experience abdominal cramps, illnesses and vomiting, depending on how severe the symptoms are, medical treatments may either be required or not, once a person is infected with salmonella, it can be transmitted from one person to another through a fecal-oral routine, which makes it common in regions where good hygiene is not practiced.
Some possible contaminates that are found in water sources include; Lead, E.coli bacteria, Radium, Coliform bacteria, Flouride, Nitrates, Arsenic, Herbicides, Radon,pharmaceuticals, pesticides,microbial pathogens, viruses, petrochemicals and parasites.
These are common ways drinking water could get infection, but definitely not limited to these ways;
- Agriculture and Industry: This includes petroleum products, organic solvents, pesticides and fertilizers, heavy metals from dispose sites.
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Animal and human waste:Harmful microbes can be carried into drinking water bodies through human waste from sewage and septic systems. Water also, after being used becomes waste waste water, the waste water could be domestic like water from the sink, shower or toilet.
Natural sources: Some people believe that, all water from natural sources are automatically save, but some ground water is unsuitable for consumption and they contain a high level of some type of contaminants. A good example, is ground water that moves through soil and rocks, it can at this point, pick up arsenic that are naturally occurring, radionuclides and other heavy metals.
Treatment and distribution procedure: Treating water is a good way to get lots of contaminants out of your drinking water,the treatment procedure would leave byproducts behind, a good example of the byproduct is, trihalomethanes, which are harmful on their own. After water gets into the distribution system, it could also get contaminated through the beach of a piping system or corrosion of plumbing materials that is made from copper or lead.
Oil pollution: This pollution could happen when tankers spill their cargo, oil can as well get into the sea from factories, cities and farms and even from shipping companies.
People who take in chemical toxins through their water, stand a chance of having; cancer, altered brain function, hormone disruption, kidney and cardiovascular problems. Not only drinking contaminated water affects humans, even swimming in contaminated water, has the ability to trigger; hepatits, pink eye, rashes and respiratory infections.
Properly disposing sewage's, practicing good hygiene, would help protect our environment from pollution, but one of the surest way to ensure your well-being and avoid any possible illness is by ensuring that you drink basically purified and safe water, the question to get curious about, is how to conveniently take out contaminants from our drinking water and completely guarantee their safety. In my country, several package water are unfit for consumption as they are highly contaminated, there are several communities where waterborne diseases are rampant, these cities have little to no knowledge on safety and prevention of contaminated water, making it a deadly weapon when consumed.
Filteration: Is one of the most and affordable ways to remove microbe and chemicals from water. Special filtration procedure will conveniently and completely eliminate protozoa, bacteria, chlorine and heavy metals before consumption happens.
Distillation: The process of using heat to collect pure water in form of vapor.The vapor is then directed into a condenser and allowed to cool, when it is cooled, vapor is reversed back into liquid water and at that point, it is safe for consumption.
Chlorination: Chlorine is a very strong chemical that has been used as a treatment option for years, it kills parasites, germs and other disease-causing organisms that are found in tap or ground water.
Conclusion.
Water pollution is deadly, consuming contaminated water is even worse, human health can be greatly impacted, we have to be conscious of how we dispose our waste and dirt, put the safety of the environment at heart and then watch carefully the water we consume, remember that, not every packaged water is safe/fit for consumption.
References.
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/water-pollution-and-human-health#summary
https://www.epa.gov/report-environment/drinking-water
https://www.voanews.com/a/millions-risk-disease-dirty-water/3487651.html
https://www.schultzsoftwater.com/blog/4-methods-to-purify-your-water
https://www.ilmuk.org/news/what-are-the-dangers-of-drinking-dirty-water/
https://haguewaterofmd.com/effects-drinking-dirty-andor-contaminated-water/
https://www.springwellwater.com/15-dangerous-diseases-caused-by-contaminated-drinking-water/
https://www.cleanandclearwater.com.au/blog/how-does-contaminated-water-affect-humans/
In as much as drinking water is good, we must be careful of the type of water we take because contaminated water can damage our health
Of course friend, water is very essential but we must be careful of what we take into our system.
I wish people could understand the scarcity of water in reality, we would cherish the limited supply that we have, not just because of ourselves but because of the next generation. If we understand this, we have solved the first problem which is water contamination by human activities. A lot of communities in Nigeria do not still have access to clean water, while so many are suffering from water contamination as a result of industrial activities. Overtime, either of these will happen, we either have a water disease pandemic, or we learn to improve water.
I really feel that, some advanced countries are doing so much to improve their water system but some of these rural communities have to still drink unsafe/contaminated water, which is really sad.