Sunday 24 May 2009

Arsenic in water

The presence of arsenic in water here is one of the reasons I drink bottled water all the time, even though authorities claim that Dhaka town water is safe!! Could you trust the authorities after this :
From Al Jazeera
"They call it the devil's water.

Much of Bangladesh's water contains dangerous quantities of arsenic, a toxic element that cripples human organs and can eventually lead to death.

The country is now scrambling to reverse what the World Health Organisation (WHO) calls "the largest mass poisoning in history", but it will not be an easy task.

Arsenic was commonly used as a poison in the 19th century, but in Bangladesh, it occurs naturally in the groundwater, which is pumped up by shallow tube wells.

Millions affected

No one has the exact figures of the number of wells contaminated with arsenic. But according to Ruhul Haq, Bangladesh's health minister, more than 50 per cent of the population is affected by arsenic contamination - that is more than 80 million poisoned people. "

and so it continues . . . . .


Even though it is only tube wells that they claim have high arsenic levels. The fact that arsenic occurs naturally is scary, and even though I avoid the water I often wonder how much is in the vegetables I eat. Apparently green leaf vegetables have the highest level. Hmmm . . .

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