Protect your Family from Chlorine in Bath & Shower Water
In the modern world, almost everyone showers and bathes in water that has been treated with chlorine. Chlorine is a useful chemical that is used to sanitize tap water. Unfortunately, it is also a toxic substance that is extremely irritating to human skin and lungs. When you take a shower, the heat opens up your pores and your skin absorbs chlorine from both the water and the steam.
Chlorine has an oxidizing effect on human skin because it splits hydrogen from water, causing the release of nascent oxygen and hydrogen chloride. These gas compounds have been scientifically proven to cause tissue damage to our bodies at the molecular level. The skin is our body's largest organ and it is entirely chlorine absorbent. Chlorine will chemically bond with the protein in our skin and hair, making hair brittle and dry, and causing the skin to itch, dry, and age prematurely.
Chlorine is not only absorbed through our skin, but it is also vaporized in the shower and is inhaled into our lungs, and transferred directly into the bloodstream. Over 50% of our daily chlorine exposure comes from showering.
Potential health problems associated with daily, long-term chlorine exposure include:- Dry Skin & Hair
- Hives and Rashes
- Asthma & Breathing Problems
- Premature Wrinkling of Skin
- Cancer from THM Agents
There are several water filtration systems that will remove chlorine from your bath water. These include basic shower filters that you can attach to the shower head in your bathroom as well as large whole-house water conditioning systems that can filter water for your entire home.
Shower filters typically will use activated carbon or KDF media to remove chlorine. These filters are smaller with fewer mediums and therefore the filter cartridges need to be changed more frequently. The amount of chlorine removal will depend largely on the amount of contact time the water has with the media therefore flow rate will be sacrificed for efficiency.
Whole house systems typically use large amounts of activated carbon media and are more effective at removing more chlorine than shower filters. They can also work effectively at higher flow rates due to longer contact time with the media. More advanced whole house units may use catalytic coconut-shell activated carbon to effectively remove chloramines and other chlorine by-products as well.
Regardless of which type of system you choose, chlorine removal should always be an important consideration for every home and family.
Read Next: Swimming and Chlorine: How to protect your skin, hair, and health
