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Reverse osmosis is the finest water filtration method known. This process will allow the removal of particles as small as ions from a solution. It is used to purify water and remove salts and other impurities in order to improve the color, taste or properties of the fluid. R.O. uses a membrane that is semi-permeable, allowing the fluid that is being purified to pass through it, while rejecting other ions and contaminants from passing. This technology uses a process known as crossflow to allow the r.o. membrane to continually clean itself. This is the reason of why an r.o. element can last many years before clogging or need replacement. This water purification process requires a driving force to push the fluid through the membrane, and the most common force is household water pressure or pressure from a booster pump. The higher the pressure, the larger the driving force and efficiency.

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Concern among scientists increased when fish in the Potomac River and elsewhere were found to have both male and female characteristics when exposed to estrogen-like substances, she says. For instance, some fish had both testes and an ovary. Scientists starting looking at the effects of oral contraceptives first. "Now analyses have expanded to look at other drugs."

Technology has made this research easier, says Suzanne Rudzinski, deputy director for science and technology in the Office of Water at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. "Analytical methods have gotten better and we are able to detect lower levels than ever before."

All sides of the debate agree this is not known for sure. "At this point we don't have evidence of a health effect," Rudzinski says, "although it's an area of concern and one we will continue to look at."

It's true that the levels of the medications found in drinking water] are very low. But especially when it comes to pharmaceuticals that are synthetic hormones, there is concern, because hormones work at very low concentrations in the human body. We think this report in particular is a call for our federal agencies -- EPA in particular -- to do further studies to see what the health effects are.

According to the Natural Resources Defense Council, boiling will not solve the problem. And forget bottled water as a way to escape the low levels of drugs found in some public water supplies. "Twenty five percent of bottled water comes from the tap," she says, citing an NRDC report.

Labels on bottled water, regulated by the FDA, help consumers know what they are getting, says Stephen Kay, a spokesman for the International Bottled Water Association. If bottled water companies use water from municipal sources and do not treat it further to purify it, the FDA views the source as legitimate but requires the label to state that it is from a municipal or community water system. Bottled water companies that use municipal source water, but then treat and purify it by using reverse osmosis, distillation, or other processes can label it as such using terms such as "purified water" or "reverse osmosis" water.

Home filtering systems such as reverse osmosis may reduce the medication levels, says Timothy Bartrand, PhD, a postdoctoral fellow at Drexel University, Philadelphia, who participated in a National Science Foundation workshop to develop a drinking water research agenda. " An activated charcoal system will remove some pharmaceutical drugs but not all," Janssen says. "A reverse osmosis system can also remove some."

Contact your local public utilities and ask them what pollutants they test for in drinking water, Janssen says, as one way to raise awareness of the problem. When disposing of expired or unneeded medications, don't flush them, Rudzinski says. Instead, mix unused or unwanted drugs with coffee grounds or kitty litter, something that will be unpalatable to pets. Put the mixture in a sealed container so it's not accessible to children or pets and put the mixture in the trash.

Source: Kathleen Doheny. Healthy Information. March 11, 2008