Contaminants in Drinking Water and How to Get Them Out

Published by Alkaline Water Plus

Comprehensive Chart of Drinking Water Contaminants

Note: The best filters for most contaminants are UltraWater Filters. Visit that page for more about why they filter so well.

Contaminant	Toxicity & Health Issues	BEST Filter to Buy	Other Effective Filters
Mercury	Mercury has a high morbidity rate in infants and prenatal babies, otherwise low morbidity rate unless of course you overdose on it. Can damage the nervous system, kidneys, liver and immune system.	Ultra-Water	KDF 85, Activated Carbon
Lead	Lead has a high morbidity rate. Lead attacks the brain and central nervous system, causing coma, convulsions and even death.	Ultra-Water	KDF 85, Activated Carbon
Copper	Copper has a high morbidity rate if too much is consumed over time. Also, can cause headaches, vomiting, diarrhea, stomach cramps, nausea, liver damage, and kidney disease.	Ultra-Water	KDF 85, Activated Carbon
Arsenic	Arsenic has a high morbidity rate due to oxidative damage, leading to cardiovascular disorders, neuronal damage, renal injuries, skin lesions, and risk of cancer and diabetes.	Ultra-Water	KDF 85, Activated Carbon
Nickle	Nickle has a high morbidity rate if overdosed over a period of time. Can harm the lungs, stomach, blood, and kidneys and may lead to cancer.	Ultra-Water	KDF 85, Activated Carbon
Chromium	Chromium has a high morbidity rate if consumed over many years. Can cause allergic dermatitis, damage to the liver and kidneys and nerve tissue damage.	Ultra-Water	Reverse Osmosis
Barium	Barium has a high cardiovascular mortality. Symptoms of over-consumption of Barium are vomiting, abdominal cramps, diarrhea, difficulty breathing, increased or decreased blood pressure, numbness around face and muscle weakness.	Ultra-Water	KDF 85, Activated Carbon
Fluoride	Fluoride has a low mortality rate. But Fluoride can increase aluminum absorption by increasing its bioavailability. It can also affect the pineal gland by hardening it.	Ultra-Water	ALF or Fluoride Shield
Aluminum	Aluminum has a low risk of mortality unless you overdose. There is a risk of dementia, especially if water is fluoridated. Fluoride can increase aluminum absorption by increasing its bioavailability.	ALF Filter	Reverse Osmosis
Sulphur	Sulphur Oxide has a low morbidity rates unless breathed. Sulfur dioxide dissolves easily in water to form sulfuric acid. Sulfuric acid is a major component of acid rain. Sulfur is common in drinking water and is usually safe. For some people, it may cause diarrhea and dehydration. Babies are most likely to get diarrhea from sulfur in the water.	KDF85 filter
PFAS (Forever Chemicals)	A host of health effects associated with PFAS exposure, including cancer, liver damage, decreased fertility, and increased risk of asthma and thyroid disease.	Ultra-Water	KDF 85, Activated Carbon
Chlorine	Chlorine has a low morbidity rate. Cancer risk only when too much is consumed.	Ultra-Water	KDF 85, Activated Carbon
Chloramines Chlorine + Amonia	Chloramines have a low mortality rate. But risk of anemia, which could cause death.	Ultra-Water	KDF 85, Activated Carbon
Volatile Organic Compounds	VOCs have a high mortality rate in infants or unborn babies. Can also cause cancer if prolonged exposure.	Ultra-Water	KDF 85, Activated Carbon
Pharmaceuticals	Pharmaceuticals have a high morbidity rate due to antimicrobial resistance, an urgent health crisis. Some pharmaceuticals also contain Fluoride, Mercury. Lithium, Chlorine, etc., with their various associated health risks.	Ultra-Water	KDF 85, Activated Carbon
Industrial Wastes	Industrial wastes have a high morbidity rate. Other hazards depend on which wastes you're referring to.	Ultra-Water	KDF 85, Activated Carbon
Dioxin (PCBs - polychlorinated biphenyls)	Dioxin has a high morbidity rate. Interferes with hormones and can cause cancer, reproductive and developmental problems and damage to the immune system.	Ultra-Water	KDF 85, Activated Carbon
Herbicides	Herbicides supposedly have low morbidity rates.	Ultra-Water	KDF 85, Activated Carbon
Pesticides	Pesticides have a high morbidity rate. Some pesticides may be carcinogens. Others may affect the hormone or endocrine system in the body.	Ultra-Water	KDF 85, Activated Carbon
Nitrates/Nitrites	Nitrites have a low morbidity rate. Cancer risk only when too much is consumed. Nitrate can affect how our blood carries oxygen. Nitrate can turn hemoglobin (the protein in blood that carries oxygen) into methemoglobin . High levels can turn skin to a bluish or gray color and cause more serious health effects like weakness, excess heart rate, fatigue, and dizziness.	Ultra-Water	Reverse Osmosis
Radioactive Substances	Radioactive substances have high morbidity rates if over-consumed over many years.	Ultra-Water	Reverse osmosis or sodium form cation exchanger (softener)
Ammonia	Ammonia has a high morbidity rate. May be damaging to internal organ systems.	Ultra-Water	Reverse Osmosis
Manganese	Manganese has a high infant morbidity. Children and adults who drink water with high levels of manganese for a long time may have problems with memory, attention, and motor skills. Infants (babies under one year old) may develop learning and behavior problems if they drink water with too much manganese in it. The symptoms of manganese toxicity include tremors, muscle spasms, hearing problems, mania, insomnia, depression, loss of appetite, headaches, irritability, weakness, and mood changes	Ultra-Water	Reverse Osmosis
Selenium	Selenium has a high morbidity rate. Can also cause discoloration of the skin, pathological deformation and loss of nails, loss of hair, excessive tooth decay and discoloration, lack of mental alertness, and listlessness.	Fluoride Shield	Reverse Osmosis
Zinc	Zinc has a high infant morbidity. Can also act as an intestinal irritant, causing nausea and vomiting.	Ultra-Water	Reverse Osmosis
Petroleum Products	Petroleum products have high cancer morbidity. Can also cause upset stomach, cramping, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.	Ultra-Water	Reverse Osmosis
Bacteria	Bacteria has high morbidity due to diarrhea	Filter with less than .03 Fine Filtration
Viruses	Viruses have a low mortality rate. But risk of waterborne diseases.	.01M Filter

A Little About UltraWater Filters

The best water filters anywhere at any price are UltraWater Filters. These filters are a unique invention. They take the most effective filtration media and form it into a block. What this does is disallows the water to bypass the filter media and create channels. When you filter your water slowly through UltraWater Filters (as you would in a water ionizer) the extensive lab-testing of UltraWater Filtration shows no detection of 99% of all contaminants. Learn more about UltraWater filtration.

The Best Technique for Water Filtration

If you really care about removing the above contaminants from your drinking water, filter your water slowly. If you do it too fast the water doesn't have enough chance to make contact with the filter media.

Why a Water Ionizer?

A water ionizer does extra filtration of a sort.

It filters slowly (about 1.5 - 2 liters per minute).
It normally uses UltraWater filters (the best filters in the world by far).
It removes acidic elements from the drinking water, which tend to be toxic, such as Fluoride.
There are other important reasons for using a water ionizer on The Benefits of Ionized Water page.