Water Treatment Chemicals Harmful to Human Health

Scientists Have Shown that Nanosilver, Which is Often Added to Water Purification Units, Can Upset the Human Gut

Nanosilver describes the use of an antibacterial technology based on ionic silver nanoparticles. Nanosilver is used ina number of applications. This includes some medicines, as well as toys, sunscreen, cosmetics, and clothing. However, it is the addition of nanosilver to water that has caused themost controversy. Nanosilver is used in some countries and territories in order to keep bacterial numbers low, as a means to avoid infections through municipal water supplies.

Another concern is the addition of silver nano to washing machines. Some scientists are worried that high concentrations of silver could enter sewage plants and seriously trouble the biological purification process of waste water.

To conduct the research two scienitsts — Drs. Walker and Das — used something with the interesting name rePOOPulate. This compound is a synthetic stool substitute, originally intended designed to treat Clostridium difficile ("C diff") infections. For the study, the synthetic stool was used to examine the impact of nanoparticles on the human gut.

The study's findingsshowed that the addition of nanosilver reduced metabolic activity in the synthetic stool sample. Furthermore, it perturbed fatty acids and significantly changed the population of bacteria. The risk is that these changes are not to the benefit of the person who consumes high level of nanosilver particles. It is hoped that the information will help researchers to understand of how nanoparticles could impact our "gut ecosystem." The impact of nanosilver ingestion on our long-term health is unknown.

Source: Digital Journal

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• Water Treatment & Control
• Research
• Nano Materials