Health Alert: Hot Tap Water

I just finished reading an article on health myths and there is one myth in particular I wanted to share: You can use either hot or cold tap water for cooking. False!

This is a myth because hot water dissolves contaminants more quickly than cold water, and many pipes in homes contain lead that can leach into water.

Although houses built before 1986 are the most likely to have lead pipes, fixtures, fittings and solder, even plumbing legally considered lead-free may contain up to 8 percent lead. And while copper pipes replaced lead ones decades ago, fusing pipes with lead was legal until 1991. And there is still great risk because The Journal of Environmental Health in 2002 found that tap water represented 14 to 20 percent of total lead exposure.

Lead is potentially dangerous for everyone as it can damage the brain and nervous system, but children are especially at risk because their bodies are still growing and absorb more than adults.

Get in the habit of using only cold tap water when preparing baby formula, cooking and drinking. And never boil water in an attempt to remove lead...boiling can actually increase the lead concentration.

There are home kits available at hardware stores to test the concentration of lead in your pipes, or for more information, visit www.epa.gov/lead or call 800.424.5323 (LEAD).