This Healthy House
Dr. Frank Catalano has created "This Healthy House" to provide education, action plans and equipment to make your home environment more healthy.
Healthy Water In Your Home What You Need to Know:
HOMES SUPPLIED BY CITY WATER:
There is a health benefit to filtering the city water that is delivered to your home. “Water disinfection is a necessary public health intervention to prevent waterborne infections. However, unintended disinfection by-products (DBPs) are formed during chemical disinfection processes [1]. DBPs occur in complex mixtures, and their relative concentrations depend on the characteristics of organic matter in the raw water, the treatment and disinfectant used, and the length and condition of the distribution system [2,3,4]. More than 600 DBPs have been identified to date, constituting a widespread exposure in the population worldwide through drinking water consumption, inhalation, and dermal contact [4]. Long-term exposure to DBPs has been consistently associated with increased bladder cancer risk [5]. DBP exposure also has been associated with a number of reproductive and pregnancy outcomes, although evidence is less consistent [4].”
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Excerpt published by Redondo-Hasselerharm, P.E., Cserbik, D., Flores, C. et al. Insights to estimate exposure to regulated and non-regulated disinfection by-products in drinking water. Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology 34, 23–33 (2024).
1. Richardson SD, Plewa MJ, Wagner ED, Schoeny R, DeMarini DM. Occurrence, genotoxicity, and carcinogenicity of regulated and emerging disinfection by-products in drinking water: a review and roadmap for research. Mutat Res Rev Mutat Res. 2007;636:178–242.
2. Nikolaou AD, Golfinopoulos SK, Themistokles D, Kostopoulou MN. DBP levels in chlorinated drinking water: effect of humic substances. Environ Monit Assess. 2004;93:301–19.
3. Villanueva CM, Castaño-Vinyals G, Moreno V, Carrasco-Turigas G, Aragonés N, Boldo E, et al. Concentrations and correlations of disinfection by-products in municipal drinking water from an exposure assessment perspective. Environ Res. 2012;114:1–11.
4. Villanueva CM, Cordier S, Font-Ribera L, Salas LA, Levallois P. Overview of disinfection by-products and associated health effects. Curr Environ Health Rep. 2015;2:107–15.
5. Costet N, Villanueva CM, Jaakkola JJK, Kogevinas M, Cantor KP, King WD, et al. Water disinfection by-products and bladder cancer: is there a European specificity? A pooled and meta-analysis of European case-control studies. Occup Environ Med. 2011;68.​
Water filtration can reduce disinfection chemicals, disinfection by-products and other contaminants in the water that is delivered to your home. The quality of your city drinking water is published yearly by your water supplier and they are required by law to report the concentrations of regulated contaminants present in your water. Having a discussion with Dr. Catalano about your water quality report is an excellent first step to ensure that your home water supply supports good health.
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Professional Water Filters
For homes that have a city water connection, Dr. Catalano recommends targeting the reduction of disinfection chemicals and disinfection by-products from your water using professional water filtration equipment. Filtering these impurities out of your water will ensure great tasting water free from chlorine taste or smell as well as help to keep the chemical impurities out of your body, off of your skin and out of the air you breathe. In a BEST case scenario, the filter should be sized to filter your entire home’s water supply, not just the water that you drink. The floor standing black filter in the photo is the typical size and shape of a whole house filter that serves all of the hot and cold water sources in your home. If you are unable to use a Whole House Filter, Dr. Catalano recommends using a point of use water filter that targets the disinfection chemicals and impurities in the water you drink from at least one faucet in your home. The blue filter in Dr. Catalano's left hand is an example of a point of use filter sized to handle a typical home's kitchen faucet for the cold water only. Professional water filtration equipment is designed and sized to fit the application which ensures a unrestricted flow of filtered water and a long service life.
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Often times, there is a place in This Healthy House for consumer grade water filtration equipment too. LEARN MORE HERE
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This Healthy House provides you with education, action plans, equipment and installation to improve the water in your home. Dr. Catalano will help you make decisions about your water filtration needs based specifically on the needs presented by your home's water supply and construction.
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Healthy Water In Your Home What You Need to Know Continued:
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​HOMES SUPPLIED BY WELL OR SURFACE WATER:
If your home is supplied by a well you should have the well water tested for impurities to be sure of your water quality and safety. This is especially important if you are noticing changes in water quality or if you can’t recall the last time that your well water was tested. Dr. Catalano sells well water testing kits by WATERLOGIX to know exactly what is in your well water. Some water quality issues can put your health at risk while some are not directly harmful to your health but remedying those problems may improve your quality of life as well as your willingness to stay hydrated at home.
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Click here to purchase WATERLOGIX test directly from USWater Systems or pick up a test at Waterloo Chiropractic PLLC.
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If your home is supplied privately with water from the surface such as the lake or a spring, there is a good chance that you already have water treatment equipment installed in your home. Surface water does not have the opportunity to naturally filter through the earth's layers of rock which means it is more likely to be in contact with harmful contaminants. If your water treatment equipment is adding chlorine to disinfect the water coming into your home, you should follow the recommendations for a home supplied with city water.​​
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Recomended Consumer Grade Water Filtration Equipment
This Healthy House provides you with education, action plans, equipment and installation to improve the water in your home. You can get started on reducing disinfection chemicals and disinfection by-products from your water with easy to set up water filtration products. Sometimes, implementation of certain consumer products might play a vital roll in the overall action plan for your home. If you ask, Dr. Catalano will help you make decisions about your water filtration needs based specifically on the needs presented by your home's water supply and construction. Here are some consumer grade products that can get you started.
Consumer Filters
This Healthy House will try to stock some of the most popular pitcher and fridge filters for convenient filter changes as they can be purchased for resale. This Healthy House will post (paidlinks) when recommending consumer products.
Healthy Air in your home What You Need To Know about Radon Gas:
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Radon is an odorless and invisible radioactive gas that is naturally released from rocks, soil, and water.
Radon can get trapped inside homes and buildings, and can build up in the air. Over time, breathing high levels of radon can cause lung cancer. Radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer deaths in the United States after cigarette smoke. The EPA and the Surgeon General's office estimate radon is responsible for more than 21,000 lung cancer deaths each year in the United States. REDUCE YOUR RISK by testing your home and making necessary changes.
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Dr. Catalano recommends using Radonova Quick Screen Radon Tests. Test kits are for sale at the office or can be purchased online and shipped to your home (paid link). You will have to pay $5.90 at the US post office to ship your kit to the lab. Ask Dr. Catalano to learn more.
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