3 Reasons You Should Never Reboil Water
(WellnessPursuits.com) – Scouting 101: In the case of an emergency, fill a stockpot with water and set to boil on the stove. This is a common practice used to kill dangerous pathogens and to make the water safe to drink.
Reboiling water is a whole different story, though, and doing so could threaten the safety of drinking water. Understanding why could be the key to protecting your health.
1. Transforms Nitrate
When water has been boiled, allowed to cool and reboiled again, certain chemicals may become more concentrated in the water. In the case of nitrate, reboiling may result in a transformation into nitrosamines.
But wait. What are nitrosamines? We wondered the same thing. It turns out they’re the same carcinogens present in tobacco and tobacco smoke. No one wants to drink a cancer-causing agent.
2. Accumulates Arsenic
Another compound impacted by the reboiling and cooling of water is arsenic. Arsenic is linked with a whole host of health issues. Long term exposure could cause skin and lung cancer, lesions on the skin and even infertility.
3. Concentrates Minerals
Water often contains minerals that are good for the body in reasonable doses. However, when water is boiled down, due to over-boiling and repeated boiling, these minerals can become more concentrated and potentially dangerous.
For example, fluoride is added to water to help prevent tooth decay. The problem? Overexposure to fluoride has been linked to developmental delays and cognitive deficits in children.
Conclusion: When you suspect that your tap water is contaminated, the water must either be boiled before using it for drinking or washing food to kill any pathogens (bacteria, viruses, etc) that might be there.
A different danger you can prevent is the accumulation of dangerous chemicals caused by REBOILING the water. So if you have a tea kettle on your stove, make sure you dump the water that’s in it before refilling it again. Easy to do. Danger averted!
~Here’s to Your Health and Wellness
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