Is Your Drinking Water Safe For Your Gut?

Drinking a liter or two of water daily is important for regular bowel movements and overall gut health. But it’s not just the amount of water you’re drinking – the quality of your water is important too, especially when it comes to the health of your microbes.

Modern water systems are treated with chlorine, a disinfectant that protects us from illnesses like cholera and typhoid fever. While arguably one of the most important public health interventions of the 20^th century, unfortunately chlorine-based disinfectants can be harmful to our microbiome.

Preliminary studies suggest that chlorine derived disinfectants like chloramine and sodium hypochlorite can lower microbial diversity, and may increase our risk for disease ^{(1, 2, 3, 4)}. If you’ve ever accidentally killed a goldfish or houseplant with tap water you might have wondered how safe it is for you!

So what’s the solution? While it’s premature to altogether stop the use of chlorine-based disinfectants in our water systems, using a chlorine filter to protect yourself, and your microbes, is a good idea.

Choosing a filter can be a confusing process, but don’t fret! The Gutbliss team has researched, tried, and tested the most effective filters in removing chlorine and chlorine-derived disinfectants (because your microbiome consists of the microbes that live not only in, but also on, your body, we’ve also included a shower head filter). Here are our recommendations:

Drinking Water Filters 

• Berkey Filters
• Radiant Life 14 Stage Water Purification System

Shower Head Filters

• UBS Vita Fresh Vitamin C Shower Filter