Why Chlorine is harmful
Chlorine is a highly efficient disinfectant, and it is added to public water supplies to kill disease-causing bacteria that the water or its transport pipes might contain.
Unfortunately, chlorine is harmful to the human body and can pose a serious health risk. As the water travels through the pipes ending its journey at your tap, the chlorine is no longer required.
How is chlorine harmful?
Chlorine bonds to hair, stripping it of its natural protective and nourishing oils. This can cause hair to become dry, frizzy, or brittle.
Our scalps naturally produce oil to protect hair from damage and daily wear. Stripping the oil from your hair can cause over drying.
Calcium and chlorine deposits from desalinated water stick to the hair inside the open follicles and crystallize. These mineral crystals grow, causing the protective cuticles to break off.
Everyone that regularly exposes their hair to chlorinated shower water risks damage, but some hair types will damage more severely.
If your hair meets the following criteria, you will want to take extra care to prevent chlorine damage:
- Color Treated Hair: especially if your hair is chemically lightened or highlighted.
- Dry Hair
- Thin or Fine Hair
- Previously Damaged Hair
Chlorine can attack organic material, such as sensitive skin and skin oils. As a result, this can cause increased dryness and sensitivity of the skin. Chlorine not only kills the bad bacteria that can make us sick, but it also kills good bacteria on which our skin relies on.
According to Dr. Rona, M.D., chlorinated water destroys most of the intestinal flora-friendly bacteria that help the digestion of food and the production of vitamins B12 and K. The are numerous studies that suggest chlorinated water also destroys vitamin E and polyunsaturated fatty acids. All of these factors have been shown to result in acne and other skin irritations, including eczema and rashes.
Chlorine Vapour can be inhaled during a shower due to the steam created. While this impacts everyone it is particularly uncomfortable for those who suffer from respiratory-related conditions. Numerous studies have demonstrated that exposure to chlorine causes constriction of the airway and difficulty in breathing.Chlorine exposure can lead to symptoms that are similar to asthma such as coughing, wheezing, and fatigue. Chlorine has also been shown to cause difficulty breathing even for people without a history of asthma.In one study, 60% of participants experienced airway constriction when they where exposed to heavily chlorinated water (1.0 PPM), regardless of whether or not they had been diagnosed with asthma.
In Belgium, a study was conducted to find the correlation between school children who spent time breathing the air in an indoor swimming pool and an increase in lung permeation and the development of asthma. Children who played frequently at the pool had an increased risk of developing juvenile asthma, and in some cases the symptoms were severe. They also had a more damaged epithelial tissue, which is the tissue that makes up the outer layer of skin and lines the insides of the lungs. This study confirms just how harmful chlorine vapors can be for a child’s respiratory system, not just in community pools, but at home in showers and baths.
Numerous studies have indicated that inhaling chlorine gas(chloroform) can cause lung & skin cancer. There is plenty of evidence and research that shows a link between chloroform and lung cancer.
Science News reported that researchers found increases in chloroform in study participants’ lungs of about 2.7ppb after a 10-minute shower. Combined with warm water opening pores, skin absorption, and lung inhalation during a 10-minute shower showed to be greater than the amount that would be ingested by drinking 8 glasses of the same water.
chlorine also promotes the generation of free radicals within the body, and specifically the skin. Free radicals have been shown to cause cancer. Various studies also suggest that bathing in chlorinated water can cause malignant melanoma, otherwise known as skin cancer.
For women who are pregnant, chlorinated water may not only put the mother’s health at risk but also the unborn child. A study conducted in England determined that women who took showers in chlorinated water laced with chlorine and chloramine contamination resulted in various complications with the pregnancy, including spontaneous abortions, stillbirth, low birth weight, premature delivery, and a spectrum of birth defects ranging from nerve damage to weak hearts.
For children, a hot bath or shower with chlorinated water could have dangerous effects on their development.
SOLUTION
One of the easiest and most effective ways to reduce harmful exposure to chlorine and other chemicals such as heavy metals is to use a shower filter. Pure Blue Shower Filter is specifically designed to truly remove 98%(highest chlorine reduction rate in the market) of chlorine from shower water(See Test Certificate).
Benefits:
- Improves dry and sensitive skin and hair instantly
- Reduces the presence of skin rashes and the appearance of wrinkles
- Hair is able to preserve its natural moisturizing oils, becoming softer and healthier
- The body is able to retain its natural moisturizers
- Reduces respiratory problems
- Removes chlorine odor from skin and hair
- Scours out heavy metals which means NO more scale
Pure Blue Fixed Power Shower Head
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REFERENCES
www.health.com/beauty/chlorine
www.workswithwater.com/blog/how-does-chlorine-affect-your-skin/
www.todosobreelagua.com/myths-and-facts-about-water/
www.pureroom.com/Pure_living_blog/chlorine-can-cause-problems-child-adult-asthma/
www.livestrong.com/article/196874-long-term-effects-of-chlorinated-water-on-the-skin/