Most people regard a hot shower or bath as one of life's little pleasures. However, what many people don't realize is the danger of chlorine in the water.

Chlorine, routinely added by water companies to kill bacteria, is a bleaching agent which bonds with and destroys the proteins in the hair and skin, as well as eyes red and irritated. Hair can become dry and sensitive skin itchy and irritated. Up to two thirds of our daily exposure to harmful chlorine is through vapour inhalation and skin absorption when showering. It is known that inhalation exposures may be up to 10 times as significant as ingestion or absorption, due to chemicals evaporating out of the water.

"Chlorine is so dangerous" according to biologist/chemist Dr. Herbert Schwartz,"that it should be banned. Putting chlorine in the water is like starting a time bomb. Cancer, heart trouble, premature senility, both mental and physical are conditions attributable to chlorine treated water supplies. It is making us grow old before our time by producing symptoms of ageing such as hardening of the arteries."

AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PUBLIC HEALTH - Dr. Halina Brown

Showering is suspected as the primary cause of elevated levels of chloroform in nearly every home

NEW SCIENTIST, 1986 - Ian Anderson

Studies indicate the suspect chemicals can also be inhaled and absorbed through the skin during showering and bathing.

CHLORINE AND YOUR SHOWER - Bruce Black

According to research presented at a meeting of the American Chemical Society, taking long hot showers - and to a lesser extent baths - is a health risk and leads to greater exposure to toxic chemicals contained in water supplies than does drinking the water.The chemicals evaporate out of the water and are inhaled. They can also spread through the house and be inhaled by others.

House holders can receive 6 to 100 times more of the chemical by breathing the air around showers and bath than they would by drinking the water.

NADER REPORT - Troubled Waters On Tap

The National Academy of Science estimates that 200 to 1000 people die in the United States each year from cancers caused by ingesting the contaminants in the water. The major health threat posed by these pollutants is far more likely to be from their inhalation as air pollutants. The reason that emissions are high is because water droplets dispersed by the shower head have a larger surface-to-value ratio than water streaming into the bath.

Office of Research and Development - US EPA - Lance Wallace, PhD

Chloroform levels increase 100 times during a 10 minute shower in tap water.

University of Pittsburgh - Julian B. Andelman, Professor of Water Chemistry

The steamy air of a shower contains significant amounts of at least two cancer-causing chemicals that evaporate out of water.The quality of our drinking water can be improved, by filtering chlorine from the tap water. However, this only addresses a third of the problem. Recent scientific research shows that for better health you should protect yourself from the harsh, toxic effects of free chlorine in your shower water.

Enjoy a safe chlorine free shower, decrease stinging and burning eyes, reduce respiratory problems, lower the risk of disease, enjoy smoother softer skin & reduce skin rashes, with less sinus irritation and healthier hair by using Hydragcom’s Shower and Bath Filters.