Pharmaceutical drugs are everywhere. They are on the shelves of pharmacies, the radio, television commercials and now…….the water?! According to researchers many drugs can be found all around the world in very small amounts in drinking water, river ways, and lakes. Antibiotics, anti-seizure medications, pain medications, sex hormones, and all kinds of drugs can be found depending on the city.

The main source is treated wastewater. It is very hard to get drugs out of the water supply. In addition to human waste, animal waste is a problem as well. Cattle are treated with a variety of medications as well as poultry and pets. A process called reverse osmosis can remove them but it is very expensive, causes pollution in and of itself and so it is not used for water treatment.

Hopefully, in the very near future, we will have a filtration process that will help to get these drugs out of our water. In the meantime, maybe we could all find ways to become healthy enough through diet and exercise so that we don’t have to take as many of these drugs!