Water Filters & Protozoans.
Do I need a water filter? or Do I need a water purifier? The question is asked all over the Internet, backpacker magazines, survival magazines in person you name it and when it comes to outdoors and water this question is asked ALL OVER! Simply put water filters do not remove viruses while water purifiers do remove viruses. Water filters do however remove protozoans, and bacteria.
Before we can determine if you need a water filter or a water purification device let us take a look at the many waterborne pathogens that could be in the water you want to drink.
The most well known waterborne pathogens that people in North America worry about today are Giardia and Crypt0 (Cryptosporidia) which are both protozoan cysts.
What can Giardia do to me and where does Giardia it come from?
Giardia comes from human or animal fecal matter. The fecal matter does NOT have to enter the water supply directly, in fact heavy rains have been known to introduce high amounts of the giardia microorganisms into water sources.
The infection caused by giardia occurs in the small intestine and the most common symtom is diarrhea. The infected person will normaly start getting symtpons between one and two weeks AFTER being exposed to the infected water thus almost making it impossible to determine which water source is in fecteted with giardia. Unfortunelty untreated Giardia can last up to 6 weeks. The only treatments for giardia are antimicrobial agents. Other known symtpons of giardia include gas, nausea and cramps; some people may expierence almost instant diarrhea and fatigue.
What can Crpto (Cryptosporidia) do to me and where does Cryptosporidia come from?
Crypto comes from an infected human or animal’s fecal matter. The most common symtpon of crypto is watery diarrhea. Symtpons normally appear four to six days after infection but may appear as early as two days and as late as 10 days. The symptons of crypto normaly last only a few days but can last up to a couple of weeks. (Did you know swallowing a SMALL amount of lake water or even pool water can cause cryptosporidiosis.) Currently there is no medication that will prevent or cure cryptosporidiosis. Anti-diarrhea medication may make some of the symptons more managable but will not eliminate the problem.
The easiest ways to prevent Giardia and Crypto are to wash your hands, fruit & vegetables (crypto) and know how to clean the water you wish to drink.
Now that I know what the most commont form of water pathogens are how can I safely remove them from my water?
Luckily pathogens are among the easiest things to remove from water. Most quality water filters can remove pathogens and even bacteria!
Boiling water for one minute (longer at elevation) will also make your water safe to drink. A UV light can also be used to kill pathogens, however UV lights are not the best method and we don’t suggest them.
Luckily for those of us in North America a water filter will be all we require most of the time.
Be sure to come back for our articles on water filters and bacteria, water purification and viruses, water procurement as well as chemicals found in water and using household chemicals to treat infected water.
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One Response to “Water Filters & Protozoans.”
November 12th, 2008 at 5:28 pm
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