We explain what drinking water is and why it is important. Also, its characteristics, what it is for and how to obtain it.
What is drinking water?
Drinking water is water suitable for human consumptionthat is, water that can be drunk directly or used to wash and/or prepare food without any risk to health.
Water is extremely abundant on our planet, and since It is the universal solventoften contains numerous elements and substances dissolved in it, which may (or may not) be detected with the naked eye and modify (or not) its taste, color and smell, thus representing a potential danger to the human body.
Therefore, drinking water is not so abundant on the planet, even though There are purification mechanisms invented by mansince the quality of the water of a community or nation depends, to a large extent, on its public health. Numerous cases of epidemics or mass poisonings have been due to the presence of toxic substances or infectious agents in it.
In this way, the presence of drinking water in the world is constantly threatened by water, soil and air pollution, since large bodies of water such as seas and oceans are not suitable for human consumption, due to their huge amount of dissolved salts.
Drinking water characteristics
According to the regulations of the European Union, it is established that drinking water It must have a content of salts, minerals and ions (sulfates, chlorates, nitrites, ammonium, calcium, phosphate, among others) that is within the accepted ranges, which means a pH between 6.5 and 9.5.
On the other hand, it must be as free of bacteria and pathogenic microorganisms (viruses, etc.), as well as suspended particles and organic or radioactive substances. This implies medium purity standards that make it suitable for free and daily consumption.
How is drinking water obtained?
Drinking water comes naturally from polar ice, mountain streams or subsoil depositsand generally only requires a simple disinfection treatment, using chlorine, ozone, exposure to ultraviolet rays or other mechanisms that eliminate the free-living microorganisms present in it.
However, these natural resources are not always available in the vicinity and common waters are purified, which can be carried out through one or more of the following processes:
- Filtering processes. By decanting in various materials, filtering the solid particles present or stripping of volatile compounds.
- Physical purification processes. Like selective evaporation, also useful for removing salt levels from seawater, or through reverse osmosis or distillation.
- Boiled. A common home procedure, which consists of boiling water for a few minutes, killing the microorganisms that exist in it. However, it is ineffective against dissolved substances or physical residues.
What is drinking water for?
Drinking water is used mainly for direct consumption, that is, to drink, cook or wash the food we will eat. Drinking water is also what we use when bathing or washing, although in many countries a distinction is made between water intended for these purposes (what we get from the pipe) and mineral water for drinking (which is bought packaged).
Likewise, drinking water is necessary for the food industry, since recycled or treated water is usually used in agriculture. It is used to make food and drinks, also to manufacture medicines and other chemical products, for cleaning hospitals, etc.
Importance of drinking water
Drinking water is, although it may not seem like it, a limited resource. It is much easier to contaminate a liter of water than to make it suitable for human consumption again, and billions of liters of water are consumed daily in our cities, while investment in water purification becomes increasingly expensive.
The WHO has warned on numerous occasions of the direct relationship between the incidence and morbidity of diarrheal diseases and other epidemics, with access to drinking water in the most disadvantaged populations in the world. To the extent that we do not take care of water and reduce the impact of our civilization on it, the more exposed we will be to the health consequences that this implies.
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