Is lead lurking in your tap water?
供水系统的腐蚀会使你的家人面临健康风险.
你的饮用水可能不像你想象的那么安全——尤其是如果你的家里有铅管道的话. Corrosion in your home's plumbing 供水系统会让铅渗入自来水中, 让你的家人每次喝酒都面临潜在的健康风险.
Know the risks of lead in tap water
铅对家庭成员的影响取决于他们的年龄和发育情况. 儿童和孕妇面临的风险最大.
- Infants: Delays in physical and mental abilities
- Children: Brain and nervous system damage, behavioral and learning problems, lower IQ, issues with hearing, slowed growth and anemia
- Adults: Nervous system impairment, high blood pressure, hypertension, kidney problems and reproductive issues
Signs of lead in tap water
虽然铅中毒很难发现，尤其是在早期，但还是有一些 symptoms to look out 因为这可能是由饮用水中的铅引起的.
Lead poisoning symptoms in children
- Abdominal pain
- Constipation
- Delays in development
- Difficulties with learning
- Fatigue
- Irritability
- Loss of appetite
- Loss of hearing
- Seizures
- Vomiting
- Weight loss
Lead poisoning symptoms in adults
- Abdominal pain
- Difficulties with memory or concentration
- Headache
- High blood pressure
- Joint and muscle pain
- 流产:孕妇流产或早产
- Mood disorders
- Reduced sperm count
Test tap water for lead
Over 9 million U.S. homes may have lead pipes. 你看不见、闻不到或尝不到铅，那么你怎么知道你的水是否被污染了呢? The answer: regular testing. If your home was built before 1986, 你的管道有含铅材料的风险更大. But regardless of your home's age, the U.S. 环境保护署(EPA)建议 testing your water regularly if it comes from a private water system. 大多数公共供水系统每年对污染物进行检测. 然而，这些测试反映的是整个系统的水质，而不是单个家庭的水质.
如果你在家里使用井水，一定要在水井建成后检测水中的铅含量. 水应该定期再测试一次, 特别是当一个孩子或孕妇住在家里，喝的水.
大多数家装店都有测试工具. 为了得到最好的结果，EPA建议将你的样品送到 certified laboratory in your area.
Take precautions
If your water tests positive for lead, 你可以做一些事情来减少短期和长期的风险. But first, 去看医生，确保你家里没有人体内铅含量过高.
Here are some things you can do at home:
- 使用冷水水龙头，因为冷水的含铅量比温水低.
- 如果水龙头在过去六个小时内没有使用过，用水龙头冲洗水管至少一分钟，直到水变冷.
- Replace lead plumbing pipes. 根据美国环保署的说法，铅是一种暗淡的灰色金属，很容易被划伤.
- Use bottled or distilled water.
- 使用经过认证的过滤器来去除水中的铅.
如果你对饮用水有疑问，环保局有 Safe Drinking Water Information 包含在线联系表单的页面.
