I recently came upon an interesting article at the World Health Organization’s (the UN’s Health arm, based in Geneva, Switzerland) website about the importance of clean, accessible water to health, especially that of women and children. The article focuses on water, sanitation and hygiene as they relate to the health of women of childbearing age. The article’s content had pertinence beyond just this area, though, and makes one think about the status of water supplies around the world and their impact on all areas of people’s lives.

Gloablally

The statistic posed in this article that I found most shocking was that worldwide, 40% of households do not have access to water on the premises of their home. This means that to obtain water for drinking, cooking, and bathing, many people must carry the water, every day, perhaps over long distances. This job of carrying is more often left to women, including young girls, and can put them at risk for dangers and pathogens they may encounter on their daily trips.

However, it gets more striking: 13% of people “do not even have a hand pump and rely on an unimproved water source.” Since in communities such as these there are also poor toilet facilities, that water is likely contaminated with infectuous creatures and viruses.

With the information above, it is not surprising that 1.5 million children every year die of diarrhea – likely due to a bacterial or viral infection that could have been avoided by clean water supplies. However, not only young children are hurt by such afflictions; older children through adults may also suffer from chronic and overt illness related to unclean water.

The article does point to some hope, though. Many engineers around the world are working on low-cost pumps and water cleaning tools. Education departments around the world are focusing on providing clean water and bathroom facilities at their schools. With this sort of progress, the proportion of the population without clean water can be greatly reduced.

I found this short article when searching for the state of clean water access in India. In many rural areas in northern India, at this time of year, and in slums around the major cities, the only source of water people have is that which is trucked in by the government. The result during times of drought and great need is scary. While these people have some access to clean water, it is not always available, and there may not be enough for everyone’s needs.

Nationally

Almost everyone in the US has access to clean water. Water sources, with the exception of those that are privately owned and used, are carefully regulated by the government. Thanks to water treatment, the load of infectious agents in our water is very low, and due to our health care system and ready supply of antibiotics and such, infection from dirty water is almost unknown. In fact, the top five causes of death in infants in the US, as found on a 2008 CDC report on infant mortality, did not list any ailments that could be related to poor hygiene. This is not the case in developing countries, alas.

Locally

In Tarrant County, one water-borne illness has been of some public health concern. Crytosporidiosis is a disease caused by a parasite found in water which causes diarrheal illness. It is somewhat resistant to chlorine and is usually picked up by children when swimming in lakes and pools. Children ages 0-4 are the most affected age group. The noxious symptoms can last for weeks, though they do not appear to usually be life-threatening.

I happen to have in front of me the 2009 Drinking Water Quality Report for Fort Worth. It details the water treatment process and the measured levels of various mineral, organic, and microbial substances in the water. All were reported far below levels considered dangerous.

Hopefully we can remember that clean water is of the utmost importance to our health and well-being. Efforts towards the goal of clean water for all are being made around the world. The success of these initiatives will mean a great deal for the future of humanity, especially in poor and developing areas.