Think Twice About Kids Drinking From School Fountains...

Did you know?

Every day in America, almost 50 million students of public schools spend a great portion of their day in the school building.

Within this long period, children could be in contact with possibly anything.

Children play a lot and tend to get thirsty easily. And once the water in the bottle is used up, they resort to bottled water and water fountains in school.

This is one of the various ways your child may be exposed to environmental hazards in school.

Why is that?

Water fountains are usually a major source of germs, lead and chlorine.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) regards chlorine as a disinfectant.

Would you want your children to drink disinfectants? Certainly not!

Aside from the fact that it is unhealthy to consume chlorine or chlorine-containing water, the water in fountains also contains lead leached from plumbing fittings. Lead is considered a major cause of cancer.

Even if there were rules governing water sanitation, wouldn’t it be risky to entrust your child’s health to the not-so-overseeing jurisdiction of those rules?

Whenever there’s an outbreak of waterborne disease, it is only reasonable for municipalities to increase the chlorine levels. This means that during certain periods like spring run-off when water is turbid, chlorine levels can shoot up to more than double the normal range. During these high turbidity periods, the level of chlorine is water is supposed to be high so that the bacteria and germs can be eliminated. However, the use of disinfectants in water can lead to the formation of chemical by-products. WHO acknowledges that these by-products pose a threat to human health and it is important for their levels to be monitored.

Trihalomethanes (THMs) are the chemical by-products that are obtained when chlorine reacts with the organic matter in tap water. When present in drinking water at high levels these THMs have adverse effects on the human body, including cancer and problematic reproductive outcomes.

Due to the production of trihalomethanes, some towns no longer use chlorine as a disinfectant for drinking water. In place of chlorine, they use chlorine dioxide. But that still isn’t good enough. You know the saying, ‘it’s better to be safe than sorry’. That’s what you should bear in mind before you choose an option.

While you may have an alkaline water filter at home which you use to fill up water bottles for use at school, when the water in those bottles gets finished, what happens next?

You’ll probably resort to bottled water, right, so as to keep away from fountain water?

Well, the WHO has confirmed that mineralized bottled water is often low in minerals and nutrients! So, you can’t allow your kids to take water from the fountains and they can’t also drink bottled water; what do they drink then? Read on for a helpful tip.

Before we go ahead, we think you should be aware of the amount of water your child should take in every day. That way you will be able to choose a more effective option.

Children should take in this much water daily:

5-8 year olds should take 1 litre (5 glasses)

9-12 year olds should take 1.5 litres (7 glasses)

13 year olds and above should take 2 litres (8-10 glasses)

Proper hydration is important for growth and maintenance of good health. It keeps kids focused and energized in school. While bottled water and tap water may not contain all the nutrients essential for growth and good health, mineralized, alkaline water contains nutrients that are healthy for everyone.

According to the national youth physical activity and nutrition study, U.S. adolescents who drink less water tend to drink less milk, eat less vegetables and fruits, take in more sugary beverages, more fast food and get less exercise. This means that less water impedes healthy habits and leads to poor health in children.[1]

Adequate hydration prevents dehydration, and invariably symptoms associated with dehydration like mood change, overheating, constipation and kidney stones.[2]

Ensuring your kids have mineralized water is essential, but how do you do that effectively? Get the Power Stick! 

It is inexpensive so you won’t have to worry about replacing it at a high cost if the kids misplace it.

It is a perfect way to get rid of chlorine while getting your water fortified with all the essential minerals. When you give the Power Pouch to your kids to keep in their water bottles you don’t have to be worried about the water they add to their bottles while at school.

[1]Park S, Blanck HM, Sherry B, Brener N, O’Toole T. Factors associated with low water intake among US high school students-National Youth Physical Activity and Nutrition Study, 2010. J Acad Nutr Diet. 2012;112:1421-1427

[2]Hydration and disease. J Am Coll Nutr. 2007;26(5 Suppl):535s-541s