Is Your Drinking Water Giving You Diabetes?

Is Your Drinking Water Giving You Diabetes?

Arsenic, a common trace contaminant in well water, has been linked to type 2 diabetes

By Adam VoilandPosted August 19, 2008

The heavy metal arsenic, which occurs naturally as an element of the Earth's crust, has a long
history as an instrument of murder.The notorious Borgia family of Italy, including Pope
Alexander VI, is said to have used the tasteless, colorless, and odorless substance to regularly
dispatch enemies, and even a despot of Napoleon Bonaparte's stature may have fallen victim to
an orchestrated overdose. More recently, scientists have proved that chronic exposure to
drinking water contaminated with arsenic can cause cancers of the bladder, lung, kidney, and
skin, as well as a collection of other diseases. Now there's a new twist. Research published
today in the Journal of the American Medical Association has linked the ancient poison to type 2
diabetes, a disease that has reached pandemic proportions and now accounts for 1 in every 10
American dollars spent on healthcare. And trace amounts of naturally occurring arsenic seem to
be contributing to the problem—and endangering some Americans without their knowledge,
experts say.
Johns Hopkins researchers found that the risk of diabetes for Americans with the highest
inorganic arsenic loads in their urine is more than three times the risk for those with the lowest
arsenic loads. The new finding buttresses previous research in animals that shows exposure to
arsenic increases blood glucose and insulin levels. It's also consistent with studies from Taiwan,
Bangladesh, and Mexico that link high levels of arsenic to diabetes. The new study examined
inorganic arsenic exposure in a representative sample of Americans nationwide. (Organic
arsenic, which is found in seafood, is not thought to pose a health risk.)
There's a take-home message for many Americans.While utility companies are required by law
to keep arsenic levels in drinking water below 10 parts per billion, fewer safeguards exist for the
approximately 15 percent of Americans who quench their thirst with water from private wells. So,
many people may have high levels of arsenic in their water and not realize it, says Ana 
Navas-Acien, a physician and epidemiologist at Johns Hopkins University who is the study's lead
author.

"People who get their drinking water from private wells and live in areas where groundwater is
naturally contaminated with arsenic are at an especially high risk of being exposed to water with
levels above the 10 parts per billion acceptable limit set by the Environmental Protection
Agency," Navas-Acien says. “The good news: A cheap lab test—typically only $20 to $35—can
determine whether a household's well is contaminated. If it is, water filters or other water quality
improvement strategies can remedy the problem.

Arid states in the West have some of the most arsenic-contaminated groundwater in the
country, but midwestern and eastern states are also known to have certain areas with heavily
arsenic-laced water.The United States Geological Survey maintains nationwide maps of arsenic
levels that are a helpful resource for people wondering about their local area. Typically, arsenic
is a problem in deep wells, not surface waters. According to the Department of Health and
Human Services , filtering done by reverse osmosis, distillation, or special iron and aluminum
units can remove arsenic; water softeners and pitcher filters cannot. NSF International
maintains a useful database of filters.

For households with arsenic-contaminated wells, bottled water can be a good short-term
solution (though it is important to ensure that the bottled water is actually clear of the metal—
something that's not necessarily a guarantee, as this report from an environmentalist group and
a 2007 recall of Jermuk mineral water suggest). Longer-term remedies involve putting in a new
well using appropriate precautions or connecting to a public water supply. Sites from the
Environmental Protection Agency , the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , and the
Department of Health and Human Services offer more advice for consumers confronting high
arsenic levels in their wells.

 

 

                     是你的饮水导致你糖尿病？
                      砷，井水里的普通微量污染物，和两种糖尿病有关。

                        By Adam Voiland Posted August 19, 2008 
      重金属砷，作为地壳的组成元素之一， 很长时间一直被人们当作一种谋杀工具。臭名

昭著的意大利波吉亚家族，包括教皇亚历山大六世，据说经常使用这种无味，无色，无味

的物质，快速处决它们的敌人，甚至专制君主拿破仑也可能是过量使用砷的受害者。最近

，科学家已经证明，长期接触饮用被砷污染的水可能导致膀胱，肺，肾，皮肤的癌症，以

及一些其他疾病。现在有一个新的转折。今天，发表在美国医学协会杂志上的报告称，这

种古代的毒药和两种糖尿病有关。糖尿病已达到流行病的比例，目前占了全美医疗保健费

用的十分之一。痕量自然存在的砷似乎促成了这样的问题，它危害一些美国人，在他们没

有意识到的情况下，专家们说。约翰霍普金斯研究人员发现，尿液中无机砷含量最高的人

比无机砷含量最低的人得糖尿病得危险高出三倍以上。
      这一新的发现支持先前在动物身上的研究，该研究显示接触砷会增加血液中葡萄糖和胰

岛素的含量。 这也和台湾，孟加拉国和墨西哥等国的研究一致，即糖尿病和高含量的砷有

关。这项新的研究调查了全美国具有代表性的地区的砷暴露情况。（在海产食品里发现的

有机砷，被认为不会对健康构成威胁)。
       对于许多美国人来说，有一个带回家的讯息。而法律规定，公用事业公司要求，保持

饮用水砷含量在千万分之一以下，少的保障，对于从私井里取水解渴的人来说，这种安全

保障更低，大约是千万分之1.5。所以，很多人的饮用水里可能含高量的砷并且对此毫不知

情，约翰霍普金斯大学医生兼流行病学家Ana Navas-Acien说，他也是这项研究报告的主要

作者。
       从私井里取饮用水的居民和居住在地下水被砷污染的地区人处在一个非常危险的状况

，因为这些地方的水中砷含量高于千万分之一，而千万分之一是环境保护局设定的能接收

的最低标准。Navas-Acien说。好消息是：一项廉价的实验测试可以判断一个家庭的井是否

已被污染了，这种测试通常只需花费20到35美元。如果确实被污染了，滤水器或其他水质

改善的方法可以解决这个问题。
     在西部土地比较贫瘠的州里，一些地方的地下水受砷污染极其严重，中西部和东部的州

的一些地区也同样受砷污染严重。美国地质调查局拥有全国砷含量分布的地图，对那些想

知道他们本土状况的人来说，这是一项非常有用的资源。通常情况下，砷对于深水井是一

个问题，对地表水来说就不是了。 据卫生和人类服务署 ，利用反渗透，蒸馏，或特制铁和

铝的单位的方法来过滤可以移除砷;水柔软剂和投手的过滤器不能。NSF International维持

着一个有用的过滤器数据库。
      对于那些水井被砷污染了的家庭来说，瓶装水可能是一个较好的短期解决办法 。较长

远的补救措施包括采用合适的预防措施制作新井，或是将它连接到一个公共供水系统。在

环境保护局，疾病控制预防中心和卫生与人类服务部的站点上，为那些被井里高含量砷

威胁的消费者们提供了更多的意见。