Preventing Water-Borne Infections
For People with Weakened Immune Systems
People
with very weak immune systems who are at higher risk of certain water-borne
diseases include those with:
· HIV infection who have a CD4+ count
of less than 100 cells/mm3;
· lymphoma or leukemia (hematological
malignancies) who are being actively treated or have been in remission and off
treatment for less than 1 year;
· hematopoietic stem cell transplant
recipients; and
· people born with diseases that
severely affect their immune systems.
Some
people with weakened immune systems, such as those with certain types of
cancers or taking certain medications, may not be at higher risk of severe
water-borne diseases. These people do not need to take extra precautions with
their drinking water.
Ask
your health care provider how weak your immune system is, and whether you need
to take extra precautions.
How can
drinking water become contaminated?
Drinking water can contain different organisms, including bacteria, viruses and parasites, which can cause disease.
These
organisms can exist in the source water such as lake water and survive through
treatment, or they can enter the water supply in the distribution system.
Wellwater can be contaminated if the well is not built properly or if it draws on
water from the surface of the ground, such as shallow wells or wells drilled in
fractured rock.
Surface
water, such as rivers, lakes and streams, can also contain disease-causing
organisms from animal feces.
If
you have a weak immune system, you should not drink water from surface sources
or wells potentially contaminated by surface water such as dug wells, unless
the water has been treated to remove or inactivate at least 99.9 per cent of
parasites (protozoa), 99.99 per cent of viruses and all harmful bacteria.
Most
community water systems have effective treatment, such as disinfection or
chlorination, against bacteria and viruses.
However,
in many cases, treatment may not provide a 99.9 per cent reduction in
infectious parasites.
Some
water systems and many private supplies have no treatment at all.
How can I
further treat disinfected water?
People with very weak immune systems need to take extra
precautions with their drinking water.
Boiling: If
your water supply has already been disinfected, bring the water to a full boil
to inactivate any Cryptosporidium parasites - a major concern for people with
weakened immune systems.
If
the water has not already been disinfected, bring the water to a full boil for
at least 1 minute. This will kill or inactivate bacteria, viruses and
parasites.
At
elevations over 2,000 meters (6,500 feet), boil water for at least 2 minutes to
disinfect it.
Do
not drink or use tap water to brush your teeth, rinse your mouth, mix drinks or
make ice cubes without boiling it first.
Please
note that boiling water will get rid of viruses, bacteria and parasites but not
chemicals which may be found in the water.
ReverseOsmosis (RO): RO
is effective against all disease-causing organisms and many chemicalcontaminants.
Unless
it has a high capacity, it will only produce small amounts of water and waste a
large volume. Speak to a water treatment specialist to see if this is the best
option for you.
Ultraviolet(UV) Treatment: UV
light will kill many disease-causing organisms, and is effective against almost
all parasites.
UV
will not kill some bacterial spores and some viruses, so it should not be used
unless the water supply is at least disinfected.
Filters: Jug-type
filters, which sit in a jug and allow water to trickle through, and some
tap-mounted and built-in devices are not an appropriate solution.
The
jug filter models are not effective in removing many disease-causing organisms.
Can I drink bottled water?
Bottled water may or may not have been treated.
If
you have a very weak immune system, check with the bottling company to find out
what treatment, if any, it has had.
Bottled water that has been properly treated using one of the methods list above can be
used for drinking, brushing teeth, making ice cubes and for recipes where water
is used but not boiled, such as cold soups.
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