Drinking Water

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Basics

• Summary
• Start Here
• Prevention and Risk Factors

Learn More

• Related Issues
• Specifics

See, Play and Learn

• Images

Research

• Statistics and Research
• Journal Articles

Resources

• Find an Expert

For You

• Children
• Teenagers

Summary

We all need to drink water. How much you need depends on your size, activity level, and the weather where you live.

The water you drink is a combination of surface water and groundwater. Surface water includes rivers, lakes and reservoirs. Groundwater comes from underground. The United States has one of the safest water supplies in the world, but drinking water quality can vary from place to place. It depends on the condition of the source water and the treatment it receives. Treatment may include adding fluoride to prevent cavities and chlorine to kill germs.

Your water supplier must give you annual reports on drinking water. The reports include where your water came from and what contaminants are in it.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Start Here

• Bottled Water Basics (Environmental Protection Agency) - PDF
• Drinking Water (Environmental Health Student Portal) (National Library of Medicine)
• Drinking Water FAQ (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• Healthy Water (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• Nutrition and Healthy Eating: How Much Water Should You Drink Each Day? (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish
• Water (Department of Health and Human Services, Office on Women's Health)

Prevention and Risk Factors

• Cryptosporidium: A Guide to Water Filters (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Related Issues

• Basic Information about Your Drinking Water (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• Emergency Disinfection of Drinking Water (Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Water) Also in Spanish
• How EPA Regulates Drinking Water Contaminants (Environmental Protection Agency)
• Keep Food and Water Safe After a Disaster or Power Outage (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) Also in Spanish
• Lead and Drinking Water from Private Wells (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• Safety of Bottled Water Beverages Including Flavored Water and Nutrient-Added Water Beverages (Food and Drug Administration) Also in Spanish
• Tox Town (National Library of Medicine)

Specifics

• Bottled Water Everywhere: Keeping it Safe (Food and Drug Administration) Also in Spanish
• Giardia and Drinking Water from Private Wells (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• Lead in Drinking Water in Schools and Childcare Facilities (Environmental Protection Agency)
• Parasites: Water (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) Also in Spanish
• Water on Tap: What You Need to Know (Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Water) - PDF Also in Spanish

Images

• Arsenic in Ground Water of the United States (U.S. Geological Survey)
• Groundwater Contamination (Groundwater Foundation)

Statistics and Research

• Fluoridated Water (National Cancer Institute) Also in Spanish
• Get the Facts: Drinking Water and Intake (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

• Article: Comparison of Predicted Microbiological Human Health Risks Associated with de Facto,...
• Article: Human exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) through drinking water:...
• Article: Disinfection byproducts potentially responsible for the association between chlorinated drinking water...
• Drinking Water -- see more articles

Find an Expert

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Also in Spanish
• National Center for Environmental Health (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences Also in Spanish

Children

• Why Drinking Water Is the Way to Go (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish

Teenagers

• Quiz: Water and Your Health (Department of Health and Human Services, Office on Women's Health)
• Water (Department of Health and Human Services, Office on Women's Health)