A baby is born with a birth defect every four and a half minutes which affects 1 in 33 babies every year and they account for 20% of infant mortality rates.
A child born with a birth defect can be heartbreaking for parents and while some defects are minor and can be easily treated, others are quite severe causing permanent disabilities or even death.
There have been numerous studies done to figure out the causes of birth defects and ways to prevent them, however they continue to be a prevalent issue in our society today.
The majority of birth defects develop during the crucial early stages of pregnancy, when the baby's organs are beginning to form.
There are many factors that can contribute to the development of a birth defect such as genes passed down from parents, our environmental surroundings and a mother's behavior during pregnancy.
While we are unable to control how our bodies pass down genes, we absolutely can take steps to control our environmental surroundings as well as discontinuing risky behavior during pregnancy.
One potential and noteworthy source of environmental concern can be found in our drinking water.
Just last month a study conducted by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) was released, which confirmed that chemical contaminates in the drinking water at Camp Lejeune, a Marine Corps base in North Carolina, was the source of increased birth defects such as spina bifida and childhood cancers including leukemia.
The water at Camp Lejeune was contaminated with volatile organic compounds (VOCs) including trichloroethylene (TCE), tetrachloroethylene (PCE), benzene, 1,2-dichloroethylene (DCE) and vinyl chloride.
The source of these contaminates is believed to come from leaking underground storage tanks, industrial spills and an off-base dry cleaning firm.
The base in North Carolina is not the only instance of contaminated drinking water leading to birth defects and cancer however.
In July last year, an extensive study confirmed another long-suspected link between nitrate contaminated water and birth defects such as spina bifida, cleft palate and missing limbs in Iowa, Texas and the San Joaquin Valley of California.
Nitrates can occur naturally in the earth, however the majority of nitrate contamination is a result of crop fertilization.
Nitrates happen to be one of the most widespread chemical contaminants found in our water supply today.
Most publicly supplied water sources will filter out nitrates, making their water safe to drink, but consumers who drink from privately owned wells are not protected against nitrate contamination.
Drinking nitrate contaminated water while pregnant can cause serious birth defects but it can also be a risk even after birth.
Babies who drink formula made with water that has a high concentrate of nitrates can suffer from blue baby syndrome.
Blue baby syndrome results from decreased oxygen carrying capacity of hemoglobin which can lead to brain damage or even death.
Just recently a new concern has arisen regarding water contamination and that is fracking.
Fracking is a relatively new concept to extract oil and gas; it involves drilling massive holes over layers of shale and then injecting a mixture of water, sand and chemicals at extremely high pressure into the holes to break up the shale and release the gas below.
Companies that uses this method of extraction, are not required by law to release the exact chemical composition of the mixture they are shooting into the ground but tests have shown that this mixture contains numerous carcinogens and other highly toxic substances that have contaminated wells and aquifers leading to sick or dying wildlife and livestock, dead patches of earth where crops once grew and unexplained outbreaks of disease and birth defects.
So how do we protect ourselves and our unborn children from these contaminants? Well, the simplest answer is to only drink filtered drinking water.
There are water filters out on the market today that can effectively reduce these contaminates to non-detect levels, thereby dramatically reducing the risk of illness and potential birth defects in our children.
Water filtration systems should especially be used in high agricultural areas and wherever water is supplied from a private well.
Even water supplied from a municipal water source can have an impact on our health.
They often employ the use of chlorine to decontaminate the water, but in doing so, they are then adding another chemical that we are ingesting.
The US Council of Environmental Quality stated that the risk of cancer in those who drink chlorinated water is 93% higher than those who don't.
It has also been questioned in relation to childhood asthma, birth defects, risk of miscarriage, liver problems and kidney problems.
It is no wonder the prevalence of birth defects are so high in our country with the seemingly constant contamination of our water supplies.
Even if we think our water is safe to drink, it just makes sense to take that extra step and have it filtered before we drink it.
If we can save the heartache of birth defects in our children and illnesses down the road it is more than worth the price of a water filtration system.
A child born with a birth defect can be heartbreaking for parents and while some defects are minor and can be easily treated, others are quite severe causing permanent disabilities or even death.
There have been numerous studies done to figure out the causes of birth defects and ways to prevent them, however they continue to be a prevalent issue in our society today.
The majority of birth defects develop during the crucial early stages of pregnancy, when the baby's organs are beginning to form.
There are many factors that can contribute to the development of a birth defect such as genes passed down from parents, our environmental surroundings and a mother's behavior during pregnancy.
While we are unable to control how our bodies pass down genes, we absolutely can take steps to control our environmental surroundings as well as discontinuing risky behavior during pregnancy.
One potential and noteworthy source of environmental concern can be found in our drinking water.
Just last month a study conducted by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) was released, which confirmed that chemical contaminates in the drinking water at Camp Lejeune, a Marine Corps base in North Carolina, was the source of increased birth defects such as spina bifida and childhood cancers including leukemia.
The water at Camp Lejeune was contaminated with volatile organic compounds (VOCs) including trichloroethylene (TCE), tetrachloroethylene (PCE), benzene, 1,2-dichloroethylene (DCE) and vinyl chloride.
The source of these contaminates is believed to come from leaking underground storage tanks, industrial spills and an off-base dry cleaning firm.
The base in North Carolina is not the only instance of contaminated drinking water leading to birth defects and cancer however.
In July last year, an extensive study confirmed another long-suspected link between nitrate contaminated water and birth defects such as spina bifida, cleft palate and missing limbs in Iowa, Texas and the San Joaquin Valley of California.
Nitrates can occur naturally in the earth, however the majority of nitrate contamination is a result of crop fertilization.
Nitrates happen to be one of the most widespread chemical contaminants found in our water supply today.
Most publicly supplied water sources will filter out nitrates, making their water safe to drink, but consumers who drink from privately owned wells are not protected against nitrate contamination.
Drinking nitrate contaminated water while pregnant can cause serious birth defects but it can also be a risk even after birth.
Babies who drink formula made with water that has a high concentrate of nitrates can suffer from blue baby syndrome.
Blue baby syndrome results from decreased oxygen carrying capacity of hemoglobin which can lead to brain damage or even death.
Just recently a new concern has arisen regarding water contamination and that is fracking.
Fracking is a relatively new concept to extract oil and gas; it involves drilling massive holes over layers of shale and then injecting a mixture of water, sand and chemicals at extremely high pressure into the holes to break up the shale and release the gas below.
Companies that uses this method of extraction, are not required by law to release the exact chemical composition of the mixture they are shooting into the ground but tests have shown that this mixture contains numerous carcinogens and other highly toxic substances that have contaminated wells and aquifers leading to sick or dying wildlife and livestock, dead patches of earth where crops once grew and unexplained outbreaks of disease and birth defects.
So how do we protect ourselves and our unborn children from these contaminants? Well, the simplest answer is to only drink filtered drinking water.
There are water filters out on the market today that can effectively reduce these contaminates to non-detect levels, thereby dramatically reducing the risk of illness and potential birth defects in our children.
Water filtration systems should especially be used in high agricultural areas and wherever water is supplied from a private well.
Even water supplied from a municipal water source can have an impact on our health.
They often employ the use of chlorine to decontaminate the water, but in doing so, they are then adding another chemical that we are ingesting.
The US Council of Environmental Quality stated that the risk of cancer in those who drink chlorinated water is 93% higher than those who don't.
It has also been questioned in relation to childhood asthma, birth defects, risk of miscarriage, liver problems and kidney problems.
It is no wonder the prevalence of birth defects are so high in our country with the seemingly constant contamination of our water supplies.
Even if we think our water is safe to drink, it just makes sense to take that extra step and have it filtered before we drink it.
If we can save the heartache of birth defects in our children and illnesses down the road it is more than worth the price of a water filtration system.
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