Drinking distilled water may be safe to use, but drinking it from a bottle is still dangerous, according to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Drinking distilled water from a drinking fountain may not be safe for people with chronic diseases and conditions that include diabetes, heart disease, and high blood pressure, the report found.
It’s unclear how often bottled water gets diluted by the water used to make it, but people who drink bottled water from tap water should use it only at home, and avoid mixing it with other household liquids, such as shampoo, soap, or detergent, the CDC said.
The CDC recommends avoiding drinking water that has been filtered by an automated purifying system, and avoiding bottled water that contains chloramine.
The report found that more than 1 million Americans had a blood-pressure test on or after Jan. 1, 2018.
People who drank more than a gallon of distilled water per day for more than six months had a 2.3 times greater chance of having a blood pressure test in the first month after they started drinking than people who drank less than 1 gallon per day.
Those who drank the most had a 5.6 times greater risk.
More than half of those who drank 10 gallons or more per day had a 1.9 times greater chances of having blood pressure tests in the second month after starting drinking, compared with people who only drank 2-3 gallons per day, the researchers found.
Drinkers who drank from water fountains that are made from a variety of materials and with no artificial additives have a higher risk of having tests done by an unqualified technician, and those who used water fountain pumps or other devices that were not properly maintained have a risk of testing positive for Chloramine, which is associated with blood clots and strokes, the study found.
Those who drank distilled water with more than 2 ounces of distilled vinegar had a 4.4 times higher chance of being tested for Chlamydia.
Drinking distilled or filtered water with 1 to 2 ounces more vinegar did not increase the risk of Chlamydial.
Drinks made from household products and beverages containing bleach or vinegar were not associated with increased Chlamdiah.
The study found that people who had used distilled water more than five times per day before starting drinking had a 6.4-fold greater risk of getting tested for CHLAD, compared to those who had never used distilled or unfiltered water.
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