I have always been concerned about the quality of our tap water. I believe I have good reasons to be concerned too; our city has had numerous water quality issues over the past few decades.

Everything appears to be safe now, but I often think of that law suit a decade or so ago. After a rash of miscarriages, the city was sued by a group of women who claimed that water quality caused them to miscarry. Apparently, there was some validity to the suit because a judge awarded them compensation. Or maybe, there was no validity to the claim?I really don’t know, but I’m not taking chances.

Because I have a history of miscarriages (even prior to moving here), I was super careful during my last pregnancy. Why take any unnecessary risks? I would only drink and cook with bottled water in order to protect my unborn baby from the contaminants that could possibly be lurking in the tap water. I naively assumed that bottled water was purer and safer than tap water.

I was wrong.

The Environmental Working Group (EWG) studied 10 brands of bottled water recently and found that many were full of chemicals and bacterial contaminants. It turns out that there is very little regulation by the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) on the quality of bottled water. Public water companies on the other hand are required to follow regulations and to disclose information regarding their water supply to consumers.

After I read this information, I was confused. Ok, so bottled water quality can be the same or actually worse than water quality from my kitchen faucet. What is a concerned parent to do? The EWG advises drinking filtered tap water. For additional safety, they recommend installing a whole house carbon filter to remove contaminants in all the water you use, not just your kitchen water supply.

There is some good news, at least for your pocket book and the environment. By using tap water, there’s less waste that will go into landfills. Buying a filter, in the long run, is actually cheaper than buying bottled water. So, be safe, thrifty, and environmentally responsible: use filtered tap water.

Once again we learn that our ultra-clean environments are not good for the kids. Researchers at Yale and the University of Chicago have found that common human bacteria protect against diabetes.

Many parents are familiar with the ‘hygiene hypothesis’. That is, reduced exposure to bacteria, viruses and parasites lowers our children’s immune systems. Therefore they are more susceptible to asthma, allergies, etc.

Since Type-1 diabetes is also an immune system disorder (the immune system attacks the insulin-producing pancreas), and because it is on the rise in may parts of the world but nearly unknown in the developing world, it has been a matter of intense debate and research. And now, a study published in the scientific journal Nature has linked Type-1 diabetes with the too-clean playroom.

Laboratory mice who lived in a germ-free environment developed severe diabetes. But those mice who were exposed to the types of bacteria commonly found in human intestines did not.

This research does not define how one thing leads to the other. But it does show a strong link between them. The article also mentions that only 10% of people with a genetic tendency to diabetes actually develop it. The rest may be environmental.

I am not one to respond to every new research study because they are so often overturned, but this one is different. For one, it supports other established theories. And two, it makes sense. Since my father died of complications from diabetes when he was 55, I am very interested in, and concerned about the disease, for myself and my children. I have never been overweight, but I know that isn’t the only risk factor.

My son happens to be almost obsessive about washing his hands. I’m sure it does him good, but I’ve actually struggled to get him to do it less. Now I have one more reason to tell him to stop. It’s also a little more justification for not vacuuming everyday?

It’s called sudden unexplained death in infants (SUDI), sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), cot death, or crib death and it’s every mother’s worst nightmare.

About 35% of post-perinatal deaths is due to SIDS/SUDI. It has been linked to many factors including smoking and alcohol abuse by mothers, low birth rates, toxic gases, cold weather, and wrong sleeping conditions.

Last year, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation awarded a USD 11 million dollars to the non-profit organization First Candle for a crib distribution program with the hope that better and safer cribs can prevent SIDS.

A recent study in the UK found high levels of the bacterial species Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli during autopsy of infants who died of unknown causes. These findings indicate that infection may be another piece of the puzzle that is SIDS.

The study:

Weber et al. Infection and sudden unexpected death in infancy: a systematic retrospective case review. The Lancet 2008 ; 371:1848-1853

When you hit between 35 and 37 weeks of pregnancy; your doctor will perform a test on you called Group B streptococcus screening. Your doctor will either do a vaginal or rectal swab to try and detect if the group B strep bacteria is present. Even though the mother is usually without symptom of the bacterium even being present; in the newborn, it is quite a different story. If left undetected; the group B strep bacteria can cause life-threatening infections in newborns and also can cause mental retardation, impaired vision, and hearing loss. The group B strep can be found in nearly 30% of healthy women. If the culture comes back negative; then you have no worries and nothing needs to be done. You can have a successful and normal natural delivery. But, if the bacterium is found to be present, you will be given antibiotics (usually penicillin or other antibiotic if allergic to penicillin) during labor and then the baby will be able to be delivered naturally.

It was already reported way back in 2004 that certain bacteria (both beneficial and harmful types) may actually survive pasteurization 1 and may therefore be present in that carton of milk or that yogurt you just bought today. This is a very disturbing thought especially for mothers but unfortunately very true.

This was confirmed by a recent study by scientists at the University of Liverpool in the UK 2. One of the harmful bacterial species identified was Mycobacterium paratuberculosis which can possibly cause Crohn`disease. The bacterium makes the cows ill and then finds its way into the milk. Crohn’s disease affects millions of people worldwide and presents with symptoms such as diarrhea, bleeding, and inflammation of the intestine.

Unfortunately, current methods in milk and dairy processing cannot guarantee that these products are completely bacteria-free. If milk is heated up too much, all microbes as well as vitamins and nutrients will be simply go up in smoke, leaving nothing but fat behind.

Some experts recommend the use of raw milk from organic farms. However, although raw milk is a very healthy alternative, there is still no guarantee that it is disease-free.

1 Paratuberculosis Awareness & Research Association (PARA) Press Release, 9 August 2004

2University of Liverpool (2007, December 13). How Bacteria In Cows’ Milk May Cause Crohn’s Disease. ScienceDaily. Retrieved January 1, 2008, from http://www.sciencedaily.com? /releases/2007/12/071210104002.htm