Whatever contaminants are in your water supply will be absorbed through your skin as you shower, and even more so, through your lungs as you inhale the steam vapors from the shower. A warm shower opens up your pores and causes your skin to act like a sponge. Combining this absorption with the inhalation of the shower vapors puts these contaminants directly into your bloodstream at a rate of up to six times higher than drinking the same water. 

Unfortunately, most water does not only have one contaminant present; there is usually a “chemical cocktail” of small amounts of several or many contaminants. If you have well water, you may not have had any chemical testing done on your water.  

For almost 100 years, chlorine has been added to water supplies to disinfect the water. Even if there is no noticeable taste or odor, the chlorine is present, as are the byproducts of chlorination, which include some of the most potent carcinogens known. Research conducted jointly at Harvard University and the Medical College of Wisconsin found that chlorinated water was a direct cause of 9% of all bladder cancers and 15% of all rectal cancers. Chlorinated water irritates your eyes, sinuses, throat, skin and lungs. It also aggravates conditions such as asthma, allergies and emphysema. 

Next time you shower, weigh yourself before the shower. After the shower quickly pat yourself dry and weigh yourself again. The weight gain you see is due to the absorbed shower water. 

The best solution to this issue is the installation of a quality whole-house water treatment system that contains a generous amount of high quality activated carbon.