Water remains one of the most essential elements that ensure our health and survival on this planet. However, given the innate nature of water, it carries several dissolved solids with it as flows from the glaciers, absorbing minerals, and several other solids through its journey down to the plateaus.
In fact, this often adds to the health quotient of water, with mineral water being celebrated for the various health benefits it offers. In fact, several people even opt to store the water in copper or clay utensils to ensure the water absorbs some properties of the utensil in which it is stored, passing on the health benefits to those who drink it.
However, there is a flip side to this. When the total dissolved solids or TDS levels are present in excess, they have a negative impact on our health. Therefore, it is important to understand what exactly is TDS, and its role in drinking water. Read on to understand the various way in which excess TDS in drinking water can harm your health.
Excess TDS can impact your vital organs
High levels of TDS, when involve metals such as copper, or minerals such as lead, and consumed on a daily basis, are dangerous for your health. For instance, if your drinking water has high levels of lead than what is considered safe, there are chances that the lead will enter your blood. Once it enters your blood steam, the lead can damage your kidneys, brain, as well as reproductive organs, negatively.
Further, lead-based TDS can impact the production of red blood cells in your body, which are responsible for pumping adequate oxygen to all parts of your body. This in turn, can lead to heart-related problems, as well as increase the chances of developing blood pressure and hypertension.
Similarly, when there is excess copper-based TDS in your drinking water, it can cause your body to excrete the same, resulting in vomiting and diarrhoea. More serious side effects including impact to the liver and the kidneys, likely as a result of the constant struggle to get rid of the excess copper.
High levels of TDS can cause to drink lesser water
High or excess levels of TDS, beyond what is recommended, can alter the taste of drinking water. This in turn, can have a negative impact on water consumption patterns, especially among children, who can be fussy about taste-related preferences.
Drinking water with high levels of TDS is likely to have a salty or even bitter taste, depending on the solids present, and can result in impacting your drinking water intake and frequency. When this happens on a recurring basis, especially during the summers, there are high chances of dehydration owing to altered water consumption habits.
TDS can alter your food’s taste and eating habits
This is an often-overlooked fact but when TDS levels in drinking water go above 1000 PPM, they start to impact how cooked food tastes. This means that depending on the solids present in water, the food could taste high on salt, have a bitter aftertaste, and so on.
Needless to say, this can vastly impact the overall meal experience. When the drinking water at home or a place where one eats their daily meals is affected by such high TDS levels, the daily meal intake and in the long run, nutrition, goes for a toss; people don’t experience adequate levels of satiety that one associates with everyday meals, causing them to indulge in unhealthy snacking and eating habits.
ManagingTDS in your drinking water
Hence, going forth, it is important to understand the role of TDS in your drinking water. The crucial point you need to understand is that every solid has its own qualities, and when present in excess, they stand to impact your health.
At the same time, you don’t want to get rid of them completely since they do have an important role to play. The need of the hour is to opt for drinking water from trust-worthy brands who ensure just the right amount of TDS levels in your drinking water. After all, water remains the most important constituent in our body and must not be consumed without factoring in the impact of drinking water with unmeasured levels of TDS.
Hence, whether you are filtering water at home, or buying bottled water from brands, going forth make sure you only trust an expert who is upfront about their TDS management approach. Avoid assuming that every water filtration system or bottle water is safe enough when it comes to ensuring the right TDS levels in your drinking water.