What kind of water?

	Concerns about tap water include the risk of lead poisoning if your house was built before the 1970s and has lead piping. Even if it has been re-plumbed, the stop valve could be made of lead. Low levels of lead in the system have been linked to miscarriages, brain damage in children and poisoning in adults. If you think there might be lead in your water, contact the Drinking Water Inspectorate.
According to some studies, adding fluoride to water suppresses thyroid function and causes the organs to stockpile aluminum, but several areas still add it to the water supply to protect against tooth decay. To find out what is in your local supply, you can ask for a water quality report from your local supplier.

You can buy different kinds of filtration systems to remove contaminants from your tap water.

Jug Filters

These remove lime scale, chlorine and other impurities, but not hormones, fluoride or nitrates. The greatest improvement in taste, not quality. The filters should be changed monthly to be effective.

Plumbed-In Sink Filters

These claim to remove heavy metals, chlorine and 80 per cent of bacteria and pesticides. Once you have got past the installation cost, these are cheaper to run and more efficient than jug filters.

Reverse Osmosis Filters

The King of Filters is the reverse osmosis filter, filtering out between 95 and 98 per cent of minerals, chemicals, metals and bacteria, leaving you with a product that is purer than many bottled waters.

Bottled Mineral Water

This is convenient when you are out and about during the day. Always check that it is well before its sell-by date to avoid the risk of antimony poisoning from polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles and you should be fine.