Safe and readily available water is important for public health, whether it is used for drinking, domestic use, food production or recreational purposes. Improved water supply and sanitation, and better management of water resources, can boost countries’ economic growth and can contribute greatly to poverty reduction.

How does the water crisis affect the economy? Time spent collecting water or seeking a safe place to go accounts for billions of dollars in lost economic opportunities. An estimated $260 billion is lost globally each year due to lack of basic water and sanitation.

1.Water purification can protect against harmful organisms Studies have shown that unfiltered water may comprise microorganisms causing diarrhoea, vomiting and even death. Water filtration systems are required to clean the water and kill these microorganisms in order to provide people with safe drinking water.

Water filtration is the process of removing or reducing the concentration of particulate matter, including suspended particles, parasites, bacteria, algae, viruses, and fungi, as well as other undesirable chemical and biological contaminants from contaminated water to produce safe and clean water for a specific purpose …

So to get back to the question: Does reverse osmosis remove bacteria and viruses? Yes, it does and it does so very effectively for many water transferred viruses and bacteria. Above that, millions of Americans own a reverse osmosis filtration system themselves and have it installed in their homes.

Viruses cannot be removed by a standard water filter as they are too small. Most physical filters will remove contaminants that are on the micron scale, however, viruses are only nanometers (1-100 nm) in size and will pass through.

Filters are often used by people who are health conscious and who want to prevent granulated particles or unpleasant odors and flavors from the water. You should know that activated carbon filters do not remove bacteria, viruses or fungi, or fungal spores from water.

Activated carbon filters will not remove microbial contaminants such as bacteria and viruses, calcium and magnesium (hard water minerals), fluoride, nitrate and many other compounds.

Activated carbon can be effective in reducing hundreds of substances including contaminants and other chemicals from the tap water. However, the most cited studies by EPA and NSF claim effective removal of between 60-80 chemicals, effective reduction of another 30 and moderate reduction for 22.

When filtering water, charcoal carbon filters are most effective at removing chlorine, particles such as sediment, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), taste and odor. They are not effective at removing minerals, salts, and dissolved inorganic substances.

Results: Hollow-fibre membrane filters did not affect fluoride concentrations in the fluoridated water, but activated-carbon filters removed some fluoride, especially from the pure-water solution.

Filters that remove chemicals often do not effectively remove germs, and vice versa. Some water treatment devices that remove chemicals, such as reverse osmosis, ion exchange, or distillation systems, might also remove fluoride. Children who drink water with levels of fluoride <0.6 ppm might need a fluoride supplement.

Fast facts about fluoride Adding fluoride to the water supply reduces the incidence of tooth decay. Fluoride protects teeth from decay by demineralization and remineralization. Too much fluoride can lead to dental fluorosis or skeletal fluorosis, which can damage bones and joints.