We are new owners with well water as our only drinking source. We had the water tested and wondered if it is safe for a pregnant woman to drink without a filter.
E. coli and total coliforms: absent
Arsenic: 0.0021
Copper: .05
Lead: <0.001
Nitrate as N: 9.37
Nitrate + Nitrite as N: 9.37
Nitrite as N: <.10
pH: 7.8
Total dissolved solids: 1130
Nitrate as N: 9.37
I would take the results to your doctor and ask
According to the EPA, your counts look good.
I have water tested on a lot of my residential inspections,
and those numbers look pretty good,
but with pregnancy, I’d do as Wayne suggested and make
sure your Dr. knows what they are.
High nitrate levels are very dangerous for infants. It coats their blood cells and interferes with oxygen absorption (causing suffocation) and anything higher than a 10 is considered unsafe by many regulators. You are at 9.37 which, IMO, is too close since this number can easily fluctuate.
IMO, you should contact your local health department and seek their input.
Learn more about nitrates and infants, here: http://www.idph.state.il.us/envhealth/factsheets/NitrateFS.htm
Screw “government approved” safe levels of poison when it comes to protecting your family.
There are a number of factors, including the method of collection, chain of custody, proper handling, lab accreditation, etc which factor in.
But, to Jim’s point, the nitrate and nitrite numbers are too close to an unacceptable level to be ignored.
A suggestion would be to reach out to a company which specialized in water filtration and treatment, and not ASKING them if it needs to be filtered, but TELLING them you want it to be filtered out.