Title: Arsenic in Drinking Water
Headings: Arsenic in Drinking Water - Information for Consumers
Arsenic in Drinking Water - Information for Consumers
Questions and Answers About Arsenic
What is arsenic and where does it come from?
What are the health concerns from arsenic exposure?
What is the public drinking water standard?
How do I know if arsenic is in my public water supply?
What if I have my own well and I live near a public system that found high arsenic levels?
For More Information on Arsenic
For a list of certified home products for arsenic removal:

Content: It is also used in paints, dyes, and semiconductors. What are the health concerns from arsenic exposure? Human exposure to arsenic can cause both short-term (acute) and long-term (chronic) health effects. The minimum lethal dose for acute (short term) arsenic poisoning is in the range of 50,000 to 300,000 parts per billion (ppb). Long-term arsenic ingestion from drinking water is strongly associated with increased risk of skin cancer, and there is substantial evidence that it increases the risk for cancers of the bladder, lung, kidney, liver, colon, and prostate. Non-cancer effects can include thickening and discoloration of the skin, stomach pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, numbness in hands and feet, partial paralysis, and blindness. What is the public drinking water standard? Arsenic is regulated in public drinking water systems by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and a maximum allowable limit-known as a maximum contaminant level (MCL)-has been established for it to protect against long-term exposure. For many years, the MCL for total arsenic was 50 ppb. During the 1990s, however, new studies, advances in the technologies for detecting minute concentrations of contaminiants, and affordable treatments allowed regulators to lower the MCL and provide improved public health protection from chronic health effects.