Warning: Don’t Reboil Water Ever Again!
This happens to me at least once a week: I fill my electric kettle up with water to let it boil for my evening tea and then… well, anything can happen. I was in the middle of working on something, or the TV show I’m watching just got really good and now what?
The perfectly hot water is now regrettably cold. The solution may seem simple; just turn the kettle back on and reboil it to be enjoyed in a couple more minutes.
But what happens to water when we reboil it?
It’s something they never taught us in chemistry class, but really should have. When we boil water, the chemistry of it changes, which is usually a good thing as it boils out volatile compounds and dissolves gases. This is why boiling water mostly ensures that it’s safe to drink.
If water is left boiled too long or is reboiled, the chemical compounds change for the worst. By leaving your water to boil down, you’re actually concentrating many harmful chemicals instead of getting rid of them.
The same thing happens when you reboil water, as the compounds concentrate and increase the risk of ingesting certain chemicals.
These chemicals could include arsenic, nitrates, and fluoride. Even the minerals that are healthy for us can become dangerous when concentrated, such as calcium salt which can lead to kidney stones and gallstones when taken excessively.
The Destructive Effects of Reboiled Water
1. Arsenic
“Drinking-water poses the greatest threat to public health from arsenic,” states The World Health Organization (WHO).
Exposure to arsenic may lead to arsenic toxicity, which can develop physical effects slowly over a number of years, depending on the level of exposure.
Dangers of arsenic toxicity include peripheral neuropathy, gastrointestinal symptoms, skin lesions, diabetes, renal systems effects, cardiovascular disease, and even cancer.
2. Nitrates
Nitrates are found naturally all over earth, in the soil, water, and air. However, the chemical can become harmful when used as a food preservative, such as in deli meats, or when exposed to high heat, such as boiling water.
When nitrates are exposed to high temperatures, they convert to nitrosamines, which are carcinogenic.
Nitrates have been linked to many diseases such as leukemia, non-Hodkin lymphoma, and different cancers, including colon, bladder, ovarian, stomach, pancreatic, and esophageal cancer.
3. Fluoride
Many studies have been done over the controversial chemical fluoride and its presence in drinking water. The fact is, it’s there and it could pose a threat to your health. Despite the proof of the dangerous effects of fluoride, the government insists to keep it in our water.
Source: http://www.riseearth.com/2016/05/warning-dont-reboil-water-ever-again.html
Pure water is 1/3rd gaseous at any time, you cannot change its composition any more than it changes its own other than to evaporate or freeze it.
Utter BS. Who’s to say when you get the water, it hasn’t already been boiled many times elsewhere? Plus how would boiling magically produce fluoride and arsenic? So stupid.
BIN needs a feature where you can block articles from even appearing from people like this — people who don’t bother to even check their sources before posting.
Well, that would explain a lot of stuff.
Me and my flat mate Nic have been boiling water down until it’s of a honey consistancy for years. Then we throw in some vegetables and a cat and wahlah …..friciseed polecat casserole.
Yum.
This story certainly explains my third nipple, and why folk are always referring to my friend as an asenic.
I know BIN is mainly entertainment, but is there a special camp, or colony of people that actually take health, and life advise from BIN ?
I agree, total BS. People are not dropping dead from boiling water over again.
The water will stay water no matter what. If you start out with chemicals in it,
you started out as a fool to begin with. Taking spring water, and boiling it will
not change anything, boil it twice, three times, makes no difference. Who
came up with this fearmongering fairy tale?
With content quality as low as this, I’m thinking of submitting a doomsday piece on the impending apocalypse relating to the uptick in incidence of ducks acquiring surgically enhanced aggressive/submissive ducklips…..and the consequential impact that will have on projected oil futures relative to the horrific rise to $3. A can of pet food……which, if you think about it, is actually $21. In dog dollars.
….and important stuff like that.
I did a search on this, and it seems the jury is mixed on this one. There are plenty of sites saying not to do this, and others saying it’s safe. Better to err on the side of caution, unless you’re in a situation where water is scarce and replacing already or excessively boiled water with a fresh batch is impractical. If the water you’re reboiling was pure to begin with, then it doesn’t matter anyway as there wouldn’t be any chemicals or toxins to worry about concentrating—unless they leached off the container you were boiling it in.
One way to find out the chemicals in your water is to boil the water until it has completely evaporated and see what’s left.