Fluoride in the water. Yes or no.

I would not expect chelation to reverse damage already done. But it would certainly be good to get back to a clean slate, so that future exposure is not dumped on top of past exposure. No?

EDIT:

Hmmm. From reading the Wikipedia article, I'm unclear as to whether chelation can remove mercury that's already penetrated into the tissues, or whether it just removes mercury still circulating after an incident of acute poisoning.

 

well post sort of indicates an acute poisoning and treatmeny scenario

 

Hmm . . . I don't know too many streams I'd trust. I'm not a fan of Beaver Fever (Giardia Lamblia), so I stay away from those creek waters. Even the cold, fast moving streams can contain parasites. Chlorine (at water treatment plants) may not take out all parasites, but if the water comes from aquifers, you are much less likely to encounter any harmful bacteria or parasites.

I love the romantic notion, but I gave up drinking from the canoe paddle a long time ago.

 

i wont take running water out in the open either if i had a choice that is why aquifers that abound around here are so cool. i get all my drinking water from an aquifer (which means once a week trips with car full of bottles to refill) then filter it thru a brita before using.

overkill maybe...

 

I once read that there is nowhere that surface water is safe to drink. Then I went to a wilderness lodge in B.C., surrounded by glaciers, where all the water is taken from the mountain without filtering or treatment, other than screening for debris. We took half a liter or so each from the lodge in the morning, and filled up during the day at the many creeks. These are all within a mile or so of their source, very cold snow-melt and glacier-melt, on steep terrain. The family that owns the lodge lives there 6 months out of the year and drinks no other water.

So there are a few isolated places you can still drink the surface water.

I also drank from the stream that crosses the path half-way up Ben Nevis, in Scotland. I was running low on water, and our local guide drank there.

One must always take reasonable precautions, but a life lived entirely in fear is no fun at all.