GE recently changed the part number on their most popular refrigerator water filter (the SmartWater MWF filter cartridge) to new part number MWFP. We were told that the “P” stood for pharmaceuticals. That sounds scary right? I don’t want any unknown pharmaceuticals in the water at my house! But didn’t the old MWF also filter out these potentially harmful chemicals/hormones? The unofficial answer we received was… yeah, probably (shrug). Which is still a good thing right?
Here is the list of pharmaceuticals that the MWFP water filter is guaranteed to protect us from (I say us because this filter is in my refrigerator at home): ibuprofen, progesterone, atenolol, trimethoprim, and fluoxetine.
Hmm… sometimes I think a little ibuprofen in our water might be a good thing… that’s a JOKE 🙂 …maybe. But what about those other weird words? I got curious and looked them up online. Progesterone is usually used in hormone replacement therapy for women going through menopause. Atenolol is usually used for high blood pressure. Trimethoprim kills bacteria in the urinary tract and fluoxetine is Prozac. What is Prozac doing in drinking water??
I did a quick search and came across this article: http://www.governing.com/topics/health-human-services/Prozac-in-the-Water.html And that’s just 1 little link to 1 little article- there are tons like it.
You know what I’d like to see? A comprehensive home water testing kit that will show everything in the water besides… well, besides WATER!!