Stop drinking raw water from the mountains. Don’t do it unless absolutely necessary!
Water pollution falls into two main categories: microbial and industrial/chemical.
The post by TanLuLu editors only discusses microbial contamination. Common outdoor water purification methods—such as boiling, using disinfectant tablets, or filtering—do not work against industrial pollution. For example, mountainous areas with agricultural or mining activities may have chemical contamination; the former from pesticides and insecticides, the latter from toxic factories or mining waste. Under no circumstances should water from these areas be consumed. Similarly, urban tap water has diverse sources of contamination, which is why professional municipal treatment plants are essential. In Western countries, tap water is often safe to drink directly because of their high purification standards and strict practices.
A few more words about the mindset of those who drank raw water and were fine. First, let me reiterate: not all outdoor water is contaminated—that’s not the point. The point is, we don’t know which water is sterile. Therefore, TanLuLu editors advocate being prepared not to drink raw water when going out, and not to take that risk unless absolutely necessary..
Many people forget that we coexist with countless microorganisms, which are transmitted in various ways, one of the most significant being through human and animal feces. One of Western medicine’s major contributions to human health is the discovery and study of bacteria. In the 19th century, Western doctors and scientists found that bacteria could make people sick, but before the widespread use of antibiotics in the 20th century, the primary method of improving human health was through improved sanitation—such as handwashing, not drinking raw water, and centralized urban sewage treatment. In 1854, a cholera epidemic broke out in the Broad Street area of London, killing 500 people within two weeks. A doctor named Snow used statistical methods to study the outbreak and discovered that the epicenter was a well on Broad Street. He concluded that people had drunk contaminated raw water. Later, the government removed the pump handle, and visitors to London can still see a replica of the pump commemorating Snow (see photo). This happened before the French microbiologist Pasteur published his germ theory in 1861, and Snow couldn’t prove that cholera was caused by bacteria. At the time, people believed cholera was caused by “bad air,” such as miasma. It’s similar to how early traditional Chinese medicine and many other cultures used mold, moss, or herbs for healing—they knew it worked but not why (mold produces chemicals harmful to certain bacteria, which is also the principle behind antibiotics). Later research on pathogens directly changed hygiene habits and helped prevent the spread of disease.
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