Is Raw Water Safe? | PS Nutrition

We get it. Between the news about microplastics in bottled water and forever chemicals pouring out the tap, it's fair to wonder if there's a better way to hydrate. Water purists think they've found the solution: “raw water”.

But wait, isn't all water raw? Nope. On a basic level, raw water is untreated and unsterilized. Meaning, it's usually straight from the spring. There are a slew of companies that now sell raw water to consumers, although some people are sharing photos and videos on social media of themselves sipping directly from the natural source.

Raw water fans swear this H2O is flooded with health benefits, but doctors say otherwise. So before you fill up your Owala with water from the stream, take heed. Here's everything you need to know about raw water — including why drinking the stuff can be dangerous for your health.

Experts Featured in This Article:

Jamie Alan, PhD, an associate professor of pharmacology and toxicology at Michigan State University.

Thomas Russo, MD, is a professor and chief of infectious disease at the University at Buffalo in New York.

Amesh A. Adalja, MD, senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security.

What Is Raw Water?

There's no exact definition for what constitutes raw water, but it's typically unfiltered, unprocessed, or untreated water that's bottled directly from a natural spring. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) points out in an outbreak report — more on that in a moment — that drinking raw water is an “emerging trend.”

Several companies have popped up that sell raw water, including Alive Water and Tourmaline Spring, but it's not clear why this has really taken off. “There is something to be said about getting ingredients as close to the ‘source' as possible, so maybe that is what this is,” says Jamie Alan, PhD, an associate professor of pharmacology and toxicology at Michigan State University. Recent studies that show more common, conventional water sources like tap and bottled water may contain contaminants may also be pushing people to look for other options, says Thomas Russo, MD, is a professor and chief of infectious disease at the University at Buffalo in New York.

What Can Happen If You Drink Raw Water?

Raw water fans also claim that the stuff is better for you than what you'd get out of the tap, but doctors say the opposite is true.

That CDC outbreak report we mentioned above details an outbreak of campylobacteriosis tied to raw water. Campylobacteriosis can cause bloody diarrhea, stomach pain, fever, and sometimes vomiting, per the CDC. This particular outbreak caused 19 people to become sick after drinking water from a creek in Montana.

That said, people who drink raw water have more than campylobacteriosis to worry about, experts say. “Contamination is my main concern — you might not know what is upstream of that spring,” Dr. Alan says. “If bear droppings are upstream of the spring, those bacteria will travel to you.”

Water is often contaminated with parasites like giardia, which causes diarrhea, gas, and smelly and greasy poop, Alan says — and those symptoms can last for up to six weeks. “Also remember that other animals are drinking this water,” Dr. Alan says. “These animals are bringing all sorts of bacteria to the party.”

Other potential illnesses you can pick up from raw water include the bacterial disease leptospirosis, which causes fever, headache, vomiting, and diarrhea, Dr. Russo says. “That's from animal urine, which can get into untreated water,” he points out.

People can also pick up shiga toxin-producing E.coli, which can be deadly, Russo says. “That can be from animal waste water runoff into groundwater,” he says.

Overall, “there are a variety of infectious agents, both bacterial and parasitic, that you can pick up from raw water,” Dr. Russo says.

So, Should We All be Drinking Raw Water?

That's a hard no, according to doctors. “Water sanitation was one of the greatest civilizing efforts ever and drove down the rate of many infectious diseases,” says Amesh A. Adalja, MD, senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security.

Dr. Alan agrees. “Please do not do this,” she says. “This will, at a minimum, disrupt your life and require a visit to a clinician's office. It could end up in a hospital trip.”

Korin Miller is a writer specializing in general wellness, health, and lifestyle trends. Her work has appeared in Women's Health, Self, Health, Forbes, and more