Today is the third anniversary of our young family being front page news. We’ve had the framed article hanging in Hallie’s room ever since.
So far we haven’t been successful in getting Travis on the front page, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing, eh?
(And once again, I’m less than impressed with the N&O’s link-unfriendly website. The original link goes nowhere. Sheesh.)
This story came out last week but didn’t get much attention. A study by Wake Forest University shows evidence that showering may be bad for you. The problem lies in inhaling the manganese that is in the water supply. Manganese is far more likely to enter your brain through breathing than through the other ways one encounters the metal: through eating and drinking. Showering for ten minutes a day for ten years leads to potentially damaging levels of manganese in your brain.
“Inhaling manganese, rather than eating or drinking it, is far more efficient at delivering manganese to the brain,â€? said Dr. John Spangler, one of the study’s researchers. “The nerve cells involved in smell are a direct pathway for toxins to enter the brain. Once inside these small nerves, manganese can travel throughout the brain.â€?
From my searches, there appears to be a wealth of medical research on the effects of managanese exposure, such as this scary article by Dr. Aschner for the National Institute of Health. Dr. Aschner is also a researcher at Wake Forest.
I’ve always been concerned about the strange metals in the water supply, but I never considered that my shower would be the biggest threat. Maybe its time to consider taking baths?
