Wisconsin Study Says Untreated Drinking Water Has More Risk of Illness

"Researchers have found that children living in central and northern Wisconsin communities that don't disinfect their drinking water systems have a greater likelihood of contracting gastrointestinal illnesses than children who rely on other water systems.

The study, published this month in the American Journal of Public Health, found that children from untreated systems had a 40% greater chance of getting such illnesses after an inch of rain had fallen in the previous week.

With even heavier rainfall, the chances of children going to the doctor or hospital for such problems grew even higher. The researchers found the incidence of intestinal troubles was 240% higher if rain totaled 4.7 inches or more in the previous week.

The researchers compared the results, taken between 1991 and 2010, to areas in the same region that had private wells or municipal systems that treated their water."

Lee Bergquist reports for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel March 10, 2014.