Top 11 compounds found in US drinking water

Researchers at the Southern Nevada Water Authority analyzed tap water from 19 US water utilities. New Scientist shares the list of the top 11 detected compounds, fortunately all of which were “found at extremely low concentrations.” According the Environmental Protection Agency, there’s no cause for alarm but there could be risk “especially for the fetus and those with severely compromised health.” Here’s the top 5:

The 11 most frequently detected compounds (all found at extremely low concentrations) were…

•Atenolol, a beta-blocker used to treat cardiovascular disease
•Atrazine, an organic herbicide banned in the European Union, but still used in the US, which has been implicated in the decline of fish stocks and in changes in animal behaviour
•Carbamazepine, a mood-stabilising drug used to treat bipolar disorder, amongst other things
•Estrone, an oestrogen hormone secreted by the ovaries and blamed for causing gender-bending changes in fish
•Gemfibrozil, an anti-cholesterol drug
•Meprobamate, a tranquiliser widely used in psychiatric treatment
•Naproxen, a painkiller and anti-inflammatory linked to increases in asthma incidence
•Phenytoin, an anticonvulsant that has been used to treat epilepsy
•Sulfamethoxazole, an antibiotic used against the Streptococcus bacteria, which is responsible for tonsillitis and other diseases
•TCEP, a reducing agent used in molecular biology
•Trimethoprim, another antibiotic