Manganese in Water

Wasserman, et al.

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Dose for dose, water-borne manganese is likely more toxic than dietary manganese.  This study indicates that exposure to manganese in drinking water is associated with neurotoxic effects in children.  The researchers observed a relationship between manganese and child intellectual function.  In the United States, roughly 6% of domestic household wells have manganese concentrations that exceed 300 mcg/L, the current U.S. Environmental Protection Agency lifetime health advisory level.  Included in this study is a map of the United States showing areas where ground water levels of manganese exceed 300 mcg/L.  These higher levels of manganese in the water are possibly the result of contaminants from agriculture, urban and natural sources.

Bouchard, et al.

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This study was conducted in a small community in Quebec that has naturally occurring high manganese levels present in their public water system.   The bedrock in this region is characterized by high manganese content, and this was assumed to be the source of the manganese in the ground water. The children in the study were selected because they lived in a home connected to the public water source.  The majority of the parents of the children reported that they purchased bottled water because of the bad taste of the tap water.  The children however did drink the tap water at school and it was used in their homes to prepare soups and juices and for cooking.  Even with the somewhat limited ingestion of this high manganese water the findings of the study were significant.  The study indicated that exposure to high levels of manganese in tap water is associated with elevated MnH levels in children, and MnH is significantly associated with increased levels of hyperactive and oppositional behaviors in the classroom.

Professor Rodger Masters

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If an established government policy is challenged by new scientific
findings will bureaucrats and professionals committed to current
practices and responsibilities admit that established policies may be
based on an error and need to be reexamined?

This issue is illustrated by the addition of fluosilicic acid or
sodium silicofluoride to public water supplies in the U.S.  New
findings associate the injection of silicofluoride in public water
supplies with increased uptake of lead in children’s blood as well as
higher rates of learning deficits and substance and violent crime.  
Several public agencies as well as Dental professionals have generally
remained  silent on the issue or dismissed the new findings out of hand.

Ljung and Vahter

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Manganese is often regarded as one to the least toxic metals by the oral route because homeostasis limits the gastrointestinal absorption.  However, there is increasing evidence of neurotoxicity by the oral route especially in infants.  They have a more sensitive nervous system then adults, and their homeostasis is not fully developed.  Significant amounts of manganese can be found in infant formulas and it is often sold in powdered form.  The manganese concentration of the water with which the formula is mixed may contribute significantly to the infant’s daily manganese exposure.