Experts warn new trend of drinking raw water could be life-threatening

Experts warn the new health trend of drinking water "raw" is not only unhealthy but could potentially be very dangerous.

Demand for this product has been growing in the past few years in the United States (US), the Daily Mail reported. Some companies in the US are selling a 2.5 gallon jug for almost $70.

However, experts warn this untreated and unsterilized spring water can contain E. coli bacteria, viruses, parasites and compounds that could increase risk of cancer.

Mukhande Singh, the founder of Live Water, a company that sells raw water feels the public water people drink everyday is "poisoned".

"Tap water? You're drinking toilet water with birth control drugs in them," he told the The New York Times. Adding, "Chloramine, and on top of that they're putting in fluoride. Call me a conspiracy theorist, but it's a mind-control drug that has no benefit to our dental health." Fluoridation of water helps prevent tooth decay in a safe and effective way, the report revealed.

On the contrary, Dr Donald Hensrud, the director of the Healthy Living Program at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, explained there are dangerous risks.

"There's evidence all over the world of this, and the reason we don't have those conditions is because of our very efficient water treatment," he told the Times. Centres for Disease Control and Prevention have reportedly stated the US has the safest drinking water supplies in the world.

The consumption of contaminated water is the cause of half a million diarrhoea deaths annually, the World Health Organisation (WHO) revealed.