Health Effects of Consuming Artesian Water Supplied through the Centralized Distribution Network in the Population of Arid Areas of the Saratov Region

Abstract

Introduction: Statistics show that over 11 million Russians use untreated tap water noncompliant with safety standards. Consumption of such water may have adverse human health effects and pose risks of various diseases. The objective of this study was to investigate the relationship between consumption of artesian tap water sourced from centrally operated water supply systems in arid areas of the Saratov Region and the prevalence of cardiovascular, urogenital, and digestive diseases in the local population. Materials and methods: We examined 127 artesian water samples collected from the centralized water supply systems in three arid areas of the Saratov Region in 2008–2022. The water quality was tested by atomic absorption spectrometry, photoelectric photometry, inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry, and capillary electrophoresis. Data on the residents receiving follow-up care for genitourinary, digestive, and circulatory diseases were obtained from the Saratov Medical Information and Analytical Center. The Statistica 10 software was used for data analysis. Results: We observed high levels of total hardness (24 ± 3 mg-equiv./L), alkalinity (7.5 ± 0.2 units), total mineralization (2,454 ± 546 mg/L), nitrate salts (99 ± 23 mg/L), chlorides (1,610 ± 462 mg/L), sulfates (753 ± 64 mg/L), as well as ions of manganese (up to 11 MPC), magnesium (up to 8.8 MPC), and iron (up to 10.83 MPC) in artesian water samples tested showing noncompliance with tap water quality requirements. We also established that daily calcium intake with tap water (1,403.5 ± 199.5 mg/day) exceeded the recommended one. We established a strong correlation (r = 0.931, r2 = 0.867, p < 0.001) between the mean daily consumption of non-conforming artesian tap water (1.4 ± 0.01 L/day in the Fedorovsky district, 0.7 ± 0.01 L/day in the Novouzensky district, and 0.1 ± 0.01 L/day in the Alexandrovo-Gaysky district) and the proportion of residents of the arid areas of the Saratov Region followed up for diseases of the genitourinary system (1,266 ± 64.3, 1,691.4 ± 107.8, and 758.4 ± 18.1, respectively). Conclusions: Our findings show the necessity of improving measures aimed at raising the quality of water supply in arid areas, including the development of additional measures for preliminary water treatment, and importance of tap water quality control for prevention of adverse health outcomes related to chronic exposure to waterborne chemicals.