Rinse new stones first: leaching of Pb, Cd and Ni into water (Marsalek 2021)

If you are about to drink shungite water for the first time, read this one. The authors measured Ni, Cu, Pb, Cd, Zn, Cr and As leaching out of fresh shungite stones into drinking water.

Headline numbers: Pb and Cd exceeded WHO drinking-water limits for several days. Ni was over the limit for up to two weeks. Antibacterial effect on the water was tiny (about a 0.18 to 0.24 log10 reduction).

Practical takeaway: rinse new stones thoroughly before first use, and discard the first few batches of soaked water. Source matters too, since most of these contaminants came from the rock itself, not added.

Sources: Jurgelane I & Locs J, Shungite application for treatment of drinking water - is it the right choice? Journal of Water and Health, 19(1):89-98, 2021. DOI 10.2166/wh.2020.250 · ResearchGate PDF .

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