What Are Cysts?

Cysts are the one celled, egg-like stages of some protozoans. Some are found in water and while some are benign, others like Giardia and Cryptosporidium cysts may result in disease. It’s hard to kill those cysts because they are protected by a tough outer membrane that resists even chlorine bleach. People ingest cysts by drinking polluted water, which can be deposited in rivers, lakes and streams through animal and human waste.

Let’s start

The Cryptosporidium cyst contributes to a disease called cryptosporidiosis, whose symptoms begin between 2 and 10 days after the individual has ingested the cysts. The major symptom is a watery diarrhea that is accompanied by cramps, fever, nausea, vomiting and weight loss. The diarrhea and nausea can become severe enough to leave the individual dehydrated.

Giardiasis has similar symptoms and can affect the individual for decades. Giardiasis and cryptosporidiosis are harmful for men and women who have a weakened immune system, although healthy people usually recover from the maladies. Still, it’s not uncommon for patients with Giardiasis or cryptosporidiosis to relapse until the disease goes away entirely.

Take into account

Though shocking water doesn’t ruin the Giardia and Cryptosporidium cysts, they may nevertheless be kept from drinking water. One way is through a water filtration system based on activated carbon or charcoal. Cysts are very large compared to the pores in these filters, and about 99 percent of them can be prevented from entering the drinking water. Users should look for systems that have an absolute pore size of 1 micron or lower. The fantastic news about activated charcoal filters is that they can be connected to the point of usage, such as individual faucets.

They are inexpensive and don’t have to be installed by a plumber. They’re also available as pour-through pitchers. The filters will need to be replaced now and then, and the task shouldn’t be done by someone that has a compromised immune system. Another water filtration system is effective against both kinds of cysts is reverse osmosis.

Remember

Reverse osmosis uses a semi-permeable membrane to prevent pathogens and toxins but is more complicated than an activated carbon system. It’s best installed by a plumber where the water enters the building or at point of use. A filter system should have a tag that informs the buyer it may eliminate Giardia or Cryptosporidium especially or that it’s been tested for cyst removal or cyst reduction. Inferior filters eliminate Giardia but let the smaller Cryptosporidium cyst to maneuver through. These water filtration systems prove it is fairly feasible to stop disease-causing cysts from entering drinking water. This goes a long way in supporting the health of members of a family.