So here I am sitting in my public administration class when my professor is discussing Maslow's hierarchy of needs. At the bottom and most vital form of needs is those we cannot survive without, things such as food and water. This is when my professor asks us if we have heard of the chromium-6 problem that is striking America today. Unsurprisingly, the majority of the class answers with a concerned no. That is the first problem. How could something so vastly important not be on the headlines on the news channels?

Chromium is a chemical compound that is used in anti-corrosive material and is often found in area with hot metal work, aka, the pipes carrying and transporting our water. Several studies by EWG show that this chemical can directly cause cancer. So how is it okay that approximately 200 million Americans have been exposed to unsafe levels of chromium-6 via the water supply. On top of that, more then half of those people don't even know it.

Here is the link in order to see if your water supply has been tainted.

PBS states "EWG, a nonprofit research organization, analyzed Environmental Protection Agency data on more than 60,000 samples collected at water utilities in all 50 states between 2013 and 2015. They found chromium-6 at levels deemed unsafe by public health officials." This was taken from an article by Courtney Norris titled "What is chromium-6 and how did it infiltrate America’s drinking water?". This was buried within the vast cluster of story's with only 12,000 Facebook shares.The Safe Drinking Water Act requires the EPA to test the water supply of America for harmful and irregular contents. The EPA hasn't addressed the issue however they are releasing a report in 2017.

We need to make this more public. It baffles me that the majority of Americans do not even know what is in the water they are giving to their infant children and loved ones. Look out for filters such as Aquasana OptimH20 as they can filter this chemical and help eliminate the toxins.