People lose the ability to detect the taste of iron in drinking water with advancing age, raising concern that older people may be at risk for an unhealthy over-exposure to iron, Virginia Tech engineers are reporting in results they term "unique." The study appears in the American Chemical Society's journal Environmental Science & Technology on Aug. 10.
Andrea Dietrich, professor of civil and environmental engineering at Virginia Tech, and her colleagues, Susan Mirlohi, of Christiansburg, Va., a Ph.D. student in environmental engineering, and Susan Duncan, professor of food science and technology, point out that the perception of a metallic flavor in water can help people limit exposure to metals such as iron, which occurs naturally in water or from corrosion of iron water-supply pipes. People need less iron after age 50.
"Metallic flavor, caused by the dissolved iron and copper commonly found in groundwater or which may be introduced to tap water by the nation's corroding infrastructure, has been an issue for drinking water consumers and utilities," Dietrich said.
More than two million miles of the nation's infrastructure of water and wastewater pipes is nearing the end of its useful life, but the mostly underground facilities often do not attract much attention because of this "invisibility," said Sunil Sinha, Virginia Tech associate professor of civil and environmental engineering and a colleague of Dietrich's. Sinha is directing two new research projects to develop a National Pipeline Infrastructure Database.
Studies also suggest that older people who consume too much iron - especially in dietary supplements and iron-rich foods - may be at increased risk for Alzheimer's disease and other age-related conditions. Scientists
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| Contact: Lynn Nystrom tansy@vt.edu 540-231-4371 Virginia Tech Source:Eurekalert |