The water crisis in Flint, Michigan, is making some public health messages harder to get across 鈥斅爊amely, in most communities, the tap water is perfectly safe. And it is so much healthier than sugary drinks.
It鈥檚 a message Dr. Patty Braun,聽a pediatrician and oral health specialist at Denver Health,聽spends a lot of time on in Denver, even before lead was found in the water system of Flint.
At a downtown clinic, Braun talks to Marlene, a skinny 7-year-old with straight black hair who is getting a pair of fillings. Braun said 鈥渙ver half鈥澛爋f the Latino families she sees聽. And if the kids don鈥檛 drink tap water they don鈥檛 get the .
Instead of tap water, many children gulp down sugary drinks 鈥斅燼 double whammy that can mean more cavities and weight gain.
鈥淥ver聽half of kindergartners have cavities,鈥� Braun said.聽鈥淟atino kids are more likely to have cavities than non-Latino kids.鈥�
Dr. Patty Braun, a pediatrician and oral health specialist,聽says more than half of the Latino families she treats聽don鈥檛 drink tap water, instead opting for sugary drinks, bottled water or milk. (John Daley/CPR News)
She said in some cases there is a stigma against tap water that has been passed on through generations in a family. In others, recent immigrants hesitate to drink it based on prior experiences with contaminated tap water in their native countries.
鈥淚f you鈥檙e used to living in a place where you would normally not want to drink the water because it is not safe, then that鈥檚 what you鈥檙e going to bring over to any other new setting that you live in,鈥� said Braun.
Now there鈥檚 a collaborative campaign aimed at letting Latino communities in Colorado know the tap water is safe and clean. The Delta Dental of Colorado Foundation is partnering with a community group called Westwood Unidos to get the word out.
鈥淚t was a surprising revelation to us,鈥� said聽Jessica Mahaffey, marketing聽specialist聽with the state鈥檚 largest water provider, Denver Water. 鈥淥nce we discovered that these concerns existed, we felt a strong responsibility to go out and to communicate otherwise.鈥�
Still, the advice to drink tap water in Denver comes with a caveat.聽Some homes in Denver built before the mid-1950s have lead pipes. (Lead pipes alone do not cause the kind of poisoning happening in Flint, where corrosive river water before it became the city鈥檚 water supply.) Denver Water聽聽that you run tap water until it runs cold to flush any lead-containing water from pipes and get your water tested by if you have any concerns.
This fall, Mahaffey led a tour of the utility鈥檚 infrastructure for about 40 people from the largely Hispanic Westwood neighborhood after learning聽about聽rumors that the water was unsafe to drink.聽The group included community leaders, pastors and educators.
A group of Westwood community leaders visited Denver Water鈥檚 Waterton Canyon Reservoir in Oct. 2015 to see first hand the source of some of the city鈥檚 water supply. (Courtesy of Cavities Get Around)
鈥淢any of them boil the tap water or buy bottled water, and so they just had a lot of concerns and a lot of questions about the quality and safety of their water,鈥� said Mahaffey.
Mahaffey showed the group the reservoir at Waterton Canyon, filled by melting mountain snow. She then took them to a water treatment plant, so they could see how that water is filtered and tested.聽鈥淪ometimes it鈥檚 much easier to show than it is to tell,鈥� she said.
A New 鈥楶romotora鈥�
Westwood resident Gaby Medina said she had a change of heart.聽Like a lot of her neighbors she didn鈥檛 trust the water when she came to U.S. from Mexico more than a decade ago.
Gaby Medina, seen with her daughter Andrea, initially had doubts about the safety and quality of Denver鈥檚 tap water, but now works as a water 鈥減romotora鈥� or health educator. (John Daley/CPR News)
鈥淚nitially, yes, I was hesitant,鈥� Medina said, speaking through an interpreter.聽鈥淰ery honestly, I didn鈥檛 have a lot of faith.鈥�
But she said she started 鈥渆xperimenting,鈥� trying the tap water. Then her dentist suggested she encourage her kids to drink it, saying it would be good for their teeth. Now she鈥檚 a full-on tap water convert.
In fact, she鈥檚 spreading the message in schools and churches around her聽community as a 鈥減romotora,鈥� a health educator, with the聽聽campaign. 鈥淭hat really gives me a lot of good feeling and pride,鈥� said Medina.
Rachel Cleaves, coordinator of in southwest Denver said 30,000 children in Colorado have untreated tooth decay and Hispanic children have the highest rates.
At Medina鈥檚 home in Westwood, she shows a visitor a large glass water dispenser that she now brings to community events.聽She fills it with tap water and slices of fruit. That water has now replaced the kind of sugary beverage that used to be served. Medina鈥檚 daughter, 10-year-old Andrea, brings a water bottle with a slice of citrus in it to school with her. And she said the idea is catching on with her friends.
鈥淢y friends started taking them,鈥� Andrea said,聽鈥渂ecause it doesn鈥檛 have sugar and聽water聽is like the most important thing of your body.鈥�
Andrea鈥檚 11-year-old brother Greg said since his mom started working on what he calls 鈥渢he water thing,鈥� his fears about tap water have evaporated.
鈥淚t comes fresh from the mountains and it鈥檚 also refreshing,鈥� said Greg. 鈥淣ow, I drink water more often than any other drink.鈥�
Pediatrician Patty Braun hopes, despite the Flint news, others will do the same.
鈥淲e hope that this doesn鈥檛 discourage people from drinking safe water from their tap,鈥� she said.聽鈥淚t鈥檚 tragic what鈥檚 happened in Flint, but we want other communities to know that water is safe to drink.鈥�
She said those who have any doubts should consult their local or state health department.
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