Popular Science has a great article that forms a natural sequel to an article that I wrote about over two years ago (time flies) in Analytical Chemistry about how investigators are using wastewater (sewage) in measuring the concentrations of pharmaceutical and illegal drug byproducts and metabolites to gauge the drug usage by populations. As expected, the actual rates of drug usage by populations, as confirmed objectively in labs, is much higher than self-reported surveys tell us.
On a related note, CNN has an article about the levels of pharmaceuticals in our municipal drinking water sources. Although the levels of any one drug are very low, I do have to wonder about the multiplier effect and the issue of long-term exposure to human health. You can bet money that no one has ever conducted a study that replicates the cocktail of drugs we're exposed to over long periods of time. Maybe bottled water isn't so bad, after all...
