Texas Tap Water, Childhood Summers, and the Decade I Lost to Exhaustion

Spoiler alert: Dr Pepper is not a hydration strategy

The Good Ole Days

Growing up in a suburb of Fort Worth, Texas in the 80s, the tap water was disgusting. I'm not being dramatic—it literally tasted metallic and awful, like you were sucking on old pennies mixed with pool water. Sometimes it had that rotten egg smell from hydrogen sulfide. Other times it tasted salty or had this earthy, musty flavor that made you want to spit it out immediately.

The iron content was so high that if you made iced tea and let it sit overnight, it would turn completely black. White bathtubs got orange rings where the water sat. This was just normal life—nobody questioned it. So we didn't drink it.

We lived outside in that heat. All day, every day, until the streetlights came on. Playing truth or dare that included running down the blacktop suburb streets barefoot until we had blisters, riding bikes, running around like maniacs in temperatures that would kill me now. We'd drink from the garden hose if we were desperate, but mostly we survived on sugar water with caffeine.

After decades of not knowing any better, making choices based on what tasted good instead of what my body needed, I spent what should have been my most energetic years completely exhausted. And a big part of that was because I never learned how to actually hydrate my body.

Why Avoiding Tap Water Isn't Snobbery

Here's the thing about municipal water: it's designed to be safe, not healthy. There's a difference, and it's bigger than you might think.

City water gets treated with chlorine to kill harmful bacteria—which is genuinely important for preventing waterborne diseases. But chlorine doesn't discriminate between good and bad bacteria. It wipes out the beneficial microbes in your gut that help with digestion, immunity, and overall health.

Then there's fluoride, pharmaceutical residues from medications that standard treatment plants can't fully remove—everything from hormones to antidepressants. Industrial chemicals, agricultural runoff, and sometimes old lead pipes.

Well Water: God's Intention, Nature's Complications

When I run Hair Tissue Mineral Analysis tests on people in my area with wells, I commonly see elevated uranium and arsenic. These aren't added by humans—they're naturally occurring in the rock and soil. Some of the best water I've ever had comes from wells. But get it tested, because "natural" doesn't automatically mean "safe."

The Missing Piece: Minerals Matter

Even if you solve the purity problem, you might be missing the hydration piece entirely. Pure water—like distilled or reverse osmosis water—can actually dehydrate you if you're drinking it without the minerals your body needs.

Your cells don't just need water. They need the right balance of sodium, potassium, magnesium, and other electrolytes to actually absorb and use that water effectively. This is why people can drink tons of water and still feel thirsty.

Water Filters That Actually Work

Pure Effects Water Filters, ProOne Water Filters, AquaTru Countertop, and whole house carbon systems all consistently deliver. For travel, GRAYL Ultralight or Geopress bottles filter questionable airport tap water in seconds.

Making Minerals Work for You

Sea salt (a pinch in your water), electrolyte powders (LMNT, Ultima, Redmond Re-Lyte), trace mineral drops, coconut water, bone broth, or fresh lemon juice all help replenish what filtering removes.

The point isn't to become paranoid about every water source. It's to understand that good hydration isn't just about drinking more water—it's about drinking better water with the minerals your body needs to actually use it. I spent my thirties exhausted partly because I never learned these basics. Good hydration habits won't turn back the clock, but they'll definitely help you feel more like the person you're supposed to be.

Ready to find out why?

If what you just read sounds familiar, a free strategy session is a good place to start. We'll look at what's going on, what's been tried, and whether functional testing makes sense for you.