"Trying to Boil Ramen Faster? Using Hot Tap Water Can Be Deadly for Your Health," Experts Warn [Health Talk]

[Financial News] Experts have issued a warning that using hot tap water to cook food in order to boil water faster can be fatal to your health.
The World Health Organization (WHO) and the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) both recommend always using cold tap water for drinking or cooking.
This is because the pathways for hot and cold tap water are different. Cold water is supplied directly from the water treatment plant to homes via water pipes, while hot water passes through boilers or water heater pipes.
During this process, stagnant water inside supply pipes can flow out. Water that remains in pipes or boiler tanks for extended periods may become contaminated with heavy metals such as copper, lead, nickel, iron, and zinc.
The risk increases with higher water temperatures and older pipes, as more lead can leach out. In 2022, phenol, a toxic substance, was detected in hot water from an apartment in Mapo-gu, Seoul, exceeding the drinking water standard (0.0005mg per liter).
These heavy metals cannot be removed by boiling. While boiling tap water can eliminate carcinogens like Trihalomethane (THM) and bacteria produced during chlorine disinfection, heavy metals remain.
Heavy metals can accumulate in the body, damaging the nervous system, kidneys, liver, blood, and respiratory system, and may act as carcinogens. They are especially dangerous for children and pregnant women.

Lead can cause neurodevelopmental disorders, learning disabilities, behavioral problems, kidney damage, and high blood pressure, and it severely affects brain development in children. Mercury can lead to central nervous system damage, memory loss, tremors, impaired vision and hearing, and kidney damage. Cadmium may cause reduced kidney function, skeletal weakening (early osteoporosis), lung damage, and an increased risk of cancer.
Chronic exposure may result in neurological disorders, weakened immunity, chronic kidney disease, increased cancer risk, and reproductive or developmental abnormalities.
Therefore, cooking ramen or soups with hot tap water means ingesting heavy metals directly. To safely consume tap water, always use cold water for food preparation.
If tap water has not been used for a long period, it is advisable to let the water run for 10 to 30 seconds to flush out any impurities that may have accumulated in the pipes before using it.
If heavy metals are detected in tap water, stop using it immediately, report it to health authorities or water quality management agencies, and switch to a water purifier or bottled water.
moon@fnnews.com Moon Young-jin Reporter