4 Reasons to Think Twice About Kids Drinking from Garden Hoses

As '90s kids who grew up tapping garden hoses like frat boys tap kegs, it kills us to admit that drinking from the spigot probably wasn't the brightest idea. As the last generation to be called home by the streetlights, we take pride in having lived like feral cats.

Now that we know better, we're torn between giving our kids the freedom we had to slurp from the hose and what we now know are the potential health risks it poses. On one hand we'd love to share and maybe even relive some of our fondest childhood memories with them. On the other hand, data-backed research from the Environmental Protection Agency and the American Pediatric Society is hard to ignore.

In 2016, the KREM2 of Spokane reported the Ecology Center tested over 30 garden hoses sold from six national retailers that included Lowe's, The Home Depot, and Amazon.

EC researchers tested for lead, tin, PVC plastic, and bromine; chemicals the Food & Drug Administration "has linked to birth defects or illness in small children." While study results were "mixed," researchers discovered elevated levels of lead in the flexible plastic of PVS hoses. They also found chemicals that can harm children in 30 percent of garden hoses labeled "safe for drinking."

According to Healthy Stuff, the Ecology Center in Ann Arbor M.I. confirmed lead levels in the majority of garden hoses "exceeded the safety limits" established in the Safe Water Drinking Act amended in 1996. For more information and a glossary of terms on the Safe Water Drinking Act, click here.

Sometimes it takes putting something on paper to really understand it; especially when it comes to decisions that impact your kids. If you're still going back and forth on whether your littles should have a piece of your childhood, make the decision easier by checking out the symptoms below.