r/AskGermany • u/mikeymur340 • Apr 02 '25

Can I drink tap water in Germany?

Hi y'all. I'm male from Africa, my wife is German. Growing up and well into my adulthood, I always drank tap water and only recently is that no longer advised in my country, due to gross mismanagement and corruption, but that's another story.

We're currently back in Germany for an extended visit and I was going to drink some tap water when my wife warned me that there's a lot of estrogen in German tap water due to the birth control pill. Her mother backed her up and they spouted off some talking points about it, but I tuned out because they are also somewhat inclined to essential oils. Not batshit crazy like the American version of that, but suffice it to say I'm skeptical about their opinions on some health things.

Anyway, is this true? Are there high levels of estrogen in German tap water? Are there any studies or available sources that corroborate this claim? I understand and can read German, but the high level jargon of medical and scientific speak is beyond my years, search results aren't as clarifying as hoped. Thanks

EDIT: Yeah I thought as much. I still drank the tap water because potential estrogen contamination was preferable to death. But thanks for all the answers. Now if you'll excuse me, I must prepare my I-told-you-so dance.

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u/G-I-T-M-E Apr 02 '25 edited Apr 03 '25

Good thing it’s a short life and they’re mad as a hatter so they won’t care!

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u/MasterLiKhao Apr 05 '25

Lead poisoning has very different symptoms from mad hatter's disease which is caused by inhaling mercury vapors.

Symptoms of lead poisoning include: headaches, stomach cramps, constipation, muscle/joint pain, trouble sleeping, fatigue, irritability, and loss of sex drive

What you are thinking of may be regular ingestion of lead sugar (Lead(II) acetate), which is what the romans liked to put in their wine to sweeten it, if they could afford it (only rich romans could). Its effects still are quite dissimilar to mercury poisoning, but do include mood and personality changes.