A Los Angeles man has launched a legal fight against the makers of Brita water filters, alleging that the company lied about their ability to remove toxic chemicals. Nicholas Brown's claims that several varieties of Brita filters failed to remove some of the highest-risk contaminants such as arsenic and PFAS, otherwise known as “forever chemicals.” The class-action suit argues that the company misled the public with claims splashed on the packaging, such as “Reduces 30 contaminants, including lead, benzene, mercury, cadmium, asbestos and more.” With dozens of filtration gadgets on the market today, experts say there are no health benefits to using the appliances, which could actually be doing more harm than good. They point out that if water sits in a faucet or under-sink filter for long periods of time — such as overnight — it can actually pick up more contaminants, including lead and bacteria. That’s because the water is bathing in high concentrations of the particles that were trapped by the activated carbon. When the faucet is turned on, the contaminant-infused water comes out. While most experts say filters can be helpful in some cases, none said they are essential.
