How did early humans purify drinking water?

Question

How did early humans purify drinking water?

Answer 1

I don't think they did. That may be among the reasons that people didn't live to be thirty for a very long time.

I think that could be a reason why beer and wine were so widely accepted.

Answer 2

Thats why they invented beer and wine

Answer 3

How do you spell that?  Actually,  it was a basic skill,  get the cleanest you can find !!!

Answer 4

Forget about early Human beings..... even today there are people from various parts of the world drinking water in their natural form.

But obviously because of all the scientific advancement.... they have learnt to boil their water.

And as told..... why would early humans need to filter it with hardly any pollutant unlike today. And nature for sure offered the best and it still does.

Answer 5

they boiled it

Answer 6

Beer / Wine

Answer 7

They didn't, thus, they had to be very selective. Water from springs was best, any "rushing water" was known to be safe, stagnant water was not. Early humans also knew to dig wells, or natural underground springs, and knew these were safe so long as they were not polluted.

Answer 8

They didn't.  They probably learned from sad experience that it was best to collect it from running water rather than a stagnant pond, and as far away from the latrines as possible.

Answer 9

Usually they didn't becuase many of the pollutants in the water today simply were not of issue then.

That being said, not all water was potable and some did have to be treated. Hence, every civilization had it's own from of beer and wines. the bedouin created a drink called 'seconjabin' (or Arabian Tea as it is sometimes called) that is still served in tea houses today as a means of purifying the water and killing growth.

Answer 10

The water didn't need to be purified. There was no pollution and there was to small of a population to cause much harm. Even if they did need to purify their water, they would boil it.

Answer 11

For all of you people claiming that they didn't need to, you really need to read up.  Water is a major source of disease. Dysentery, parasites, all kinds of things.  Many many people dired from well water.  Generally "early" humans means before even agriculture was invented, so I'm sure they didn't purify water at all.  They just sniffed and drank.

Answer 12

They were just happy to have water.  They didn't know about the impurities in the water and probably didn't care much about them even if they would have known.

Answer 13

The simple answer is that purificaition wasn't necessary. They had none of today's pollutions to contaminate their water, so there was very little risk involved.

There were still bacteria and stuff in the water back then, but ancient people had stronger immune systems to fight off infections and viruses. Today we have medecines to fight things for us, and we've lost alot of our ability to counter sickness by ourselves.

Answer 14

Distillation. (wine & beer)

Answer 15

They drank the water straight

Answer 16

the other guy got it right. beer and wine came into existence because of necessity as well as for other reasons we all know and love.

they knew the water was not good to drink, so they found a way to be able to drink it.

d**n if we cannot find something better after all these millennia!

Answer 17

I think actually purification was not necessay at that time. Because at that time this much technology was not there, and even big diseases where not there. They just had the best life at that time, it's what we are looking for now.

Answer 18

They didn't.  You know how when us westerners go to a developing country, we're supposed to brush our teeth with bottled water and only drink bottled water?  It's because we're spoiled with all this filtering stuff we do.  No one wants the parasites, but by not being exposed to any ever, we're really at risk for Montezuma's Revenge.

Even if your stomach is stronger from drinking straight from streams, it's not really the safest ever, especially once towns and cities got going.  A major problem pre-sanitation departments is cleaning water, sewage, and drinking water mixing.  Beer brewing was a favorite way of making sure that what you drank wouldn't kill you because it kills off all the nasties.

Answer 19

they didnt

Answer 20

Um, they didn't. They drank from lakes and streams. They may have used very primitave ways to filter it if there was too much dirt and mud and leaves in it, but beyond that, they just drank it.

Also, rushing streams and springs tend to have a way of self-purifying itself. Waterfalls, etc...

Answer 21

For the most part, early humans did not, or, at least we have no evidence that they did.

We know they had a short life span, and this was likely partially why.

As for the person who told you modern life makes the impurities, that's bunk. Most of the things modern life adds- mercury, pcbs, lead- need to be ingested in large amounts to be harmful.

Far more harmful are protista like the amoeba, and those appear mostly in naturally pure water.

Answer 22

A "holy " well was a well that was clean.These wells became unholy when people threw things down them for good luck.

Answer 23

Most of the "impurities" in water today were caused by modern human pollution, sewage and environmental harm. Early humans (and animals) didn't need to purify water because most places had plentiful clean water. Also, their bodies had the enzymes and antibodies necessary to deal with microbes (just like animals do) that would be harmful to most of us pansies today.

Answer 24

most folks dranked from springs in them days

vinegar cleans water impurities

women boiled water in pots outdoors to wash clothes

clothes got cleaner in them days

Answer 25

they give water some heat,