Health · Healthcare & Policy · 4 hrs ago
85 organisations urge WHO to review nitrate limits in drinking water
85 health and environmental organisations have asked the WHO to review nitrate limits in drinking water.
Their open letter calls for nitrate to be included in an upcoming review of the agency’s guidelines.
The current limit dates to 1958 and was set to prevent a serious blood disorder known as blue-baby syndrome.
The groups say newer studies link nitrate exposure below that limit to bowel cancer and adverse birth outcomes, with children and pregnant women among those considered especially vulnerable.
They say hundreds of millions of people may face elevated nitrate levels in water worldwide.
Denmark committed earlier in 2026 to a 6.0 mg/L limit recommended by an expert panel, while the WHO’s current limit is 50 mg/L.
A WHO review could influence national water standards, since many governments base their rules on its guidelines.
Eighty-five health and environmental organisations urged the World Health Organization to review its drinking water nitrate guidelines.
They said the standards, dating to 1958, do not reflect newer evidence about possible long-term health risks.
The organisations called for nitrate to be included in an upcoming review of WHO drinking water guidelines.
The WHO limit is 50 milligrams per litre as nitrate, or 11.3 milligrams per litre as nitrate-nitrogen.
The organisations cited links between nitrate exposure and colorectal cancer and adverse birth outcomes.
- Who
- 85 health and environmental organisations, including Greenpeace International and the World Organization of Family Doctors.
- What
- They asked the World Health Organization to review its drinking water nitrate standards and include nitrate in an upcoming guidelines review.
- When
- Nov. 3, according to the articles.
- Where
- Geneva; the letter was addressed to the World Health Organization. The organisations’ locations are not stated.
- Why
- They said the standards are outdated and do not reflect evidence linking chronic, low-level nitrate exposure with possible long-term health risks.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
The WHO drinking water nitrate guidelines were established.
An expert panel commissioned by the Danish government published findings that the current international standard was insufficient to protect public health.
Denmark committed to reducing its nitrate limit to 6.0 mg/L.
Eighty-five organisations called on WHO to include nitrate in an upcoming review of its drinking water guidelines.
- Organisations
- 85
- Current WHO limit
- 50 mg/L as nitrate, or 11.3 mg/L as nitrate-nitrogen
- Guideline date
- 1958
- Danish expert panel recommendation
- 6.0 mg/L
- Named organisations
- Greenpeace International; World Organization of Family Doctors
2 sources
What people are saying
Studies now link nitrate in drinking water, at levels well below the current WHO limit, to bowel cancer and premature birth.
Water should be life-giving, not life-threatening.