ABSTRACT
In recent years, there has been increasing interest in the effects of drinking water quality on human health. Researchers are attempting to link exposure to contaminants in drinking water with illness in humans. To do this, researchers must have access to information on concentrations of contaminants in drinking water and rates of illness in the consumers of the drinking water. Also, if the focus of the study is a chronic disease, then historical information on changes in concentrations must also be available. Unfortunately, there will never be enough data available to meet all these needs; the largest data bases are not structured to meet research needs. These data bases were developed to meet regulatory and enforcement requirements. There are, however, recently developed data sets which contain more of the information of interest to epidemiologists.
