Editing Mineral spring (section)

{{short description|Natural springs that produce water containing minerals}}
{{redirect|Sulphur spring|other uses|Sulphur Springs (disambiguation){{!}}Sulphur Springs}}
{{Other uses|Mineral Springs (disambiguation){{!}}Mineral Springs (disambiguation)}}
[[File:Wenceslas Hollar - The mineral spring (State 4).jpg|thumb|210px|right|''The Mineral Spring'', etching by [[Wenceslas Hollar]] (1607–1677). The unidentified central European spring features a sunken stone basin and ornamental retaining wall.]]
[[File:Hot_springs_at_Manikaran,Himachal_Pradesh.jpg|thumb|210px|right|Tourists and pilgrims having a bath in a hot spring in [[Gurudwara]] Complex, [[Manikaran]] in [[Uttrakhand]] state of [[India]], c. May 2009.]]
[[File:Breznik-iron-water-spring.jpg|thumb|180px|right|A chalybeate (iron-laden) mineral spring at [[Breznik]], [[Bulgaria]]]]
[[File:Tap Tapan Mineral Spring.jpg|right|thumb|180px|Tap tapan spring in Azarshahr, Iran]]

'''Mineral springs''' are naturally occurring [[Spring (hydrology)|spring]]s that produce [[hard water]], water that contains dissolved [[mineral]]s. [[Salts]], [[sulfur compounds]], and [[gases]] are among the substances that can be dissolved in the spring water during its passage underground. In this they are unlike [[sweet spring]]s, which produce [[soft water]] with no noticeable dissolved gasses. The dissolved minerals may alter the water's taste. [[Mineral water]] obtained from mineral springs, and the precipitated salts such as [[Magnesium sulfate#Heptahydrate (Epsom salt)|Epsom salt]] have long been important commercial products.

Some mineral springs may contain significant amounts of harmful dissolved minerals, such as [[arsenic]], and should not be drunk.<ref>{{cite web |title=Import Alert 29-02: Detention Without Physical Examination of Bottled Water due to Arsenic Due to Inorganic Arsenic |url=https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/cms_ia/importalert_97.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091008204926/http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/cms_ia/importalert_97.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=October 8, 2009 |website=www.accessdata.fda.gov |publisher=FDA}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Bottled water brand with high levels of arsenic pulled from store shelves |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/bottled-water-brand-found-have-high-levels-arsenic-pulled-stores-n1020991 |publisher=[[NBC News]]}}</ref> Sulfur springs smell of rotten eggs due to [[hydrogen sulfide]] (H<sub>2</sub>S), which is [[Hydrogen sulfide#Safety|hazardous and sometimes deadly]]. It is a gas, and it usually enters the body when it is breathed in.<ref>{{cite web |title=PUBLIC HEALTH STATEMENT: Hydrogen Sulfide |url=https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/ToxProfiles/tp114-c1-b.pdf |publisher=DEPARTMENT of HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, Public Health ServiceAgency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, US [[Centers for Disease Control]] |date=December 2016}}</ref> The quantities ingested in drinking water are much lower and are not considered likely to cause harm, but few studies on long-term, low-level exposure have been done, {{as of|lc=yes|2003}}.<ref>{{cite web |title=Hydrogen Sulfide in Drinking-water |url=https://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/dwq/hydrogensulfide.pdf |publisher=[[World Health Organization]] |date=2003}}</ref>

The water of mineral springs is sometimes claimed to have [[therapeutic]] value. [[Mineral spa]]s are resorts that have developed around mineral springs, where (often wealthy) patrons would repair to "take the waters" — meaning that they would drink (see [[hydrotherapy]] and [[Water cure (therapy)|water cure]]) or bathe in (see [[balneotherapy]]) the mineral water. Historical mineral springs were often outfitted with elaborate stone-works — including artificial pools, [[retaining wall]]s, [[colonnade]]s, and roofs — sometimes in the form of fanciful "Greek temples", [[gazebo]]s, or [[pagoda]]s. Others were entirely enclosed within [[spring house]]s.