I would like responses from those who know the answer to this question. I had drunk rain water for years before moving on to packaged water and bore hole water. I changed my mind a little bit to go for rain water again when I discovered that my new location is upland which is a few meters above valley or swampy area where water collected from such locations might be prone to contaminants. I raised a platform to collect the cleanest water for drinking. I got the cleanest water of my liking, no traces of dirt from my sightly observation. However I was surprised that two visible objects were noted swimming in the water, they were a medium sized worm and the smaller other.If this is possible, I wonder how many tiny and unseen organisms(harmful and harmless) one would have swallowed drinking rain water. With this observation can one still believe that rain water is safe for drinking?

Most rain water is not good for drinking unless proven wrong by physicochemical & bacteriological analysis.
This is because as rain makes its descent to the ground, it mixes with gases in the atmosphere as well as suspended particles (dust, smoke, living matter etc). That explains for the clear visibility you notice after a downpour. Also, there is acid rain in places where oxides of sulphur for example are released into the atmosphere by exploration or production activities. The dissolved gas is what causes the acidity
pardon my long grammar...

Akpunwa: Most rain water is not good for drinking unless proven wrong by physicochemical & bacteriological analysis.
This is because as rain makes its descent to the ground, it mixes with gases in the atmosphere as well as suspended particles (dust, smoke, living matter etc). That explains for the clear visibility you notice after a downpour. Also, there is acid rain in places where oxides of sulphur for example are released into the atmosphere by exploration or production activities. The dissolved gas is what causes the acidity
pardon my long grammar...

just the way it is,
if you can lay your hands on spring water its better off

In nigeria, it generally is, if the downpour was heavy enough.

doublekay:
just the way it is,
if you can lay your hands on spring water its better off

Also good.

doublekay:
just the way it is,
if you can lay your hands on spring water its better off

but the fear of ebola ... hmmm. Bush animals also share spring water with human. And monkeys are so closer to doing so.