The pros and cons of ionised water.
Does drinking ionised water have any tangible health benefits? There are now many brands of ionising water filters available to purchase - but are they worth the money?
Is Alkaline water good for you?
It appears therefore that there is absolutely no scientific proof that it is beneficial to consume alkaline water. The human body requires a certain level of acidity in the digestive tract and stomach to aid the digestive process. It is generally accepted in scientific circles that most of the outstanding benefits claimed as a result of drinking alkaline water are sourced by the water ioniser machine manufacturers and marketing companies themselves.
Simple Water Chemistry
We are all familiar with the famous chemical symbol of H2O for water, which of course means there are 2 hydrogen atoms and 1 oxygen atom in each molecule of water. General mains tap water will contain some positively charged molecules and some negatively charges ones, (pure water will be neutral). The supporters of ionised water explain that the equipment makes the water form into clusters of fewer water molecules that normal, somehow making the water 'wetter' that the norm and able to hydrate the cells more efficiently. This sounds like it makes sense until you realise that any given cluster of water exists for only about one trillionth of a second, so for any benefit you would need to drink it pretty fast! These machines cannot change the basic physics and chemistry of water by changing larger clusters into smaller clusters in such a tiny time scale, so the claimed science is simply not valid.
How does the machine make Alkaline Water
The machine does not actually 'make' alkaline water it simply separates the positively charged water molecules from the negatively charged ones and diverts them accordingly, via the relatively simple process of passing the water through an electromagnetic field.
Alkaline Water Safety
Many water contaminants exist as ions in ordinary mains tap water, so the question is whether there are any dangerous contaminants that exist with an ionic charge that make them go into what's called the alkaline water stream? Following this logic it could be argued that the ioniser in fact makes the water less safe for consumption by concentrating the bad ions. In fact some harmful contaminants such as trivalent and pentavalent arsenic, actually do concentrate in the alkaline stream. Arsenic is known carcinogenic element.
To Summarise
Armed with the knowledge of these scientific facts, we should not be taken in by the amazing claims that the water ioniser marketing companies make regarding creating a sort of 'super' water with 'magical' powers. Instead of spending a small fortune on a water ioniser you and your body would be much better off by installing a simple and efficient carbon filter unit to the mains water supply. We will leave you to ponder what Wikipedia says about water ionisers: 'There is no empirical evidence to support claims made by manufacturers that drinking ionized water will have a noticeable effect on the body. Drinking ionized water would not be expected to alter the body's pH, due to the acid-base homeostasis.'
