Alkaline Water: The Antioxidant Water

The type of water we drink plays just as important a role in good holistic health as the foods we regularly consume. Everyone knows that the body’s composition is over 50% water; water is needed for hydration and to help remove waste materials from our bodies. Without water, the body dies. Without sufficient water body processes become inefficient.

What type of water should be consumed? There are so many types of processed water available that it is nearly impossible to discern the truly beneficial from marketing hype. Let’s examine a few of the main types of water such as tap, distilled, filtered, and spring water.

1. Tap water is water processed according to federal, state, and local standards for water sanitation and treatment. Tap water is usually treated with chlorine or other chemicals for sanitation purposes. It normally has a neutral Ph of 7.0 or slightly lower and has plenty of mineral deposits depending upon the location.

2. Distilled water is water that is completely pure and free of mineral deposits. It is produced through the condensation of water vapor. It should have a neutral Ph of 7.0 depending on the distillation method used. Since it does not contain minerals or any other substances, it is often described as “dead” water. It is effectively used to help leech heavy metal toxins from the body for limited time periods during detoxification.

According to naturopathic health professionals, distilled water should not be consumed regularly because it acts as a mineral solvent. Distilled water does not add necessary minerals to the body, but it does serve to effectively usher mineral and toxins out of the body.

3. Filtered water is tap water that has been additionally processed to remove particulates that may or may not be harmful. Filtered water often has fewer harmful particles than tap water but also a lower Ph level because some alkaline mineral deposits have been removed during the filtering process.

4. Spring water is minimally processed natural water obtained ideally from pristine running water found in mountainous areas. It has a slightly higher Ph level than the other three types of water previously mentioned. Depending on the cleanliness of the source, this water is considered to be superior to the other three due to its mineral content and alkaline Ph level.

Because not everyone can obtain clean, high Ph mountainous spring water, ionized alkaline water is gaining popularity. Water ionization is a process of changing the molecular structure of water through electrolysis in order to produce smaller water molecules infused with oxygen and a higher Ph level.

Water ionization technology was developed in Asia and has been in use there for decades. Alkaline water was first used in Asian countries as a complement to their eastern medicinal practices, but now water ionizers are available in most Asian households.

If one has consumed a steady diet of acidic foods (e.g. cooked food, processed foods, junk food) over the years, then the body’s tissues are likely to be more acidic than appropriate. The body is designed to balance its Ph levels so to counteract the acidity within the tissues; the body will pull from its internal mineral sources, which are usually more alkaline, in order to balance the deficiency. Over time this could lead to inadequate mineral levels in the bones and other areas.

Ionized alkaline water is considered antioxidant water. Oxidation Reduction Potential (ORP) is a standard for measuring whether a substance is oxidating (harmful) or reducing oxidation (beneficial). Oxidating substances have a positive value and substances that reduce oxidation have a negative value. ORP is measured in (mVs) and is a useful way to compare the antioxidant levels of various foods and beverages.

For example, fresh squeezed orange juice has an ORP between -100 to -180mV; it is one of the good oxidation reducing substances to incorporate into the diet. However, the orange juice must be consumed in moderation because of its natural sugar content. Ionized alkaline water has an ORP between -320 to -400mV and may be consumed throughout the day without fear of consuming too much sugar.