What is alkaline water and is it true what it promises?

There are many types of water, but in this article, we will talk about one kind of water that has recently been marketed as a novelty, although it is not really; alkaline water.

Alkaline water is only something new in the marketing aspect.

Water in nature has its cycle, evaporates, forms clouds, condenses and precipitates in the form of snow or rain, melts and drains, permeating the subsoil and creating springs, or forming streams that meet to form rivers that reach the lakes and seas.
It may or may not be used by plants, animals and humans and then starts its cycle again.

Water is also known as the universal solvent. It has a natural ability to dissolve many other materials, so it serves to wash clothes and clean, and to dilute other liquids or powders.
The solvent capacity of water is so great, that in it we can dissolve salt or sugar without any problem. However, this capacity has its limit and when it reaches its maximum saturation point, it simply cannot dissolve anymore, unless we increase the temperature. In the case of salt and sugar, the points of maximum saturation are known as brine and syrup.

In nature, when water permeates the layers of the earth to form springs, or when it runs through rivers, this solvent capacity allows the water to be enriched with minerals and salts that it takes from the same rocks.

Water in nature has always been enriched with minerals, it has always been mineral.

For millions of years, throughout the evolution of all animal species, the animals that inhabit our earth, have hydrated with naturally mineral enriched water.

What does all this have to do with alkaline water?

To understand this topic, on the other hand, we have the pH scale that measures how acidic or alkaline a liquid or material is. This scale of 14 points finds its neutral point in the value 7, where water or any other liquid, is neither acid, nor alkaline, it is simply neutral. The more acidic the liquid, the smaller the value will be tending towards the value 1 of the scale. Acids corrode minerals. On the contrary, the more alkaline it is, the higher its value on the scale will be tending to 14. Alkali corrodes organic matter and this is why they are used in many cleaning products.

Water enriched with minerals behaves slightly alkaline.

Depending on the amount of minerals in the water, its pH can reach up to 9 or 10 on the pH scale.
Water in nature has always been alkaline water and living beings are alkaline beings simply because during our evolution of millions of years we have always hydrated ourselves with fresh water naturally enriched with minerals. Our plasma at the cellular level is alkaline because it is rich in minerals that are part of the nutrients necessary for the proper functioning of each cell, tissue and organ.
In addition to the nutritional benefits, biologically the minerals in the blood behave like electrolytes (chemically as ions) and are responsible for carrying the electrical signals from our brain to each muscle ordering any movement. In the same way, our sensory system sends electrical signals back to the brain to allow us to feel, see, hear, smell and taste. The electrical signals sent by our senses to the brain for interpretation are driven by ions. (1)

The consequences of demineralization can range from mild as a cramp (low potassium) or fatigue, to very serious as lack of motor coordination, inability to concentrate and neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's.

If this is so, and water in nature is alkaline water, is alkaline water a hoax?

No. To understand what is happening, it is important to know a little more.

Over the last 100 years, humans have polluted our natural water sources in an important way, and this has forced us to look for better technologies to clean and filter water for reuse. Also, scientists for decades sought a way to desalinate sea water to obtain fresh water mainly for human consumption.

Chemistry in its beginnings used retorts as laboratory equipment exclusively for distillation processes.

Before 1950, distillation was the method that allowed to obtain the cleanest water. In distillation the water is boiled until it evaporates and later it condenses to obtain fresh and pure water, free of any other substance or contaminant. The main disadvantage of this process was the large amount of energy required to evaporate the water and for the cooling systems to re-condense it. This excessive use of heat would be a risk and this process could not be used in most places.

In 1950, at the University of California, a new technology was discovered called reverse osmosis that allowed fresh water to be obtained from sea salt water. Through specialized membranes with pores small enough to separate the ions, this technology allowed separation of salts and minerals to obtain chemically pure water. Without requiring the high amounts of energy and temperature as distilled water requires and being safe, this technology was promising.

NASA used this technology for its space missions as it would allow astronauts to recycle the limited amount of water they have in spacecraft, including their urine, to a degree of reliable purity and proper flavor. Once the technology had been proven by NASA, it began to be marketed as NASA technology and therefore was welcomed and accepted by everyone as the technology that produces the cleanest water.

In the last 5 decades, reverse osmosis has been the most widely used technology to purify water. Since the 70's and 80's, when the consumption of bottled water became popular, this technology has been used because it offers physical, chemical and microbiologically pure water and therefore "safe" for health ... or at least we thought so.

99% of the certified brand bottled water, is reverse osmosis water.

However, this purification process designed to remove salts from sea water, or urine, also eliminates all good minerals. The result is acidic water that does not have the minerals that our body requires to function.

What diseases can occur when you drink water without minerals?

The demineralized water consumed for a long period of time negatively affects health.
Enough studies have shown that when people start drinking bottled water free of minerals, also known as "soft waters", as their daily source of hydration, many disorders and diseases start to appear.
By taking demineralized water, water’s solvent capacity robs the body of many of the minerals it requires. It is a very serious issue as, on one side it demineralized water and does not provide the nutrients, and on the other, it demineralizes the body.

Some diseases and disorders whose origin is the lack of minerals are:

• Insulin resistance
• Mellitus diabetes
• Hypothyroidism, obesity
• Osteoporosis and cavities
• Various types of cancer, including prostate
• Fibromyalgia
• Dizziness, fatigue and chronic fatigue

Chronic degenerative diseases develop in an acidic environment, which occurs when the body is not able to detoxify allowing the proper removal of acidic toxins.

For many years nobody recognized the harm that drinking bottled demineralized and acidic water could produce to human health.

Alkaline water is not a hoax, nor a marketing trick, it is simply the return to water as nature has provided for millions of years.

The bottling companies have only been concerned about their financial well-being. They have promised their consumers freshness and health, but it is more than clear that the bottled water is not fresh, since bottled waters have been detected that at the time of consumption had already been stagnant for up to 7 years, much less healthy, neither for the human, nor for animals, much less for the planet with the incredible amount of indestructible plastic garbage that they have produced and with which they have polluted our world without scruples.

To make matters worse, now these same companies want to continue selling their plastic bottles now adding minerals to the water to obtain alkaline water and selling it as if it would be something new, a new invention and the new fashion, much more expensive than the purified waters they sold you before and that already has generated so much damage, with ridiculous prices, up to 10 thousand times higher than the tap water.

Plastic pollution is the most serious ecological problem that humanity has ever faced. Every time you buy a bottle of water or soda, you are part of the problem. Think twice!

Why are there so many news about the alkaline water hoax?

This is in reference to the fact, that many alkaline bottled waters, that do contain minerals, state on their labels the advantages of drinking alkaline water. Starting from the basis of the damage done by reverse osmosis waters due to their acidity, it is justified that mineral alkaline waters provide these benefits.
But we must understand that these benefits are the benefits of water that nature provides us by itself and when publishing the advantages without explaining that these are compared to the reverse osmosis water, it could be misunderstood or interpreted as miracle water.

Does alkaline water exist in nature?

It is true, alkaline water does prevent osteoporosis, since what you must compare it with is the reverse osmosis acid water that has become the standard of bottled water in the world and which indeed causes the loss of minerals and calcium in the bones with the subsequent osteoporosis and other discomforts.
It is the same with the other 30 advantages that are declared for alkaline water, they are true, but they should always advise that these are by comparison with reverse osmosis bottled water.

Experts have studied the health impact of alkaline water and constantly confirm that it provides benefits in the medium and long term.
As mentioned above, this is not something new, but the result of studies that are being carried out on the health of some populations in different countries whose longevity has amazed the world and has been associated with the water they drink.
Currently 4 natural sources are known in the world whose waters contain the essential minerals balanced in such a way that they bring real benefits to health:

• Hunza, India
• Nordenau, Germany
• Tlacote, Mexico
• Lourdes, France (Virgin of Lourdes)

Nordenau, Germany.

If pure water hydrates and benefits us, imagine what a water naturally enriched with minerals and hydrogen gas could do for your body.

Remineralization of previously purified water at home, is the correct way to obtain alkaline water avoiding plastic pollution.

Drinking bottled alkaline water is not the solution as it continues to generate plastic garbage and is expensive. There are better options. For much less money you can use a purification system that works with pore membranes small enough to draw bacteria and even viruses, but large enough to let the minerals pass through. This technology is known as ULTRA PURE

Clarity Water Perfect ^R works with an ULTRA PURE membrane developed in Germany by Bayer. The first 3 purification stages produce ultra-pure water free of contaminants, bacteria and viruses, without demineralizing it.
Additionally, a fifth cartridge Alcalyt ^TM, uses small ceramics pellets called tourmalines imported from Japan, which enrich the water with a small amount of selectively balanced minerals to obtain alkaline water with excellent flavor, great nutritional value at an exceptional price.

Alcalyt produces antioxidant alkaline water capable of removing toxins from the body and neutralizing free radicals at the cellular level.

References: (1) https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov, https://www.who.int ; (2) https://www.eluniversal.com.mx