Entries from April 2009 ↓

I've tested a few different bottled waters… poland spring, deer park, and generic "spring" waters. I used an aquarium ph test kit. The "spring" water comes up very low on the ph scale somewhere between 4 and 6. My tap water comes up either basic or slightly alkaline. Since I started having heartburn and reflux, I figured it might be from the acidity of all the bottled I was drinking so I switched back to tap. I know that a slightly alkaline system is more desirable and most disease and cancers can't exist in an alkaline environment.

Does anyone know if acidic drinking water alters your body chemistry and if it is worse for you to drink alkaline tap or acidic bottled water.

very interesting question mike. allow me to share my recently acquired information with you. First of all…no tap water…please. my medical intuitive recently suggested that i switch to distilled water. When i questioned as to why distilled as apposed to regular bottled water this is what he told me. most quality bottled waters are spring waters that are bottled from springs high in mountainous areas. In those mountainous area you almost always find uranium fields…uranium = radiation. He said drinking bottled water is, in his mind, equal to drinking a chemotherapy cocktail. You can certainly check with most companies as to what they filter for and don't, but then you also have to decide if you trust what they tell you. I did question him about distilled because i was concerned about the lost minerals that you find in bottled water that i was under the assumption were not only necessary but good for you. His response was that water serves two purposes in the human body…to hydrate and to flush toxins. We should be getting our minerals from the foods we eat. It was enough to satisfy me. Also, then a comment about your testing the alkalinity of the water with the strips. I totally understand your reason for testing, but wouldn't it be more accurate to be concerned with testing YOUR ph through your saliva as apposed to just the water? yes, the ph of the water does affect the overall ph of your body, but the end result being more important overall then just the ph of the water? Also keep in mind that you don't want to be to the extreme of either end of the scale….both could indicate health issues. the goal is to fall somewhere in the middle of the scale, preferably just a bit on the alkaline side. There is a great book on the subject you might enjoy. it's called Alkalize or Die…sorry, i can't remember the authors name and it's on my desk at work right now. It gives tons of ways to alkalize our bodies with so many other things besides just water.

The question i got given is: You suspect that a local creek has been polluted with an alkali(a base). Describe tests you could carry in the school labratory to confirm your suspicions.

Here are four quick ones, depending on what supplies you have (honestly, although you might even detect a taste difference, please don't do that — it could be polluted with some pretty nasty bacteria like typhoid, cholera, etc., and/or protozoa like Giardia):

a) If you have a pH meter, it's pretty straightforward, just take a reading of the sample;

b) If you don't have a meter, you might have pH paper. The most common type turns darker blue the more alkaline it is;

c) If you don't have pH paper, you might have certain indicator dyes such as phenolphthalein (I provided a link below); for example phenolphthalein turns pink when it is alkaline.

d) You can use extracts of certain plants as dyes, such as red cabbage (grind it up, and drop on some water: they turn red in acidic solutions and blue in basic);

I hope this is enough to get you started!

I keep reading stories of women who have reoccurring UTI. I am currently dealing with this problem. I was wondering if :

#1: Probiotics will help because I just ordered some
#2: If drinking alkaline water (Kangen water) will help my PH levels which will help this problem?

Note: I am not sexually active so it's nothing along those lines as I've stated in my previous question.

I get UTI's all the time… like 1-2 times a month. I need surgery on my urethra…but i cant afford it right now.. I just take antibiotics.. Ive never thought of probiotics…ill have to look into that and I dont think alkaline water will make a difference. Your Ph levels have nothing to do with why you get a UTI..

An infection occurs when tiny organisms, usually bacteria from the digestive tract, cling to the opening of the urethra and begin to multiply. The urethra is the tube that carries urine from the bladder to outside the body. Most infections arise from one type of bacteria, Escherichia coli (E. coli), which normally lives in the colon.

In many cases, bacteria first travel to the urethra. When bacteria multiply, an infection can occur. An infection limited to the urethra is called urethritis. If bacteria move to the bladder and multiply, a bladder infection, called cystitis, results. If the infection is not treated promptly, bacteria may then travel further up the ureters to multiply and infect the kidneys. A kidney infection is called pyelonephritis.

Microorganisms called Chlamydia and Mycoplasma may also cause UTIs in both men and women, but these infections tend to remain limited to the urethra and reproductive system. Unlike E. coli, Chlamydia and Mycoplasma may be sexually transmitted, and infections require treatment of both partners.

The urinary system is structured in a way that helps ward off infection. The ureters and bladder normally prevent urine from backing up toward the kidneys, and the flow of urine from the bladder helps wash bacteria out of the body. In men, the prostate gland produces secretions that slow bacterial growth. In both sexes, immune defenses also prevent infection. But despite these safeguards, infections still occur.

You have to have antibiotics to get rid of an UTI. you can drink cranberry juice or water to clense yourself out.. and that will help with the pain. I take cranberry pills on a daily basis to help with my frequent UTI's. other ways you can prevent UTIs are by wearing cotton panites, dont take baths, keep clean, just make sure your vagina can breath.

I am interested in the health claims made for ionized or negative water. Has anyone had any personal experience with this? I tasted some recently and didn't especially like the taste. There are claims that it tastes like spring water. Has anyone found this to be true? What is a good brand of ionizer to get? I understand that the ionizers do not purify the water. Doesn't this mean that one is consuming the pollutants that come out of the tap?

The best I ever tried was GRANDER water, sold by Water Revitalization, Inc. – it makes me feel so good, a true tonic. But I can't pay the high price. If only it were cheaper. It makes me feel euphoric & good. hard to explain. somewhat stimulating too.

Our above ground pool is hazy, it's not green, it's just hazy, we've taken water samples to the pool supply store, they've tested them, and said everything was spot on (and they mean everything, metals, dissolved solids, ph, alkaline, sanitizer, and bacteria/fungi/mold, what ever). You can't see maybe more than a foot down in the water before it's too hazy to see anything. It also isn't a traditional chlorine based system, it uses a different chemical based system called Baquacil, not sure exactly what is uses, but I know it's not chlorine or salt water. The water in it is about two years old, we keep it covered, run the filter every day, etc.

So, any guesses why it's still hazy?
We clean the filter on a regular basis, and we haven't been in it for well over two weeks (but we still run the filter everyday)….

Uae a water clarifyer, it binds all the small particles so the filter can filter them out and change your filiter.

I have a disease and my friend said to drinkin alkaline water to boost my immune system.

Is it battery water? Isn't alkaline in batteries?

Where can I get this alkaline water? How expensive is it?

Alkaline is the chemistry term for water so alkaline water is water with acid in it. Yes battery acid is alkaline water, but clearly you don't want to drink an acid that strong.

Often it is called ionized water.

These sites are devoted to debunking the myths about using alkaline water: http://www.wellness.com.au/Home/Comparisons/AlkalineIonisers/tabid/37/Default.aspx
http://www.chem1.com/CQ/ionbunk.html
http://www.h-minus-ion.org/truth-about-ionized-water-1.html

If you don't believe what these sites say and you want to still buy one then you can go here:
http://www.ionizersreviewed.com/?gclid=CKbuiK_us5QCFQUpgAodFTwZWQ
http://www.fernsnutrition.com/water_ionizers.html
http://www.betterwayhealth.com/?gclid=CLyQwsfus5QCFRdinAodVDd1TA

The FDA doesn't control these items so the producers can make any claims and sell them to anyone for any reasons; this is why the vitamin industry exists and only Tums has a FDA claim that it provides extra calcium. It is the only vitamin, herbal supplement, or other such "drug" that has the ability to legally make this claim. The reason for it is simple calcium is used to neutralize the acid in your stomach so Tums has a lot of calcium in it anyway. But only Tums paid for the testing and meet the FDA requirements to make that claim. The people who sell ionized water don't do that, don't want to do that and never will because if they do their entire industry will disappear.

I have a kidney infection in my right kidney. The pain is pretty severe; it feels sort of like I sprained my back. I am a soda addict so I typically drink a lot of soda and little water. I know this is the cause, but now I am drinking water and I was wondering if there is a natural remedy to speed up the healing process, as the pain is pretty severe. I don't have insurance so going to the doctor is out of the question unless it is life or death. Please help.

Sorry to tell you this, but it may well become a matter of life and death. Kidney infections are much more serious and severe than bladder infections.

You would do best to go to an emergency room, because kidney infections are almost always treated with antibiotics. In Australia we will often treat them with intravenous antibiotics.

The home remedies you can try are no substitute for definitive treatment.

a- they produce vitamin k and folic acid.
b-they keep harmful bacteria popoulations in check.
c-they maintain pH balance.
d-they transport nutrients to the bloodstream.

d

I’m Just curious…. but if it is healthier or better I will let my dog drink it…

my dog: Maltese 2 yearsold Male…

PLEASE HELP THANK YOU VERY MUCH!

don't think there is an effect on alkaline water!!! hmmm don't' have a clue really, interesting question

google'd question. states that reduced alkline water will give ur pet a shiner coat, and increase in energy..hmm learned somthing new

What causes it to be SO acidic, that you cant touch it, and it melts things?

It doesn't get as acidic as you suggest, what you're describing sounds like concentrated sulfuric acid. But water around a volcanic eruption does absorb sulfur oxides (SO2 and SO3) from burning sulfur to form sulfurous and sulfuric acids in the water respectively (mostly the former, from SO2 + H2O -> H2SO3).