When water in a water ionizer is ionized, it is split into two separate streams of water. One of those streams is alkaline, the other one is acidic. Why two streams of water? Because of the physics behind the ionization process. A water ionizer doesn’t add anything to water when it ionizes it, instead, the ionization process changes the composition of the mineral compounds in the water.
What water is like before it is ionized
The ionization process affects the dissolved mineral salts in water, not on the actual water molecules themselves. Tap water contains dissolved mineral salts, mostly calcium carbonates and magnesium carbonates. Those two mineral salts are responsible for the white deposits left on plumbing and appliances in homes with hard water. In general, water that contains greater than 60 milligrams per liter of those salts is considered to be moderately hard water Most homes in the US are served by water supplies that are moderately hard, or harder. Hard water is safe to drink, in fact, it is better for your health than soft water. According to the World Health Organization, you need to get between 10 – 20% of your daily needs for calcium and magnesium from your drinking water. So hard water is good for your health, but if it’s very hard, your water can taste chalky.
What happens to water when it’s ionized
The ionization process splits the mineral salts in tap water in half: The calcium and magnesium are split from the carbonate that they were combined with. Next, the calcium and magnesium ions are drawn through a special ion-permeable membrane into a separate chamber. Likewise, the carbonate ions are also drawn through the ion permeable membrane into their own separate chamber.
Alkaline water: After being separated from the carbonate ions, the calcium and magnesium ions pull hydroxyl ions from the water around them to form new mineral salts: Calcium hydroxide and magnesium hydroxide. These newly formed hydroxide salts are highly alkaline, they are what gives alkaline water its high alkaline pH. The hydroxyl ions give the alkaline water its age-defying antioxidant potential.
Acidic water: When the carbonate ions enter their chamber, they also react with water molecules. The reaction produces a solution of carbonic acid. It’s a very weak solution, that is useful as a beauty rinse, for watering plants, and for sanitizing produce.
Is bottled alkaline water the same as ionized alkaline water?
No. In fact, many bottled alkaline waters aren’t even alkaline! Tests done on some popular brands such as Trader Joe’s bottled alkaline water actually showed that those brands could actually be acidic. The problem is that alkaline water doesn’t keep if you put it into a bottle, you have to drink it within 24 hours of making it to get the water’s full potency. Even if it has an alkaline pH, bottled alkaline water doesn’t have any antioxidant potential, and that antioxidant potential is responsible for many of the health benefits that you drink alkaline water for.
The only way to get the full benefit of drinking alkaline water is to make it yourself, with a water ionizer. Consider this: You need to drink 2 – 3 liters of water per day for good health. If you tried to purchase enough bottled alkaline water to drink 2 – 3 liters per day, it would end up costing well over $100 a month! You can finance a water ionizer for less than that, and make your own ionized alkaline water for just pennies per gallon.
