As I sit here at my computer on a beautiful Sunday morning overlooking Lake Rosseau, I should be reveling at the beauty of nature. Instead, I’m sniffling away, and frustrated with my stupidity of forgetting to bring my water ionizer with me to the cottage this weekend.
It is the last weekend of the “real” summer in Ontario. While fall doesn’t officially begin for a couple more weeks, summer realistically ends for us when the kids go back to school after Labor Day. It has become a family ritual to spend the last days of summer at the cottage before life gets crazy again. Ragweed grows all over southern Ontario, and it obviously loves Muskoka as much as we do.
I started to suffer from ragweed allergy when I was fifteen years old, which according to my kids, was about 100 years ago. From about the middle of August until the first frost, ragweed just wears you out if you suffer from the allergy. Those who have experienced stuffed up noses, sneezing, and teary eyes know exactly what I’m talking about. Before I started drinking ionized water, I basically had to put my life on hold for six weeks or more each fall, because of sleep deprived nights, and the inability to work at a computer or a desk because of a dripping nose and teary eyes. Forget sports or having fun, as ragweed season was always a time for me to hibernate.
I took the prescription drug applied by the four needles each summer for years. I have also tried every over the counter product available from drug stores. While the needles seemed to lessen the symptoms marginally, nothing short of going away on a cruise (my wife’s favorite solution) provided any relief.
The first year that I started drinking alkaline ionized water, I was so surprised by the fact that the water got rid of my acid reflux and arthritis, I didn’t even notice that I was not suffering from ragweed. Not a sniffle, not a sneeze! It wasn’t until my son caught a cold in November and graciously passed it around the family that I felt the symptoms of having a cold. It was then that I realized that the water did more for me than fix acid reflux and arthritis.
Now back to today and my stuffy nose and teary eyes. We are at the cottage for our last blast of summer. As we packed up a few days ago, the water ionizer didn’t make the trip as golf clubs and food seemed to be more important. Not a problem with ragweed for the first couple of days, but last night, I started to sneeze and sneeze and sneeze. I got up early this morning as sleeping was out of the question, and moving around helps. I also thought my wife would appreciate a few hours of uninterrupted sleep.
The weather is just too nice to cut the trip short for the family so that I can have my water. So, I’m off for a boat ride to find out if a mile or two offshore is enough distance to keep the pollen from finding my nose. Not exactly a cruise, but a day on the water seems like a great alternative.
I know ragweed doesn’t seem very important compared to cancer and other diseases, but for the few weeks when you are suffering, it is hard to think of anything else. Don’t forget your water ionizer if you suffer from ragweed!
© This Alkaline Ionized Water article was posted on Waterfy
- Tags: allergies
As a chemist myself, here are some facts I can share:
* “Ionized water” is nothing more than sales fiction; the term is meaningless to chemists.
* Pure water (that is, water containing no dissolved ions) is too unconductive to undergo signficant electrolysis by “water ionizer” devices.
* Pure water can never be alkaline or acidic, nor can it be made so by electrolysis. Alkaline water must contain metallic ions of some kind — most commonly, sodium, calcium or magnesium.
* The idea that one must consume alkaline water to neutralize the effects of acidic foods is ridiculous; we get rid of excess acid by exhaling carbon dioxide.
* If you do drink alkaline water, its alkalinity is quickly removed by the highly acidic gastric fluid in the stomach.
* Uptake of water occurs mainly in the intestine, not in the stomach. But when stomach contents enter the intestine, they are neutralized and made alkaline by the pancreatic secretions — so all the water you drink eventually becomes alkaline anyway.
* The claims about the health benefits of drinking alkaline water are not supported by credible scientific evidence.
* There is nothing wrong with drinking slightly acidic waters such as rainwater. “Body pH” is a meaningless concept; different parts of the body (and even of individual cells) can have widely different pH values. The pH of drinking water has zero effect on that of the blood or of the body’s cells.
* If you really want to de-acidify your stomach (at the possible cost of interfering with protein digestion), why spend hundreds of dollars for an electrolysis device when you can take calcium-magnesium pills, Alka-Seltzer or Milk of Magnesia?
* Electrolysis devices are generally worthless for treating water for health enhancement, removal of common impurities, disinfection, and scale control. Claims that “ionized” waters are antioxidants are untrue; hypochlorites (present in most such waters) are in fact oxidizing agents.
Hi Sally Kirkland:
Thanks for the comments. Although I disagree with some of what you have written, this is a forum for open and honest discussion.
I will address each of your points as you have written them, as it is easier to follow.
* “Ionized water” is nothing more than sales fiction
This statement is simply not true. It is very simple to prove that stable H20 can be separated into two streams of water, one rich in H+ ions (acidic), and the other rich in hyroxyl OH- ions (alkaline)
* Pure water (that is, water containing no dissolved ions) is too unconductive to undergo signficant electrolysis by “water ionizer” devices.
This statement is true, as pure water can’t be ionized. However, in nature, pure water rarely if ever exists. Calcium carbonate is a natural substance that is abundant in most source water in Canada and the USA, and it allows for ionization through the process of electrolysis.
* Pure water can never be alkaline or acidic, nor can it be made so by electrolysis. Alkaline water must contain metallic ions of some kind — most commonly, sodium, calcium or magnesium.
This statement is also true, and is essentially a follow up of the previous statement.
* The idea that one must consume alkaline water to neutralize the effects of acidic foods is ridiculous; we get rid of excess acid by exhaling carbon dioxide.
This statement is also true, as the human body can get rid of acid through a proper diet. The body actually gets rid of acid through feces, urine, and to a lesser extent sweating and breathing.
While the body can get rid of acid on its own, it is important to understand that the human body is designed to consume a diet of appoximately 80% alkaline foods and beveridges. Unfortunately, the average Canadian or American consumes a diet that is approximately 97% acid. Imagine if you tried to run your internal combustion engine car using 97% water and only 3% gasoline. The care wouldn’t even start. Water is not the only solution to good health, but it is a wonderful way to start.
* If you do drink alkaline water, its alkalinity is quickly removed by the highly acidic gastric fluid in the stomach.
Again true, but you are missing the point of ionized water. It is not the alkalinity of the water that increases the alkalinity of the body. Ionized water is bombarded with negative charges that immediately allow the water to become bio-available. It is the negative charges that allow the body to get rid of the positively charged acids stored in cells. That is why people that drink ionized water that is too strong when they first start experience headaches. The headaches are a result of the body detoxing.
* Uptake of water occurs mainly in the intestine, not in the stomach. But when stomach contents enter the intestine, they are neutralized and made alkaline by the pancreatic secretions — so all the water you drink eventually becomes alkaline anyway.
Again true, but it takes approximately four hours for the body to process regular water in order for it to be bio-available. Ionized water is immediately bio-avalable and it completely processed within thirty minutes. When a person drinks a couple of litres of water each day, the process is very effective.
* The claims about the health benefits of drinking alkaline water are not supported by credible scientific evidence.
Again true, at least in North America. The studies simply have not been conducted here, but they will. One of the tragic aspects of a health care system controlled by profit driven pharmaceutical companies is that it is prohibitively expensive for small companies to play the game. In the meantime, I will continue to publish research about how and why the water works, and hundreds of true stories about individual cases where the water has helped people. I can’t change the system, but I have dedicated the rest of my life to informing people about the water.
* There is nothing wrong with drinking slightly acidic waters such as rainwater. “Body pH” is a meaningless concept; different parts of the body (and even of individual cells) can have widely different pH values. The pH of drinking water has zero effect on that of the blood or of the body’s cells.
Again, your statement is true, because water is only part of the equation.
Every leading researcher and author in the industry would disagree with your statement about being meaningless. From a personal experience, and from talkng to hundreds of people that have used the water, I can tell you that your statement is not true.
* If you really want to de-acidify your stomach (at the possible cost of interfering with protein digestion), why spend hundreds of dollars for an electrolysis device when you can take calcium-magnesium pills, Alka-Seltzer or Milk of Magnesia?
Again true if you want to de-acidify your stomach. The question is, why would you want to de-acidify your stomach. The acidity level at any given time in your stomach has nothing to do with the pH level in the fluids of your body.
* Electrolysis devices are generally worthless for treating water for health enhancement, removal of common impurities, disinfection, and scale control. Claims that “ionized” waters are antioxidants are untrue; hypochlorites (present in most such waters) are in fact oxidizing agents.
On what evidence do you base your statement that electolysis devices are generally worthless for treating water for health enhancement. Have you tried the water? Have you spoken to hundreds of people that use the water. When I make statements about the benefits of the water, I do so based upon personal experience and the experiences of hundreds of others that have kept an open mind and personally experienced the benefits.
Once again, I would like to thank you for contributing to the blog. Differences of opinon provide a starting point for meaningful discussion and for further education.
Best regards
Rob
Rob,
I’ve just begun my research on alkalized water. A friend gave me some, Kangan, and I liked it, was drawn to the thought of the water but the logical side needs its satisfaction. So, onto the internet I went wading through those that tout it because they sell it when I came Ms. Kirkland’s review posted in its entirety on another site.
I read what she wrote and was somewhat disheartened. I didn’t quite believe her because sooooo many people seem to have personal first-hand experience that claim otherwise, but I did not have the scientific knowledge to refute any of her claims.
Reading your eloquent response, I am heartened. I have bookmarked this page and I am going to pass it along to several of my friends.
Thank you for being able to articulate what I could not on what I consider a matter of importance.
Sincerely,
Juila Bishop
There is a lot of scientific research on the subject of ionized water, mostly from Japan but some from the US. You can find some on my website. I have other sources that I would be happy to forward to anyone interested.
Hi Hana:
Thanks for your messages.
I removed your website URL from your message because it has business implications. This blog is about information, not business. I encourage you to share your information or your opinions on this site, but not anything business related.
Rob
Rob,
Wow wow wow wow!!! I totally agree with Julia! I have just gone through the same exact experience as she, and I am so thankful to have found your response! Kudos to you!!
~Kimmy
Hi Kimberly:
Thanks for the kind words.
It has been a long time since I wrote the response in question so I had to go back and read it again. I have recently posted an article written by Sang Whang that provides a very simple scientific explanation of what happens to the acid/alkaline equation in the stomach, which in turn affects that alkaline and acidic buffers in the blood. Check it out.
As a Beginner, I am constantly exploring on the internet for
articles that may be of assistance to me. And yours is certainly one.
Thanks.