Reverse Osmosis systems were originally created to remove salt from water. The series of filters and the membrane which lies horizontally atop the filter canisters are highly effective in removing salt and most contaminants from your source water. The only downside to drinking Reverse Osmosis water is that it makes water acidic and it removes minerals that your body requires from the water. If you use a reverse osmosis system, it is important to replenish the lost minerals through your diet, or by taking supplements. I recommend a consultation with a nutritionist or naturopath to review your dietary intake if you are drinking reverse osmosis water.

Some Good News

At one time, I recommended that people should remove their Reverse Osmosis systems unless they had to use the system to remove salt from the water generated by a water softener. My opionion changed when Antioxidant Filters were introduced to the market in 2010.

When you use an Antioxidant Filter in-line with a Reverse Osmosis system, you get the best of both worlds. By that, I mean you get the brilliant decontamination benefits of the RO system and you get the wonderful remineralization benefits of the Antioxidant Filter. It is easy to understand the benefits of getting the bad stuff out of the water, but not so easy to understand the benefits of drinking mineral rich alkaline water. The bottom line is that water that has been filtered through an Antioxidant Filter is rich in free hydrogen, the ultimate antioxidant and the the building block of every cell in our bodies.

An Antioxidant Filter, with its ability to remove chlorine, chloramines, fluoride, and many other contaminants can be used on its own for many source water conditions. However, to get the “best of the best”, or when your source water has a heavy volume of contaminants or pesky “difficult to remove” contaminants, a combination of a RO system and an Antioxidant Filter would be my choice.

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I have been a big fan of water ionizers since I first began drinking the water two and a half years ago. My water ionizer changed my life for the better… a lot better. I have been blogging a lot about the antioxidant filters lately, so you might think I have changed my thinking about water ionizers. That would be a false assumption because you don’t turn your back on an old friend. However,the introduction of antioxidant filters is changing the landscape of the alkaline water industry because the low cost effective machines have made healthy drinking water affordable for everyone.

How Water Ionizers Work:

Water ionizers work by the process of electrolysis. That means that when water is run over the electrically charged plates, the water is separated into two steams. One of the streams is rich in hydrogen ions (H+) and is called acidic water, and the other is rich in hydroxyl ions (OH-) and is called alkaline water. People drink the alkaline, or negatively charged water for its health benefits. People use the weaker forms of acidic water as a “beauty water” for their skin, or the stronger acidic water for cleaning.

When an electrical current (Amps) is run through the plates in the ionization chamber, the ionization process is enhanced. As the power is increased, the ionization increases.

A water ionizer won’t ionize unless there are cations such as calcium or magnesium in the water, or anions such as salts or bicarbonates. Most of the water ionizer companies place calcium or magnesium in their filters to insure that the ionization process is very strong.

In fact, the minerals that are introduced by the filters in water ionizers will ionize the water on its own without adding the electrical current that is supplied during electrolysis. The water ionizer companies that are selling the “bigger is better” scam would never want you to believe it, but it is true. How do I know this to be true? If you talk to anyone who has worked in the industry on the technical support or customer service side of the industry, they will tell you that a common complaint is that when customers receive a new water ionizer, they find that when they put the pH reagent drops in the water from different levels of ionization, the water turns purple for all settings. When the water turns purple with the pH test drops, that means that the pH of the water is 9.5 or higher. In fact, the water often turns purple when the pH reagent is used on the “purified” water that has not even been ionized when a machine is new. How could that be when there no electrolysis has taken place? The answer is simple: when the minerals introduced by the filters interact with the water supply, ionization occurs which causes the test drops to turn purple.

Purple water test results across the board are a nightmare for the tech support people. The tech support people at the various water ionizer companies tell their customers that when they run about 200 litres of water through their machine, the customer will start to see that different pH levels can be achieved and they are right. After the small amount of calcium or magnesium that is packed into the filters has been worked off, the filters will provide more normalized results. What they don’t tell you is that in soft water conditions, the performance of the water ionizer machines begin to lose their performance after 6 to 8 weeks unless customers install an inline re-mineralization filter before the water ionizer. Most people stop checking their test results after the first week or two so they never realize that their machines are not producing the desired results. It is important to test you machine with the pH reagent drops every week or two.

How Antioxidant filters work

Antioxidant filters perform two functions. They remove contaminants from the water, which is the water filter part. They also create powerful antioxidants by creating alkaline ionized water.

The Purification Process

The purifying process is fairly simple and can be achieved in one of two ways.

The Alkastream people use an ion exchange system which acts like a very efficient miniature water softener plus it uses some of the standard contaminant removal media. The ion exchange system is similar to what you will find in a Brita filter. The combination of the ion exchange system and a the standard removal media provide for very effective removal of chlorine, fluoride, VOCs, lead and mercury, which are the main contaminants in our water as well as other stuff that you don’t hear too much about.

The Revolutionizer doesn’t use the ion exchange system, but it does use the standard media known in the industry to remove contaminants.

I don’t know what the Ion Ways products will be using for purification as they haven’t announced anything yet. The fact Ion Ways hasn’t provided any information about their machine other than telling us the price indicates to me that they are a few months away or more.

The Antioxidant Process

Now lets turn to the antioxidant function of the antioxidant filters.

The process is really simple and I started to discuss it when I described the fact that most of the water ionizer companies put a small amount of calcium or magnesium in their filters to assist in the ionization process.

Dr. Hayashi, M.D., the “Godfather” of water ionizer research spent 15 years from 1985 to 2000 researching how and why water ionizers worked. By the year 2000, Dr. Hayashi came to the conclusion that you didn’t need to use electricity to ionize water through the process of electrolysis at all. In fact, Dr. Hayashi has requested that the great research paper that he published in 2000 that appears on many water ionizer websites be removed. Dr. Hayashi stands by his 15 years of research, but he found a low cost method of producing the same powerful antioxidant results.

Dr. Hayashi determined that it was free hydrogen that produced the beneficial health results, and you didn’t need electrolysis to achieve free hydrogen. He has officially requested that the high priced water ionizer companies stop using his research to promote their products when there is a much lower cost and effective alternative.

Dr. Hayashi discovered that if you run water through a media that contained magnesium, alkaline ionized water could be created that would be ideal for health drinking water. The low cost method of creating the water would produce the same health benefits as a water ionizer. The scientific explanation is that the water is the universal solvent because the hydrogen bonds that join the hydrogen atoms to the oxygen atom is a very weak bond. When you introduce a water molecule to a magnesium atom, the hydrogen bonds break and the oxygen attaches to the magnesium forming magnesium hydroxide and free hydrogen. Gabe Hunninghake has created a good illustration of this that can be seen at: http://nextgenionizer.weebly.com/video.html

I know, this stuff seems complicated and I bet nobody cares, but I had to learn about it so you have to read it… so there! The bottom line is that if you want healthy drinking water, you don’t have to purchase an expensive water ionizer.

Which machine should you purchase?

If you want purified water that provides the benefits of antioxidant alkaline water, all you need is an affordable Antioxidant Filter.

If can afford a water ionizer and a pre-filter system, you can have the added benefits of receiving strong and weak acidic water, and very high alkaline water that will remove pesticides from the surface of fruits and vegetables. The additional three benefits are great to have.

My wife loves the 5.5 pH “beauty water” as she uses it to wash her face and even to rinse her hair after she has used shampoo in her hair. You can buy 5.5 pH water very inexpensively from a grocery store in the form of Aquafina bottled water which is made by Pepsi, but it is not as convenient.

Some people use the strong acidic water as a disinfectant. We have tried it and it works, but we never seem to get around to it. The strong acidic water is definitely a “green” solution that we should all aspire to.

Soaking fruits and vegetables in 11.0 pH alkaline water does help remove pesticides from fruits and vegetables. However, it does take a long time to fill a sink with the water and the operating manuals do suggest soaking the fruits and vegetables for 20 to 30 minutes. At our house, we don’t seem to use this great feature very often because we never seem to have the time, which is more of a comment about our busy lives than a criticism of water ionizers. Typically, my wife just buys organic fruits and veggies now that they are more competitively priced.

As always, personal choices are what makes us all unique. You should choose which type of machine suits your needs and then select the brand and the retailer that feels right for you. Whatever choice you make with be a good decision because it will lead to a healthier life.

The comments and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and are not intended as medical advice. Always consult your health care provider for health issues.

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Hard water is not considered harmful to your health, but it can cause ugly stains from scale build up in sinks, tubs, and elsewhere if left unchecked.  People notice the stains, but they are generally unaware of the significant hidden costs of the scale build until it is too late. 

Scale is formed when minerals (usually calcium) are precipitated out of water.  The scaling process accelerates dramatically when the temperature of the water increases or when water travels across the electrically charged plates in a water ionizer.

The hidden costs of hard water scaling:

While hard water scale strains are annoying, the more significant problem is the cost associated with scale buildup.  Hot water tanks create scale at a rapid rate as the heat facilitates the precipitation of calcium out of the water.  The scale forms on the two heating elements in the tank.  As the scale builds up, more and more energy is required to heat up the water in the tank.  Nobody thinks about the additional cost of heating their hot water because it is out of sight and out of mind.  However, the energy wasted can amount to several hundred dollars per year.  Additional costs from scaling show up in the form of shortened lifespans of heat producing appliances such as dishwashers, washing machines, kettles, and water ionizers.  Additional costs show up in the form or replacing taps and sinks.  The greatest cost of all, can come in the form of having to replace water lines if excessive scaling is not kept in check.

What is hard water and how is it measured?

Hard water is water with a high mineral content.  The primary components of water hardness are the cations (Ca 2+) and Magnesium (Mg 2+), with calcium playing the major role.  Calcium usually enters the water as either calcium carbonate (CaCO_3,) in the form of limestone and chalk, or calcium sulfate (CaSO₄).  The predominant source of magnesium is dolomite (CaMg(CO₃)₂).  Less significant contributors to water hardness are other dissolved compounds such as the anions of bicarbonates ( HCO₃⁻) and sulfates (SO2−4). 

Water hardness is measured in parts per million (ppm) or grains per gallon (gpg).  In the USA, 1 gpg = 17.1 ppm.  In Canada, 1 gpg = 14.2 pmp.  I prefer parts per million as the measure is consistent in both countries.  There is no absolute definition of levels of water hardness.  However, it is generally accepted that the following categories of water hardness exist:

• Soft: Below 17 ppm [or 0-1 American gpg] 
• Medium: 17.1 – 60 ppm [or 1 - American 3 gpg] 
• Medium Hard: 61 – 120 ppm [or 3 - 7 American gpg] 
• Hard: 121 – 200 ppm [or 7 – 11 American gpg] 
• Very Hard: Over 200 ppm [or over 11 American gpg

It is recommended that anyone that has hard or very hard water take measures to reduce the level of hardness, particularly from the hot water lines.  My focus is on water ionizers, and they definitely require some form of assistance to remove calcium from hard water.  The plates of a water ionizer will quickly get covered with scale in hard water which will render the ionization process useless.

Reducing hard water for an entire house:

The traditional method of reducing water hardness was to use a salt based water softener.  The keep the discussion really short and simple, the system captures calcium and magnesium with beads, and then washes out the beads with salt each day.  The state of California has banned the sale of salt based water softeners.  I expect that we will see the ban extended to other jurisdictions over time, because the high sodium content of softened water is absorbed by your skin during showers or baths.  When people use water softeners, it is recommended that the soft water not be used for drinking water, as the level of sodium typically exceeds maximum acceptable levels and definitely exceeds recommending intake levels of sodium by a wide margin.  We are now seeing growth in salt free water softeners, which are much healthier for your skin.

You can also eliminate water hardness with a distillation system or a reverse osmosis machine.  However the process is very slow and wastes a great deal of water.  As such, a reverse osmosis or distillation system is typically reserved for purifying drinking water.  I don’t care for either system if any other alternative is possible because the systems strip all of the minerals required by your body out of the water.

Reducing hardness in your drinking water:

As I stated earlier, hard water won’t hurt you.  However, it wrecks havoc with you drinking water line and tap, as scale builds up.  Homes that use salt based water softeners should always have a bypass before the water softener so that you never drink water that has passed through the softener.  If you use a salt-free water softener, you don’t need a bypass because the water is safe to drink and it will not scale up your water line or taps.  If you are thinking about installing a water softener, make sure it is a salt-free system.  The salt-free systems typically pay for themselves in about two years, so they are an excellent investment. 

If you already use use a salt based water softener and you don’t have a a bypass system under your kitchen sink, you will need a RO system to eliminate the sodium from your drinking water supply.  If you are stuck with a RO system under your sink, you will need to replenish the minerals in your drinking water with mineral drops, or by installing an in-line remineralizing filter in order to provide your body with the minerals it requires.  

What to do about hard water if you want to purchase a water ionizer?

Scaling from hard water has disastrous results for water ionizers.  Therefore, you have to deal with hard water, or don’t bother purchasing a water ionizer at all.  Since water ionizers are so import to your health, find a solution that works the best for you.

If you don’t have a water softener and you need one, make sure you purchase a salt-free system.  The system will prevent scaling and it will allow your water ionizer to work efficiently.

If you already have a salt based water softener and you want to purchase a water ionizer, you have a number of options:

A)  Bypass the water softener and install an inline magnet just before the water ionizer – one time cost of about $95

B)  Bypass the water softener and install an inline phosphate filter before the water ionizer – cost $40 every six months for a phosphate filter

C)  Install a RO system under your sink and add an inline remineralization filter – cost about $400 + $40 per remineralization filter

D)  Replace your salt based water softener with a salt-free water softener – cost about $1,000

You can also combine A) and B)  or you can add A) and B) to D).  It all depends upon the level of hardness.  These options all add to your costs, but nothing is more important to your health.

The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author based upon his research and experiences working with hard water conditions across the country.

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If you are reading this, you are probably aware of the great work that is being done by people like Dr. Robert Young and Tony Robbins and others in regards to providing information about the importance of eating an alkaline diet. The authors are doing a wonderful job of informing the world (or those that choose to be informed) that Americans are eating their way to various different diseases and sickness. For example, the explosion in the number of cases of stage 2 diabetes is reaching near epidemic proportions in North America, and the sad thing is that the problem can easily be erased by taking simple steps to change the way you eat, drink, and live.

The culprit of so many of the nasty diseases and ailments that plague our society is “acidosis”, or the state of being acidic. It has become abundantly clear that getting our bodies alkaline is the key to good health. The question is how do we do it?

The alkaline diet pundits tell us that we should be eating a diet rich in alkaline foods… all that green stuff that our Moms told us to eat. We intuitively know that they are right, but it is a difficult task that is beyond the grasp of most of us, who are rushing around trying to survive in a busy world. However, there are people such as vegetarians and vegans who are much more disciplined with their pallet than I will ever be. They are able to turn the other proverbial cheek when it comes to taking the easy way out with food. But are they able to achieve a stable alkaline pH of 7.2 to 7.5 as measured by the saliva? In most cases, the answer is no.

So, if the health food nuts have difficulty achieving the promised land of a pH level of 7.346, how do people reach that lofty goal? According to the experts, it is a combination of food, water, exercise, and reducing the amount of stress in your life.

Let’s look at the components one at a time. While I find it admirable that vegetarians have the discipline to eat a predominantly alkaline diet, it will never work for me. So what can the average person do? For starters, reduce the amount of meat, sugars, flour, and processed food. Does that mean eliminate them? No. But 4 ounces of meat per day is plenty. Sugars are a killer. If you have a sweet tooth like me, trade in the chocolate and candy for fruits. Maybe they are not quite as satisfying, but they produce natural sugars that are much better for you. Reduce the amount of flour from breads and pasta. That doesn’t mean eliminate those items, but cut down. Another culprit is snacks. Most of the time that we eat snacks is to curb our cravings for salt. We need salt in our diets. Many of our junk food binges are sparked by a lack of minerals in our body. Consume the proper minerals, and a lot of your food cravings will go away.

Speaking of cravings and food binges, the cause of the problem is often created by dehydration. We often mistake our need for water as hunger. If you drink water with a proper balance of essential minerals, your need and consequently your cravings for will diminish. You should drink half an ounce of water for every pound of body weight each day to start working towards better health. That means that if you weigh 140 pounds, you should drink 70 ounces of water. That is a lot of water. If you are working towards getting healthy, you should drink even more water.

Drink Water

Why water? Your body is made up of about 70% water, so water is the natural way to nourish your body. The greatest cause of aging is dehydration, so drink up. What should you drink besides water? Nothing else is required. It is as simple as that. What kind of water should you drink? Tap water from a city source is generally the best water around and it is free. Yes, tap water is better for you than virtually any bottled water. If you have the financial means to purchase a water ionizer, that is even better, but let’s leave that discussion for another day.

While it is essential to drink water, it is just as important to get off the sodas and coffee. If you drink one cup of coffee, research indicates that it takes 8 cups of water to cleanse the acid problems created by the coffee. If you drink a can of soda, it takes 32 cans of water to offset the damage done by the soda. Think about that for a minute. If you don’t take the Coke out of your fridges and pantries, you are just hurting yourself and your children. If you can’t do it for yourself, then at least do it for your kids. Alcohol is also bad, as it is very acidic. Hard liquor is worse than beer as it is more acidic – again, everything in moderation (except for soda, which is just terrible for you).

Exercise

What about exercise? We all know that we are supposed to exercise, but many of us find that we don’t have time. Take the time. Exercise gets your lungs working and your blood pumping. Exercise doesn’t have to mean hard physical exertion at a gym, or a long run. Get you exercise doing things that you like. Exercise doesn’t have to be torture. Get outside and work in the yard, or go for a walk, or let the dog take you for a walk. Go for a swim, or a bike ride around the neighborhood. You might find that you actually like your neighbors. Play with your kids, as they will give you a workout. Just make it enjoyable.

Exercise is simply a matter of moving around and using your body. It might seem like a huge undertaking, but it doesn’t have to be. Just start doing things and you will be amazed at how much better you feel in a very short time. Get your blood pumping a bit and get your lungs working. Athletes and people who exercise a great deal don’t live longer. In fact, they usually have shorter lives, because they typically suffer from dehydration over their lives, and the body is not meant to be tortured.

Reduce Stress

Finally, let’s take a look at stress. Stress is a huge contributor to sickness. My kids like to tell me to “chill Dad”. It is easier said than done, but it not only can be done, it has to be done. Stress is a killer. Take the time to exercise or just take a break. No matter what you do for a living, it is only work. Work is a way to support your life, it isn’t your life. Don’t be fooling yourself by believing that you work so hard for your family. Your loved ones would much rather have down time for fun time with you, than see you slaving away so that you can “get ahead”. Another source of stress is often provided by the people in your life. It has taken me a long time to realize this one out, but I have finally started surrounding myself with people that make my life better, and removing myself from those that cause me stress. It sounds so simple, and it is. The trick is to just realize it.

So there you have it. You know what to do. Eating well can be achieved in small steps. Try to make lifestyle changes slowly as opposed to dieting. Drink water…lots of water! Drinking more water is the most important change that you can make to improve your health, and it is simple. You can cut your calorie intake substantially by drinking water to fill many of your cravings. Exercise! Make it fun, not torture. And finally, start getting rid of stress by excising, taking breaks, and avoiding the people or events in your life that create the stress.

© This Alkaline Water article was posted on Waterfy

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The quality of your drinking water is more than just its purity. In fact, completely pure water, created by reverse osmosis filtration, leaves water stripped of all its essential trace minerals, not to mention oxygen, and worst of all the water is acidic, meaning it oxidizes what it comes in contact with.

Oxidation is another word for rusting. When you put acidic water on metal, it will rust that metal. Inside your body a similar process happens where your own body’s nutrients and minerals are absorbed by the acid water. Also, too much acid build up in the body leads to a condition called acidosis. The beginning symptoms of acidosis are poor metabolism (leading to weight gain), poor sleeping habits, fatigue, headaches, and achy muscles. Later stages of acidosis include adult onset diseases like diabetes. In fact acidosis is the foundation or heavy contributor to all adult onset diseases, even cancer.

So why drink pure water that contributes to acid build up in your body? Why strip all the essential minerals and oxygen your body needs from your drinking water?

There is a better way.

A good water ionizer filters the water to 99.9% purity using two large .1 micron, multi-stage activated carbon filters. Activated carbon filters are effective because they filter out most of the impurities in the water, while allowing the essential minerals to pass through because they don’t stick to the carbon. Then, most importantly, a water ionizer uses electrolysis to raise the pH of your drinking water to alkaline levels, while at the same time restoring water’s natural antioxidant called hydroxyl ions. And when a hydroxyl ion neutralizes a free radical in your body, lots of oxygen is released, immediately energizing you! Did you know a single glass of ionized water has as many antioxidants as a glass of orange juice!

Ionized water is also as much as six times more hydrating than purified or tap water, due to its small cluster size and hexagonal shape. One of the primary causes of disease is chronic cellular dehydration, a condition which leaves the body’s cells in a perpetual state of weakness and defense. Drinking ionized water helps with this condition.

Finally, ionized water, unlike pure or tap water, will detoxify your body. This detoxification will improve your sleep cycle, your metabolism and if you’re overweight, it will cause weight loss.

This article was written by a highly respected participant in the water ionizer industry. This site is not about endorsements, but I would be happy to pass on his name and URL to anyone interested.

© This Ionized Water article was posted on Waterfy

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