The biggest benefit of ionized alkaline water is its antioxidant potential or its ability to neutralize free radicals in the body which are responsible for aging and disease.
Oxygen is essential to survival. It is relatively stable in the air, but when too much is absorbed into the body it can become active and unstable and has a tendency to attach itself to any biological molecule, including molecules of healthy cells. The chemical activity of these free radicals (active oxygen) is due to one or more pairs of unpaired electrons.
Such free radicals with unpaired electrons are unstable and have a high oxidation potential, which means they are capable of stealing electrons from other cells. This chemical mechanism is very useful in disinfectants such as hydrogen peroxide and ozone which can be used to sterilize wounds or medical instruments. Inside the body these free radicals are of great benefit due to their ability to attack and eliminate bacteria, viruses and other waste products.
Problems arise, however, when too many of these free radicals are turned loose in the body where they can also damage normal tissue. When too many active oxygen molecules, or free radicals, are produced in the body they become reactive and can attach themselves to normal, healthy cells and cause damage by stealing electrons from normal, healthy biological molecules. This electron theft by active oxygen oxidizes tissue and can cause disease.
Because active oxygen can damage normal tissue, it is essential to scavenge this active oxygen from the body before it can cause disintegration of healthy tissue. If we can find an effective method to block the oxidation of healthy tissue by active oxygen, then we can attempt to prevent disease.
Normal tap water, for example, with a pH of 6-7 is approximately neutral on the pH scale of 0 to 14. When measured with an ORP (Oxidation Reduction Potential) meter its redox potential (electrical charge) is approximately +400 to +500 millivolts (mV). Because it has a positive redox potential, it is apt to acquire electrons and oxidize other molecules. Ionized Alkaline Water, on the other hand, has a negative redox potential of approximately -250 to -350 mV. This means it has a large mass of electrons ready to donate to electron-thieving active oxygen.
Today we read much about correct dieting principles and paying attention to what we eat in order to stay healthy. This is a sensible practice, but it is surprising that many of us don't realize that the bulk of what we eat is composed of water. Vegetables and fruits are 90% water; fish and meat are about 70% water as well.
Even advocates of the importance of vitamin C in diet staples have to admit that its potency, namely, the redox potential of this important vitamin, rapidly diminishes with age and preparation for the dining table. A carbohydrate, the main constituent of vegetables and fruit, has a molecular weight of 180 whereas water has a much lower molecular weight of 18.
Research data reveals that mineral waters have an ORP of +200 mV, slightly lower than the +400 mV measured for ordinary tap water. We can say that at least mineral water is marginally better than tap water from the viewpoint of ORP. Compared to any processed water for sale, however, Ionized Water with its reduction potential of -250 to -300 mV is beyond comparison due to its ability to scavenge active oxygen radicals.
Hydration
Statistics suggest that 75% of people in developed countries are chronically dehydrated and one out of three Americans mistakes thirst for hunger as the thirst sensation is so weak. Research has shown that dehydration of body cells is the root cause of diseases associated with aging such as arthritis. So the first thing you can do to stay healthy is to properly hydrate your body. However, your body cannot be hydrated with soda, carbonated water, sports drinks like Gatorade, coffee or beer - all of these will actually require you to drink more water to hydrate your body. Furthermore, your body cannot be hydrated with tap water, distilled water, reverse osmosis water, or spring water that is delivered to your home nearly to the extent that it is with alkaline ionized water (which is many times more hydrating than any of these). We will explain why.
Cell membranes protect body cells and control the movement of substances in and out of cells. Excessive free radicals can attack membrane walls and cause damage on healthy cells. There is another important function of membranes however. In 2003, Peter Agre and Roderick MacKinnon won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for their discoveries concerning water and water channels of cells in the cell membranes. There are water channels in membranes, which are the passages for water molecules to enter cells. Water molecules worm their way through the narrow channel by orienting themselves in the local electrical field formed by the atoms of the channel wall. Protons (or rather oxinium ions, H3O+) are stopped on the way and rejected because of their positive electrical charge. This explains why acidic beverages DO NOT hydrate the body.
Water comes in three molecular structures: H2O, OH-, and H3O+. In pure water, there is an equal number of hydroxide (OH-) and oxinium (H3O+) ions (also referred as hydronium). When there are more H3O+ than OH-, the water is acidic. When there are more OH- than H3O+, the water is alkaline. That is why alkaline ionized water hydrates your body many times more than other types of water (which are acidic and have a much higher concentration of H3O+).
There is another reason why alkaline water is better able to hydrate your body than any other types of water. Electrolysis inside the Ionized Water Unit not only charges the reduced water with negative electrons, it also reduces the size of water molecule clusters.
NMR (Nuclear Magnetic Resonance) analysis reveals that tap water and well water consists of clusters of 10 to 13 H2O molecules. Electrolysis of water in the Ionized Water Unit reduces these clusters to about half their normal size or 5 to 6 water molecules per cluster. The smaller size clusters get absorbed into body cells faster and more easily than the bigger size clusters.
Alkalinity
Your body constantly battles to keep the blood pH between 7.35 and 7.45. If the blood pH were to go above or below this pH range, this could be fatal. Dr. Otto Warburg, who won the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 1931, discovered that diseases and aging occur in acidic environments and disease cannot thrive in an alkaline environment. Therefore, when your body fluids are acidic, your body is prone to disease.
The human body has buffer solutions that balance the body pH for enzymes. Enzymes work under very precise conditions and when the body pH is off by too much, enzymes slow down or stop working. When enzymes don't function properly, many things can go wrong in your body including problems with digestion, the immune system, the blood and coagulation, and all the senses of hearing, sight, taste, and smell.
Some claim the acid/base buffer does the job to balance the pH in the body and no food or drink we consume will change it. Then shouldn't we all be perfectly healthy? It is true the acid/buffer constantly works to balance the pH level in our body. However, the acids we take into our body exceed the capacity of the body's ability to buffer them. Most of the foods we eat (meat, fish, dairy products, most grains, many types of beans including black beans and green beans, most types of oil, junk foods, corn, all the sweeteners including honey, coffee, chemicals, drugs, etc.) are acidic. Stress is acidic. Pollution is acidic. Our body still has to neutralize all these acids to keep the blood pH between 7.35 and 7.45 and provide the proper condition for enzymes. So what happens?
The body takes minerals like calcium, magnesium, and potassium out of bones and organs to neutralize the acidity in body fluids. Calcium deficiency in bones results in osteoporosis. Magnesium is a critical mineral involved in more than 300 enzymatic reactions. Magnesium deficiency can affect every organ in the body.
Also, excessive acid wastes accumulate and become the cause of many diseases. For example, when you eat too many carbohydrates and fats, the fatty acids are stored under the skin and deposit wastes around organs and tissues. These waste deposits block nutrition from being absorbed, which eventually damages organs and tissues.
By drinking mineral-rich ionized alkaline water regularly, you can support your body's natural buffering function and remove acid waste in your body. As your body fluids stay neutral or slightly alkaline by drinking the proper amount of alkaline water, there is less chance for disease to occur in your body.
The Japanese and Korean Ministries of Health have approved the treatment of ionized alkaline water for chronic diarrhea, indigestion, abnormal fermentation in the stomach, and excess stomach acid. There are medical institutes in Japan where patients with skin diseases are treated only with ionized water; acidic water is used to spray on their skin and alkaline water is used for drinking and cooking.
