The pH Miracle: Balance Your Diet, Reclaim Your Health
by Robert O. Young, Shelley Redford Young
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Book Summary Information
Author: Robert O. Young, Shelley Redford YoungEdition: Mass Market Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2008-06-01
ISBN: 0446536199
Number of pages: 480
Publisher: Grand Central Life & Style
Book Reviews of The pH Miracle: Balance Your Diet, Reclaim Your Health
Book Review: "Ionized" and alkaline water - a scam?
Summary: 2 Stars
There are many contradictory claims, which are confusing. On the website of chem1 there is a very detailed article (search for ""Ionized" and alkaline water"). Below you will see some of their claims. Who is right?
"Ionized water" is one of many products and panaceas that the wonky-water wellness industry flogs onto the large segment of the general public that lacks the scientific background to distinguish scientific fact from pseudoscientific hype when the two are closely intertwined. The purpose of this page is to critically examine some of the claims about "ionized" and alkaline waters from the standpoint of modern chemistry and physiology in order to provide you with the information you need to make your own informed decision before opening your wallets to the hucksters of these products and whose claims are totally lacking in scientific support.
What most of these outfits actually sell are grossly overpriced electrical devices that purport to produce "ionized" and alkaline water by the process of electrolysis. Many of these "water ionizers" appear to have their origins in Japan and Korea, two countries whose populations seem to be particularly susceptible to being taken in by pseudoscientific water-treatment schemes. In North America, distribution of these dubious devices has depended largely on multi-level marketing schemes that enroll science-ignorant dealers to exploit even-more-vulnerable consumers while enabling the manufacturer to maintain a low profile to regulatory agencies such as the FTC.
You won't find anything about the benefits of alkaline water in any standard textbook on nutritional biochemistry, and anyone with training in physiology or biochemistry would consider the claims in favor of it ludicrous, but the alkaline/ionized water quacksters and scammers have woven a nexus of scientific-sounding nonsense and outright lies in order to convince a gullible and scientifically-naïve public that drinking partially electrolyzed water (produced by their over-priced "machines") is the key to health.
The bottom line
Here, in a nutshell, are a few basic facts that I believe anyone with a solid background in chemistry or physiology would concur with:
* "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.
So buying a "water ionizer" is a very expensive way of obtaining a solution that you could in principle make yourself by diluting some laundry bleach, and perhaps adjusting the pH by adding a weak acid such as lemon juice. But would you want to drink this "eau de Clorox"? Don't try this at home!
Will water that purports to be "ionized" or "alkalized" make me feel better, younger, more vigorous, etc.?
Quite possibly, yes! Studies have shown that placebos can relieve the symptoms in about 40 percent of those who suffer from chronic ailments. They are probably even more effective for those who are inclined toward "alternative medicine" or the "wellness" industry. In other words, if you "believe" that something might help, it may well do so, and the more people are made to pay for it, the more eager they will be to have their beliefs confirmed. (Remember those Monty Python apartment towers that would remain standing only as long as the residents maintained their faith in them?)
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