Alkaline water has been the talk of health community for many years. Alkalinity is praised as the healthy natural state for your body due to the fact that modern diet has been acidifying the body for so long that many diseases have become widespread!
To understand the benefits of alkaline water for your health and longevity, you should first understand the basic definitions and process that make your body acidic or alkaline.
In this article, we help you with that understanding so next time you are drinking natural alkaline water, you know what is happening inside!
What is alkaline?
Alkalinity or acidity of a substance is measured by pH which stands for “power of Hydrogen”. It is negative logarithm of hydrogen ion concentration in a water based liquid. It is a scale of 0 to 14 in which 0 means pure acidity and 14 is pure alkalinity and 7 is the neutral.
Each value on the acidic side of the pH scale is 10 times less potent that the previous one and each value on the alkaline side of the pH scale is 10 times more potent that the previous value. For example, pH of 3 is ten times less acidic than pH 2 and 100 times less acidic than pH of 1. On the other side, pH of 12 is 10 times more alkaline than pH of 11 and 100 times more alkaline than pH of 10!
Generally, water solution of ordinary materials fall somewhere between the two extreme points which are potent and dangerous for humans.
Normal water has a neutral pH of almost 7.
How alkalizing mechanism is regulated inside your body?
Human body is consisting of many organs, tissues, cells and micro organisms in which everyone requires a certain fixed pH level to perform their function optimally.
For example, stomach is probably the most acidic environment in your body with having pH level of 3-4 at rest and pH level of 1-2 when digesting food. Some organs such as eyes maintain a constant neutral pH level of 7 due to the delicacy of their tissue while skin has a more acidic pH of 5.
But blood pH level stays constant at 7.4 no matter what! It is not surprising if you think about all the large and tiny blood vessels that run throughout your body and contact every tissue and cell which often have soft and delicate membrane!
To maintain this constant pH level, there are buffering mechanisms inside that get activated immediately when blood pH is disturbed for any reason. These reasons can be the food you eat or the water you drink and even the environment you live in! Some health conditions also imbalance blood pH level.
The pH regulatory systems inside your body are either biochemical, pulmonary or renal.
The biochemical buffering system consists of the chemical solutions that are present inside and outside each cell and react aggressively to any acid-base changes. Bicarbonate is one of the most abundant buffers to neutralize acidity by attaching to excess hydrogen ion but bones are a main source as well. Having stored almost all of the calcium in your body, in cases of acidity, calcium is released from bones to neutralize acidity.
Pulmonary buffering system is regulated through rate of breathing in order to control pH level in your blood. If too much acidity happens, your brain will stimulate you to breathe faster to exhale more Carbone dioxide until pH levels drop to normal.
Renal buffering system plays a major role in pH regulation by reabsorbing bicarbonate and releasing protons; therefore, acidic hydrogen ions are excreted through urine.
How does Natural Alkaline Water affect pH regulating system in your body?
When you drink natural alkaline water with pH level above 7, you are actually giving a break to biochemical regularity system to release less bicarbonate and calcium into your blood stream. Making and replacing these precious chemicals require a complex process and a lot of nutrition which in the long term, can cause negative health effect leading to severe dehydration and bone loss. Constant bone loss leads to osteoporosis which is an extremely dangerous disease affecting the very core structure of your body.
Pulmonary system is affected by drinking natural alkaline water as well because if excess acidity is neutralized by natural alkaline water there is no need to excessively exhale carbon dioxide and put pressure on your lungs!
Kidneys, the very important filtering organs in your body also experience less pressure by drinking natural alkaline water in order to neutralize excess acid and excrete it through urination which in long term saves your renal system from damage!
There are many other mechanisms that are affected by drinking natural alkaline water but the more important one is dealing with reflux issue!
Reflux issue is responsible for inflammation and damage to esophagus up to throat and even nose and ears! Stomach enzyme pepsin which helps in digestion of protein molecules can travel up with the refluxed juices and stay in your throat. When you drink an acidic food or drink, the pepsin in your throat is activated and irritates the lining of your voice cords causing hoarseness, coughing and constant clearing of the voice. Normally, reflux patients are given antacid medications for long periods of time which in most cases has serious side effects like indigestion and consequent nutrient deficiency! But the good news is pepsin is inactivated at high pH levels; therefore, natural alkaline water can neutralize pepsin and reflux at every sip without a need to lifelong medication!
Conclusion
In modern lifestyles, there are many reasons that blood pH can fall below its normal range of 7.4 and become acidic. Modern diet, environmental pollution and stress can lead to acidosis which is the state where body becomes acidic. Acidic blood is the most dangerous state your body can experience and that is why many intelligent buffering systems are in place to immediately restore blood to its safe pH state. The pH regulatory systems mainly involve biochemical mechanism, lungs and kidneys.
Natural alkaline water has a pH level of +8 which is slightly above pH level of blood that makes it ideal external help for the body to use and neutralize acidity without excessively using its resources and experiencing constant pressure on vital organs. Withdrawing calcium from bones is a major risk for excess acidity in the body that can lead to osteoporosis. Natural alkaline water can prevent bone loss and at the same time provide extra calcium to replenish any deficiency.
Hourin Natural Alkaline Water has a pH level of 8.4 which is the perfect range for the best natural mineral water. People who suffer from acidosis, reflux, osteoporosis and calcium deficiency can hugely benefit from drinking it. Hourin water is sourced from Dimeh natural spring in western Iran which has one of the highest quality natural alkaline water.