Alkaline Water Benefits – Water Ionizer Systems

Alkaline water, also known as ionized water, differs from the normal water by its pH level. While normal water has a pH of 7 (which means neutral), alkaline water has a pH of almost 8. The pH scale is the measure for acidity or alkalinity of solutions. It ranges from pH 0 to 14, solutions with pH 7 being neutral, pH > 7 alkaline and pH < 7 acidic.

In order for the normal water to become alkaline, it has to go through a process of electrolysis.

This article is an overview on all information I found on alkaline water benefits and water ionizer systems. It is only a starting point for discussions, so if you have any experience to share with us regarding ionized water and what it did good or bad for you, please use the comments section below.

Alkaline Water Benefits

While there are scientifically proven benefits to drinking water, there’s no proven medical evidence in stating alkaline water is superior to normal water. Nonetheless, many people claim alkaline water is good for health, some of them speaking from their own experience. I remember reading in a discussion forum that somebody said alkaline water helped her with her asthma condition. Maybe it did, or maybe it was only the placebo effect, we have no way of knowing that.

One of the most often used arguments in favor of ionized water is that many foods are acidic, therefore upsetting the pH balance of the body. Since the method of neutralizing an acid solution is to add a base, alkaline water is thought to help balancing the body, thus leading to a state of well-being. I didn’t find any research to support this. However, if you want to read more about alkalinity and the acidic diet, and to get a list of alkaline and acid foods, you can download this free report. The report comes with an optional bonus, a free consultation with a water specialist with whom you can discuss your water issues. I think it’s worth taking a look into it.

Back to the benefits of ionized water, here’s what I found:

Alkaline electrolyzed water assists in the alleviation of gastrointestinal disorders, acidosis, chronic diarrhea, and poor digestion. This claim appears to be endorsed by the Japanese Ministry of Health and Welfare. Source: http://www.detoxifynow.com/water_conference.html

Antioxidant properties: antioxidants strengthen the immune system. They neutralize free radicals which are the cause of cell damage. Vitamins E, C and A are among the most-known antioxidants and they’ve been proven effective by research. As of the antioxidant properties of ionized water, here’s a quote from the previously mentioned source:

Recent research in Japan has shown that electrolyzed alkaline drinking water has a synergistic effect on antioxidants. For example, the antioxidant strength of vitamin C in electrolyzed alkaline water is several times greater than vitamin C in tap water. The synergistic effect is due to the higher dissociation/ionization constant of the functional (electrolyzed) water.

The previously mentioned website lists references, thus being much more credible than other sources. Here’s the reference for the above quote: Hanaoka, K.; Antioxidant Effects of Reduced Water Produced by Electrolysis of Sodium Chloride Solutions, (to be published in J Applied Electrochemistry, 2001).

Shirahata, S., et al: Electrolyzed-Reduced Water Scavenges Active Oxygen Species and Protect DNA from Oxidative Damage, Biochem. Biophys. Res. Comm. 234 (1997) 269 is a study supporting the claim that ionized water enhances the immune system and inhibits autoimmune disease. Mice given electrolyzed alkaline water lived 30% longer. I found no research on humans, however, on the antioxidant properties of alkaline water.

Management of metabolic acidosis. Metabolic acidosis is a result of endogenous acids accumulation in the body or of kidneys failure of eliminating the acids. It is a very severe and possibly lethal condition. I found this study published by Department of Urology, El Mansoura Urology and Nephrology Center, Mansoura University in Egypt, regarding the use of ionized alkaline water as a strategy for the management of metabolic acidosis. The study was done on dog and rats and it showed significant improvement. The conclusion was that alkaline ionized water can be considered as a major safe strategy in the management of metabolic acidosis secondary to renal failure or dialysis or urinary diversion. Studies on humans are yet to be done.

This sounds promising, but I’m not sure how it translates for the average, healthy individual who isn’t sure whether or not ionized alkaline water provides real benefits for him and his family. If you’re a resident of USA or Canada, you can click here to get a free pH saliva test which can reveal whether your body is in an overly acidic condition.

Also for USA and Canada residents, you can click here to get a water quality report for your area. The report is based on a zip submit form.

Water Ionizer Systems

Water ionizers for home use connect directly to the faucet and they usually play a double role: filter and ionizer. They come with installation kits and instructions, so anyone with basic DIY skills can install one without needing a plumber. Maintenance of water ionizers is simple, as they have a self-cleaning feature. The only thing you need to do is replace the filter. If you live in an area with hard water, you may also need descaling every 1-2 years. You can use a vinegar solution to do that.

There are several manufacturers of water ionizers such as Ionways (former Jupiter), Tyent, Enagic (Kangen), Life Ionizers or KYK. I’m not going into details about their devices, but here’s a comparative table of the most popular water ionizers.

	Name of ionizer	Jupiter Melody	Jupiter Athena	KYK Harmony 9040	Enagic SD501	Life Ionizer 7500	Tyent 7070
Overall Rating	Overall Rating
Price	Suggested Retail	$1495	$2195	$1199	$3980	$1995	$2495
Certified Independent Lab Performance Rating	pH at highest setting	10.47	10.54	9.48	9.46	10.72	9.47
	ORP at highest setting	-637.1mv	-812.0 mv	-482.0 mv	-578.7 mv	-164.7 mv	-740.1 mv
	Flow Rate	3 LPM	3 LPM	3 LPM	8 LPM	1.5 LPM	1.5 LPM
Important things to consider about the manufacturer	Manufacturer	Emco Tech	Emco Tech	YiShan / KYK	Enagic	Unknown	Tae Young
	How long making water ionizers?	28 years	28 years	4 years	7 years	3 years	2 years
	How long in US	14 years	14 years	3 years	4 years	Less than one year	1+ year
	Manufacturer Assembler?	Manufacturer	Manufacturer	Assembler	Manufacturer	Assembler	Assembler
	True R&D Capability?	Yes	Yes	No	No	No	No
	Quality Assurance Certification	ISO9001 & 14001 and CE	ISO9001 & 14001 and CE	None	ISO9001 & 14001 and CE	Unknown	Unknown
	Safety Certifications?	UL; CSA; RoHS	UL; CSA; RoHS	Unknown	UL & ULC	None	None
	Category Rating	5	5	2	4	2	2
Important things to consider about the company you will buying from	How long in Business?	IonLife 10 years	IonWays 3 years	WaterforLifeUSA 3 years	Enagic USA 4 years	LifeIonizer LLC 1 year	Ityent USA 1+ years
	Experience in ionizer business?	6 years	1 year	4 years	4 years	10 years	1+ years
	Warranty	Lifetime parts 5 yrs. labor	Lifetime parts 5 yrs. labor	5 year parts Parts & Labor	5 year parts Parts & Labor	5 year parts 3 labor	5 year parts 3 labor
	Guarantee	60 day money back No restocking fee	15 day trial	15 day money back 15% restocking fee	3 day money back 20% restocking fee	60 day money back 15% restocking fee	60 day money back 15% restocking fee
	Water Expertise? Can they help solve your water issue?	WQA Water expert on staff / full line of specialty filtration	WQA Water expert on staff / full line of specialty filtration	Limited	None	Limited Expertise / Full line of specialty filtration	None
	Customer Support	Full office staff including customer support	Full office staff including customer support	Full office staff including customer support	Full office staff including customer support	Limited / staff size and roles unknown	Limited / staff size and roles unknown
	Service Center	Yes Factory trained – Dedicated	Yes Factory trained – Dedicated	Yes Factory trained	Yes Factory trained	Yes Unknown	Yes Unknown
	Headqrters / Warehouse	Reno NV, New Fairfield CT, Edmonton Canada	Reno NV, Vancouver BC	waterforlifeusa.com	Hermosa Beach, CA	Encinitas, CA	Blackwood, N.J.
	Category Rating	5	5	3	3	2	1
Electrode Plate Information	Number of Electrode Plates	5	5	5	7	7	7
	Electrode Plate design	Standard flat Plate	Mesh	Standard flat Plate	Standard flat Plate	Mesh	Mesh
	Manufacturing process	Electroplating	Electroplating	Dipped	Dipped	Dipped	Dipped
	Plate source	Emco Tech / Japan	Emco Tech / Japan	YiShan / Taiwan	Enagic / Japan	Korea	Unknown / Korea
	Category Rating	4	5	3	4,5	3	3
Ionization features	Mineral Port?	Yes	Yes	No	Saline injection	No	No
	Hot Water Alarm	Yes	Yes	No	No	No	No
	Flow Rate Indicator	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	No
	Can unit regulate flow?	Onboard	Onboard	Tap only	Tap only	Onboard	Tap only
	Category Rating	5	5	2	3	2	1
Cleaning System / frequency / convenience	Cleaning type / frequency	Automatic Post Use / each time used	DARC System / each time used	Simple Reverse Polarity / 30 seconds per 12 hours	Simple Reverse Polarity / 30 seconds every 15 gals	none, website says to call customer service	RTR (Real Time Refresh) automatic washing of electrolytic tank
	Eliminates Mineral scaling on plates	Substantially	Yes	No	No	No	No
	Do you have to wait while cleaning?	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
	Category Rating	4	5	2	3	2	2
Installation Options	How many ways can you install it?	3 options	3 options		To tap with diverter only	Countertop	2 options
	Category Rating	5	5	3	1	3	3
Filtration Features	Filtration Rating (in microns)	.1Micron / .01Micron	Dual filtration – .1Micron / .01Micron	.01Micron	.1Micron	Dual Filtration – .1Micron	Dual Filtration .1Micron
	Filtration Media	GAC with Calcium and Tourmaline	GAC with Calcium and Tourmaline	GAC	GAC with Calcium	GAC with Calcium	GAC and ceramic
	Filter Life indicator	Yes, by counter	Yes, by counter	Yes, by counter	Yes, by timer	Yes, by counter	Yes–display, no counter
	Replacement cost	$60 / $90	$60 / $90	$75	$145	$50	$85 (includes 2 filters)
	Category Rating	5	5	3	3	3	3
Electrical Power	Electrical Supply	Transformer	Transformer	SMPS	Transformer	SMPS	SMPS
	Power Consumption	110w / .5amps	110w / .5amps	200w	230w / 2.5amps	unknown	85w
	Category Rating	5	5	4	5	4	4
Other features to consider	Number of pH levels	9 – but infinite control with Flow valve	Adjustable to 48	Adjustable to 64	6	9	9
	Color changing Control Panel?	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	None
	PH and ORP Display?	No	No	Yes**	No	No	No
	Category Rating	5	5	5	4	5	5

* Silver State Laboratories, 2008
** Uncalibrated
If you’ve already done your research, decided you want to drink alkaline water and you don’t mind buying a reconditioned water ionizer, you can check out this page and get 25%-30% off the regular retail price on these models of Ionways (Jupiter) water ionizers.

What do you think? Is alkaline water good for you or is it just another scam?