Does alkaline water ACTUALLY boost health?
The new fancy “alkaline water” is all the rage – and everywhere from health influencers social pages to the fridge in your local gas station.
Proponents proclaim its benefits: increased hydration, support your body, improve weight loss, prevent cancer… it’s a miracle!
Does it work? *SHOULD* you drink alkaline water?
Truevelab TL;DR
(read ON below FOR Full Report)
Nope.
No, really.
Unless you have a very specific kind of acid reflux (read below), all drinking alkaline water does is make your urine alkaline (not necessary, unless you’re so sick you’re in the ICU with specific medical conditions) but does not affect your body’s pH whatsoever.
Your body has spent millennia developing exquisite mechanisms for pH over millions of years – well enough that boneheaded things we may do (like drink alkaline water) won’t have any impact.
In fact, drinking alkaline water? It’s just #basic. (haha. See what I did there?)
(Watch my IG response to a video on alkaline water here).
Want to see the evidence? Read on.
What is alkaline water?
Quick review of the pH scale (for anyone for whom high school chemistry was … cough… more than a few years ago).
PH and our Body
Extremes at both ends are bad – and can cause burns and other major harms.
But it’s not just the extremes that are harmful – in fact, our body can only operate at a verrrrrryy narrow range: 7.38 – 7.42, to be precise.
Outside of that range, cells start falling apart, proteins don’t work, our heart rhythm goes awry… it’s just not a good thing. In fact, pH below 6.8 or above 7.8? Not compatible with life.
BUT THERE ARE MANY THINGS AROUND US WITH DIFFERENT PH LEVELS
But, other things in this world are NOT in that same pH range. That includes foods: Bananas (6), maple syrup (5), coffee (5), vinegar (3), sodas (3), lemon juice (2).
Various medical conditions cause release of acid, throwing off your pH. Those include septic shock, seizures, infections, ketoacidosis from diabetes, various medications, and overdoses.
BODY’S MECHANISM TO PROTECT ACID/BASE LEVELS
SO, since there are so many things that CAN throw off our pH – AND since having a very specific pH is CRUCIAL to life, your body has precise mechanisms to exquisitely control blood pH.
- Stomach acid rapidly acidifies any foods we eat (yep, including alkaline water which is no match for the high acid level of the stomach)
- “Respiratory compensation” – if your pH levels get out of normal range, your brain immediately triggers your breathing rate to change, blowing off (or retaining) carbon dioxide, and normalizing your pH
- If that’s not enough, buffer chemicals in your blood soak up extra acid or base
- And if THAT’s not enough, the kidneys kick in, releasing excess acid or base into your urine.
- Of note, not all chemical pH within the body is the same. The blood runs at 7.4, but stomach acid has a pH of 1-2, while our intestines are more alkaline, ranging from 5-8. That’s because pH has very SPECIFIC roles in the body – and even more why your body regulates it so tightly.
CLAIMS CHECK ON ALKALINE WATER:
Total Bogus Zone
- Of note, the man who was the main champion of the alkaline diet went to jail for practicing medicine without actually having medical training or a license.
- The main study that most influencers cite, is not publicly available in English – we couldn’t even access it, and NO one has been able to reproduce their results.
- Fun fact: One study even looked to see if drinking alkalinized water helped participants stand on one leg with their eyes closed. [Hint: it didn’t help.]
One Potential Indication for Alkaline Water
- There is ONE place where it may help – in specific types of acid reflux. In these patients, drinking alkaline water, plus other lifestyle changes, may in some patients, be as effective as taking a prescription medication. So, if your doctor prescribes you lifestyle changes for reflux, you can consider this.
Bottom line
- NO benefit found from drinking alkaline water for cancer, osteoporosis, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, the microbiome, or hypertension.
- Alkaline water (or alkaline diets) has no impact on body pH.
- In fact, studies have shown that a high alkaline diet had NO impact on body pH, although it did alkalinize your pee.
Meaning that: drinking alkaline water is a great way to have very expensive, alkalinized pee, but that’s it. (Add this to the myths, busted- like the celery juice trend).
All my best,
- Dr. Darria
