Let's Talk BBQ
Recipes => Recipes => Healthy Alternatives => Topic started by: muebe on May 07, 2014, 07:16:08 AM
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Lately there has been talk about how important water is to the human body. This is very true. We are mostly made if water and would die quickly without it. So water is water right? Not exactly...
If you notice there are many new bottled waters made my big companies. Many of these waters are purified thru reverse osmosis. And yes they are pure. Stripped of every mineral and nutrient the water has. And unfortunately many people have grown accustomed to the taste of it.
Here is the problem. When you introduce pure water into your system this sounds good right? Well when you take science into the mix what do you think happens? Take brining for example. There is a scientific thing going on. A less salty solution is equalized with a more salty solution. So the pure water ends up robbing your body of minerals, nutrients, salts, calcium, etc.
A natural water with the minerals in it will not do this. You are not going to get a bunch of minerals from the water but at the same time the water is not going to rob your body of minerals either.
Arrowhead is an example of natural spring water. The taste is different for a reason.
So everyone out there be water wise. Your body will thank you for it ;)
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Funny seeing someone from SoCal talking about water. Do you steal bottled water from NoCal too? :D
Just kidding Mike. That is good info.
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Funny seeing someone from SoCal talking about water. Do you steal bottled water from NoCal too? :D
Just kidding Mike. That is good info.
Funny you say that Billy.
They currently have plans to build de-salination plants up and down California. We have an unlimited source of water right next to us. It is about time they started actually thinking about solving our water problem. After all Southern California is a natural desert.
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I agree 100% Mike! For 20 years I had a R.O. filter system at home, that is until I found out my body needed the minerals that that system was taking out. I have replaced it with an Aquasana filter system that is much cheaper initially to purchase and much more economical to maintain while giving my family a healthy water supply. DO NOT TRUST THE GOVERNMENT TO SUPPLY YOUR FAMILY WITH SAFE AND HEALTHY WATER! The government is broken, they have been lowering the standards of allowable heavy metals and pollutants in public water systems for over 25 years.
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Funny seeing someone from SoCal talking about water. Do you steal bottled water from NoCal too? :D
Just kidding Mike. That is good info.
Funny you say that Billy.
They currently have plans to build de-salination plants up and down California. We have an unlimited source of water right next to us. It is about time they started actually thinking about solving our water problem. After all Southern California is a natural desert.
Yep, but some stupid snail darter fish will be somewhere near the intakes and y'all will have to shut them down.
Muebe, move to Alabama!! You need to leave that part of the country
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Good points Muebe.
I see Dallas is it? is taking out the flouride,works for me!
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Arrowhead is an example of natural spring water. The taste is different for a reason.
That's good to know, we have been drinking Arrowhead for many years. ;)
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Arrowhead is an example of natural spring water. The taste is different for a reason.
That's good to know, we have been drinking Arrowhead for many years. ;)
The arrowhead loading spot is down the hill from me.There is a creek that flows into their property.I dont know if they use creek,spring or well water,or whether its treated or not.But you can play and swim in the creek.For sure its Mtn water,and we do have really good Mtn water up here.
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Arrowhead is an example of natural spring water. The taste is different for a reason.
That's good to know, we have been drinking Arrowhead for many years. ;)
The arrowhead loading spot is down the hill from me.There is a creek that flows into their property.I dont know if they use creek,spring or well water,or whether its treated or not.But you can play and swim in the creek.For sure its Mtn water,and we do have really good Mtn water up here.
I just hope nobody is peeing in the creek. ::)
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I am going to take a different position than some of you on this matter. But - it is only because I have experienced "mineral enriched" water that darn near killed me. Not kidding a bit. ( Not going into it here...PM me if you want my files on Uranium in well water - and why you may not know it or other heavy metals are there - and the health risks.)
If All you drank was water, and did not take in anything else - then, fine...I would agree with the concern about "over-purified" water via Reverse Osmosis. But - that is not the case. anything else that you consume - contains minerals, as well as other nutrients. ANY sodium, magnesium, calcium ( and a host of other minerals) provide electrolytes which encourage or allow for adsorption an utilization of said food intake. All you need to do is ensure that you have good dietary nutrition. I know that there are some of us that joke about "no greens" - but I assume that you also know of their value to your health - chiefly iron and other essentials.
What I have learned, and in a very hard manner, financially and my health - is that the ONLY way to ensure that you are consuming "clean" water is via Reverse Osmosis. Not even distillation can isolate and remove some VOC's or petroleum components, agricultural pesticides, etc..... And - ANY mechanical or even ionic filter cannot differentiate and separate all of the "other molecules". No filter can identify ions that are good -from those that are bad and separate the good water from the bad and send you only the good water.. It just is not possible at this point in a filter that will fit in a home.
Unless - you "strip" everything from the water. And that is only accomplished in a practical way with R.O. Specifically, a TFC membrane equipped R.O. system, with a pressure pump to maximize the efficiency of the system. R.O. does not work most efficiently at house pressures. As well -- you can set up an R.O. to be as efficient as a 1- to - 1 product to reject ratio.
This is much better than the old 4 to 1 systems from a few years ago.
There are numerous resources that I would encourage each of you to read and research from. But, here is something that we ALL know: You cannot know what is in your water. Because - it changes from day to day. You cannot control, or know when crops are sprayed up-stream from your well's aquifer. Or - that of your city or county water resource, whether that is a river, lake or well. And - because you cannot control that on the input side of the equation - and even the best municipal systems are fluid - meaning, constant thru put ...They cannot stop to test every gallon sent to your home. It is not possible. Nor - do the drinking water labs where your water may come from via a city or county water system or their techs have the equipment at their disposal to test for all of the pollutants (including naturally occurring heavy metals) that can and do occur in "normal" tap water. Do not bee fooled into thinking that your water came "from the mountains" - so it is "above" any pollution. Underground aquifers that feed rivers and wells do not all flow downhill - as based on surface topography.
In the 1970's the philosophy about water purification was "The answer to pollution is dilution". Folks - that just is no longer true. That world is dead and gone. We have over polluted that only resource that we cannot do without.....And - if you doubt what I write here, then ponder this for a moment:
Every time a toilet flushes - there is not just the high probability but a certainty that hormones, antibiotics, anti-depressants and other mood modifiers, and ADD meds. are going directly into the plant that processes your water. They cannot be all completely removed by municipal filtration means and methods. And - if you are on a well - you have even LESS potential filtration, other than layers of what ever geologic rock formation and soils are between you and the source of pollution.
Don't lull yourself into thinking that because you can't see, smell or taste anything - that the water must be good. I will assure you, it can kill you and be great tasting at the same time.
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That was an epic post even by your standards Tee. :-)
Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk
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That was an epic post even by your standards Tee. :-)
Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk
Thanks Chris. It is as factual as I can make it without sounding fanatical. I have a ton of data, and medical records to support what I posted. As well, I wrote an article on water quality for a Koi magazine, and some other aquaculture based journals. Little did I know that information might help me one day. It did....
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Tim you make good points and I have personally talked to you about your water problem. I can agree that heavy metals are bad in anything. But RO systems strip everything out... even the good.
There are brands that purify then add minerals back into the water. There are also filter blocks available for RO systems that will add minerals back into the water before it hits your glass.
And yes if your diet is mineral rich it is less of an issue but I stress that they push for heavy water consumption now so the more RO water you drink the more leeching occurs.
My point is that more and more people are buying the purified water that has no healthy minerals. Some people complain about the taste of mineral water though it is better for your body.
And the PH levels in mineral water is closer to our own levels. Acidic drinks like coffee and soda can throw our PH levels off. RO water can also contribute to that.
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It is so easy to add back what we need, that I don't believe the risks out way the minor inconvenience of adding back minerals and electrolytes. And - that is because we can't know or control the "upstream" inputs.
R.O. is comparable to distilled water. It is sterile. But- there are many products that are made for adding back essentials. There are add-on filters...tho I am not sure of how well they do as compared to just eating good quality foods.
As for "leaching"...I am not sure I understand the term in this usage. R.O. does not draw or suck out minerals from your body. It just does not replenish any that you lose. Again, we are talking as if you are not getting any nutrition tho. The value of "mineral enriched" water should be questioned as to it's quantity of the nutrients that you need. Hard to know - as everyone is different, so we ind of "fudge" in favor of the more-is-better mentality. Maybe....maybe not. I think it depends not he individual needs. Age, activity level, medical conditions.
Mineral water is good - unless you have a tendency for kidney stones... ;D The carbonated drinks - including mineral water that is carbonated are of a low PH ( carbonic acid dissolved in water is...CO2) Yet - we are also told that drinking a little apple cider vinegar is good for your PH, and causes it to buffer up...Interesting, tho I am not sure I can say that I agree with the reasoning.
Our body PH is more complex than most of us think. The research that I remember shows clearly that we garner far more calcium that is bio-available from dark leafy greens - than from cow's milk, or "ground up rocks" or chalk ;D - of which most vitamins are comprised. Orange, tomato, and a myriad of other fruit/vegetable juices are acidic too. yet - there are cases for us drinking them. Even beets and cow's milk can cause you to lose calcium - if not consumed in small amounts...
So - it is all about balance in consumption. But - with water, as we know it is THE most important item in our diet. And it is the most polluted. I can add back what I need. But - I can't take the junk out of the glass....Unless I strip it all.
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RO water is pretty close to the 0 TDS of distilled water. This link might interest some of you...
http://www.mercola.com/article/water/distilled_water.htm
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Great topic ;D
Q; when I am at work all that is available to drink is bottled water. What should I be doing?
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Great topic ;D
Q; when I am at work all that is available to drink is bottled water. What should I be doing?
It won't kill you to drink purified bottle water but spring water or water enriched with minerals is a better choice. Purified water is better than no water ;)
What brought this subject up to me is we had a company nutritionist come into our work and talk about hydration. He works with many athletes and made a very convincing presentation. He showed us the different drinks when consume and how much acid they contain. He also talked about drinking reverse osmosis water versus water with minerals. The effects they have on the body and such.
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Many moons ago I used to laugh at people who would pay for bottled water when you can get it for free! I think Perrier might have been the first ... Now bottled water is a multi-billion dollar industry. At home we have an RO system and in the RV I use a filter and then use a Brita pitcher to filter it some more.
Going to start thinking twice about all the RO and filtered water we drink. Points about the minerals a human body requires are well taken.
By the way Mike - I totally agree with desalination plants. They should have been built decades ago.
I know it's not your fault but Southern California has been draining us dry here in Northern California and it's really causing havoc with our Rivers and Delta system. The salt water intrusion into the Delta is getting worse every year. Also the politicians would rather see some useless bait fish survive at the cost of ruining our farming industry in the San Joaquin Valley - commonly known in some circles as the bread basket of the World.
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Kakabeka Crystal Spring Water:
They are about 1/2 mile from me and take their water from the same ground I live on. Think I will just use my well water. I have good water on my property and refuse to buy it. In the summer when the windows are open you can here the company starting up at 6 AM, all the sirens go off till they clear them. Don't need a alarm clock >:(
Company description
Northern Crystal Spring Water is a family operation that was
established in 1984 to fill a market need for bottled water in
Northwestern Ontario. With a 16 year background in the beverage
industry president Phil Moorey had the knowledge and skills that
are required to produce a quality bottled water. From the simple
beginning of seeing a market need for a quality product, Phil &
Katherine Moorey have carefully expanded their market base to
serving the needs of over 400 retail, industrial and homes in
Northwestern Ontario. Their present facility is a state of
the art bottling plant employing 7 people and capable of
supplying 1500 cases per day.. The product line consists of
500ml, 1.5litre, 9.5 litre and 20 litre dispenser bottles of
spring water. The water is sterilized using various stages
of microfiltration and ozone to produce a quality product of
exceptional shelf life and purity much appreciated by today's
demanding consumers. Its this same appreciation of quality
and legendary taste that has allowed Northern Crystal to enter
the American market and fill a niche for a premium Canadian
drinking water.
Another important part of the market is supplying, and serving
the needs of large commercial and industrial customers. After
an initial on site inspection to best determine a customers
needs, a training program is provided to staff the best way to
use the service for their drinking water. Regular follow up
inspections and periodic reports of the microanalysis of the
water assure everyone that they are getting top quality drinking
water.
Northern Crystal is inspected by Federal, Provincial and Regional
authorities which exceeds all requirements for bottled water. An
added plus is that we are one of the few bottlers that meet the
requirements of the Jewish community and are privileged to be
called Kosher. This is another assurance of the quality and care
that goes into our product.
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The "Mercola" bunch is not a credible source of information. Their blogs are all an attempt to sell you their stuff. Keep in mind that I own a medical equipment company - and have access to a lot of doctors and nurses. And - Because I now have to have quarterly blood, urine, and hair test - as well as cancer screenings. I unfortunately am more familiar than I would like to be with this specific issue. I have to send of my water to be tested regularly to make certain the filter system is removing the Uranium.
And - not so coincidentally ...my blood tests have improved since converting to ONLY R.O. water Why? Because the otherwise, state test and approve water well was poisoning - and preventing me from adsorbing much needed and otherwise good minerals.
Again - what I am telling you is that - like you, when I did not believe I had a problem...I bought into the same 1/2 of the story that most folks get told. But, it is not as plain and "matter of fact as your nutritionist might have thought. I would happily forward an 87 page file to him that contains information from various federal and state agencies - that oddly ( and angrily..) enough is available - but NOT brought to the public's attention. If you ask - sure, they can tell you about problems but I suppose to prevent public panic, lawsuits, etc...it is not something that is "common knowledge".
Kakabeka Crystal Spring Water:
They are about 1/2 mile from me and take their water from the same ground I live on. Think I will just use my well water. I have good water on my property and refuse to buy it. In the summer when the windows are open you can here the company starting up at 6 AM, all the sirens go off till they clear them. Don't need a alarm clock >:(
Company description
Northern Crystal Spring Water is a family operation that was
established in 1984 to fill a market need for bottled water in
Northwestern Ontario. With a 16 year background in the beverage
industry president Phil Moorey had the knowledge and skills that
are required to produce a quality bottled water. From the simple
beginning of seeing a market need for a quality product, Phil &
Katherine Moorey have carefully expanded their market base to
serving the needs of over 400 retail, industrial and homes in
Northwestern Ontario. Their present facility is a state of
the art bottling plant employing 7 people and capable of
supplying 1500 cases per day.. The product line consists of
500ml, 1.5litre, 9.5 litre and 20 litre dispenser bottles of
spring water. The water is sterilized using various stages
of microfiltration and ozone to produce a quality product of
exceptional shelf life and purity much appreciated by today's
demanding consumers. Its this same appreciation of quality
and legendary taste that has allowed Northern Crystal to enter
the American market and fill a niche for a premium Canadian
drinking water.
Another important part of the market is supplying, and serving
the needs of large commercial and industrial customers. After
an initial on site inspection to best determine a customers
needs, a training program is provided to staff the best way to
use the service for their drinking water. Regular follow up
inspections and periodic reports of the microanalysis of the
water assure everyone that they are getting top quality drinking
water.
Northern Crystal is inspected by Federal, Provincial and Regional
authorities which exceeds all requirements for bottled water. An
added plus is that we are one of the few bottlers that meet the
requirements of the Jewish community and are privileged to be
called Kosher. This is another assurance of the quality and care
that goes into our product.
Nice...but you do not know that you have "good water"....what I am saying is that if you look at WHAT is tested for - vs - what OTHER known pollutants occur regularly - you may want to send your water for a one-time test to a lab ( I use the U. of GA. Soil and Water Test Lab ) to look for heat metals, radionuclides, and petroleum distillates
Many moons ago I used to laugh at people who would pay for bottled water when you can get it for free! I think Perrier might have been the first ... Now bottled water is a multi-billion dollar industry. At home we have an RO system and in the RV I use a filter and then use a Brita pitcher to filter it some more.
Going to start thinking twice about all the RO and filtered water we drink. Points about the minerals a human body requires are well taken.
If you are not eating or drinking ANY thing else...then you have reason to be concerned. IF you are a distance runner - sure, make certain you have electrolytes in your drink.
By the way Mike - I totally agree with desalination plants. They should have been built decades ago.
Interesting...Of course you DO understand that desalinization *IS* Reverse Osmosis...? :D
I know it's not your fault but Southern California has been draining us dry here in Northern California and it's really causing havoc with our Rivers and Delta system. The salt water intrusion into the Delta is getting worse every year. Also the politicians would rather see some useless bait fish survive at the cost of ruining our farming industry in the San Joaquin Valley - commonly known in some circles as the bread basket of the World.
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The Mercola bunch might not be credible but they are not the only ones who stated this information. There are many different books, studies, etc for both sides. The thing is that I understand how brining works. I know how osmosis works and if you are ingesting water that has no calcium or minerals in it then it will pull minerals from your body to equalize just like what happens when brining. And you can buy the pool test strips for PH and test for yourself. You will be surprised how different each bottled water is and how close mineral water is to our natural PH level. I copied and pasted some more information below from a website that promotes and sells juicers...
http://www.discountjuicers.com/healthywater.html
Two very negative things happen when we consume water that has been stripped of its natural minerals. First‚ because de-mineralized water contains more hydrogen it is an acid with a pH below seven. Any time we consume an acid substance our body will pull minerals from our teeth and bones to produce bicarbonate in order to neutralize the acid. Second‚ it has been proven that when our body fluids become more acid than alkaline the production of free radicals increases‚ causing increased cancer risks. Many studies suggest that cancer cells can only grow in an acid environment. This theory seems to be supported by the fact that around the world the areas where people live the longest most disease free lives are the areas that have the most alkaline water‚ water with the highest mineral content.
Reverse Osmosis and Distillation were first developed over 40 years ago for the printing and photo processing industries‚ which require mineral free water. Because of the popularity and demand for home water treatment products many companies have marketed these products as "state-of-the-art" drinking water systems‚ which they simply are not. Often these products are marketed by using a demonstration that measures the TDS (total dissolved solids) and implies that this measurement shows the systems effectiveness at removing contaminants. TDS meters measure the dissolved minerals in water‚ primarily calcium and magnesium‚ and have little or nothing to do with contaminant levels.
Distillation and reverse Osmosis are not very effective at removing synthetic chemicals. Distillation removes things based on their relative boiling point. Virtually all synthetic chemicals boil at a lower temperature than water and therefore are vaporized and condensed along with the water in a distillation process. Reverse Osmosis removes things based on molecular size. Virtually all synthetic chemicals are molecularly smaller than water and therefore cannot be effectively removed by reverse osmosis..
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Nice...but you do not know that you have "good water"....what I am saying is that if you look at WHAT is tested for - vs - what OTHER known pollutants occur regularly - you may want to send your water for a one-time test to a lab ( I use the U. of GA. Soil and Water Test Lab ) to look for heat metals, radionuclides, and petroleum distillates
I test my water once a year, you would be stupid not to. All you need to do is a little research on the Walkerton water Tragedy to know nobody is safe. My water is just fine. My well is not the best for recovery but I have never run out of pure fresh crystal water. :P
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I just drink Houston tap water
and beer ;)
I'm with you on the beer, solves all the problems. ;)
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Nice...but you do not know that you have "good water"....what I am saying is that if you look at WHAT is tested for - vs - what OTHER known pollutants occur regularly - you may want to send your water for a one-time test to a lab ( I use the U. of GA. Soil and Water Test Lab ) to look for heat metals, radionuclides, and petroleum distillates
I test my water once a year, you would be stupid not to. All you need to do is a little research on the Walkerton water Tragedy to know nobody is safe. My water is just fine. My well is not the best for recovery but I have never run out of pure fresh crystal water. :P
What I have been trying to convey here is that if you are getting the standard water test - it falls very short of telling you some things that you really should know about your water source. The standard tests done by the sates/provinces are very simple -hardness, ph, arsenic, lead, nitrate, etc. But - they don't even check for some things that will harm you - as in cut your life short. Not conspiratorial - just fact.
I have tried to use my example of dam near dying to explain - and exemplify the veracity of import this issue holds. If you are not having the DETAILED test done that I have outlined above - you may be fine....but if you have had incidents in your area of "clusters" of health problems that were similar - it may be worth spend a little money to find out.
After, it isn't what we know that gets us...It is what you don't know ;)
Not trying to fear monger. I am trying to share real world experience with you.
So - I have worn out trying, and quite done. I do not want to alienate anyone -but, I hope you understand my motivation. I care about everyone here, and feel a moral obligation to you all :)
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I drank warm water from the hose as a kid. Explains a lot.
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I drank warm water from the hose as a kid. Explains a lot.
Pappy was that you 20 ft down the hose kinking it when I was trying to get a drink? :D
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Drink beer, much simpler. If you need enrichment, add a shot of Jack Daniels.
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Nice...but you do not know that you have "good water"....what I am saying is that if you look at WHAT is tested for - vs - what OTHER known pollutants occur regularly - you may want to send your water for a one-time test to a lab ( I use the U. of GA. Soil and Water Test Lab ) to look for heat metals, radionuclides, and petroleum distillates
I test my water once a year, you would be stupid not to. All you need to do is a little research on the Walkerton water Tragedy to know nobody is safe. My water is just fine. My well is not the best for recovery but I have never run out of pure fresh crystal water. :P
What I have been trying to convey here is that if you are getting the standard water test - it falls very short of telling you some things that you really should know about your water source. The standard tests done by the sates/provinces are very simple -hardness, ph, arsenic, lead, nitrate, etc. But - they don't even check for some things that will harm you - as in cut your life short. Not conspiratorial - just fact.
I have tried to use my example of dam near dying to explain - and exemplify the veracity of import this issue holds. If you are not having the DETAILED test done that I have outlined above - you may be fine....but if you have had incidents in your area of "clusters" of health problems that were similar - it may be worth spend a little money to find out.
After, it isn't what we know that gets us...It is what you don't know ;)
Not trying to fear monger. I am trying to share real world experience with you.
So - I have worn out trying, and quite done. I do not want to alienate anyone -but, I hope you understand my motivation. I care about everyone here, and feel a moral obligation to you all :)
Thanks but there is nothing wrong with my water
(http://www.bloodyloud.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/meyer.jpg)
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Thanks but there is nothing wrong with my water
(http://www.bloodyloud.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/meyer.jpg)
ROTFLMFAO :P
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Tee,can you put in a link where you test your water,and cost? I cant find it.
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By the way Mike - I totally agree with desalination plants. They should have been built decades ago.
Interesting...Of course you DO understand that desalinization *IS* Reverse Osmosis...? :D
I know but here in California we're experiencing the worst drought in 100 years! We need more fresh water every year.
Also, like Mike said in an earlier post, much of California is a natural desert which needs a zillion gallons of water. Because of the weather California grows massive amounts of food for the world but it needs water ... which without getting political is too often diverted for other uses ...