If you’ve heard of quinoa, juice detox, or coffee enema, then this is probably not the first time you come across the concept of alkaline water.
With a new diet trend spun out and fading almost every other year, it can be challenging to decide if alkaline water is a fad, or actually a healthy regimen to maintain in the long term. Perhaps if the latter is the case, you’d be interested in learning how to make alkaline water. That way, you won’t have to spend ridiculous money buying premium bottled water.
Hence the exploration we will make today.
What’s Alkaline Water?
The alkalinity of water, as well as that of many other liquids, is determined by the pH (potential of hydrogen) level. The higher the pH, the more alkaline or basic a liquid is, and vice versa.
The pH level of normal drinking water is usually seven. Alkaline water has a higher pH than seven, usually somewhere between eight and nine.
Alkaline water may come from springs or artesian wells in areas where there is a large amount of dissolved minerals. You can also produce it using very simple methods. Among which, the most effective is using a commercial or residential water ionizer. It’s worth noting, however, that there are claims that the water quality is not on par with that of alkaline water from natural sources.
Benefits and Risks of Alkaline Water Consumption
Like the case with other health trends, there is a debate around the benefits and risks associated with consuming alkaline water.
Alkaline Water Benefits
The hype of drinking alkaline water stems, as far as we know, from the acid-ash hypothesis of osteoporosis.
Alkaline water is believed to offer health benefits
As the hypothesis goes, foods that turn into acidic ash after burning in the metabolic process can make blood more acidic. This causes osteoporosis, a condition where our bones become weakened, fragile, and more prone to breaking. A high acidity also leads to faster aging and nourishes cancer cells, according to advocates.
This is the root of the alkaline diet, a diet consisting mostly of foods that, when burned, produce ash that has a basic pH. Followers of this diet believe it can improve your health and skin condition, slow down the aging process, and reduce the risk of cancer. Alkaline water is a widely accepted part of this diet.
The claimed benefits of alkaline water include:
- Hydration
- Easing digestion, as it softens your stool
- Improving skin health
- Aiding weight loss by increasing satiety and boosting your metabolism
- Detoxing, as it helps flush out acidic waste in your system
- Anti-aging
- Balancing your blood pH
- Preventing cancer, allegedly thanks to its ability to neutralize harmful free radicals
You may have noticed that most of these benefits are associated with staying hydrated by drinking normal water. That said, we have found some studies that suggest alkaline water may be the superior choice in certain cases.
In a study published in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition in 2016, Weidman et al. found that alkaline water was more effective than neutral water in reducing blood viscosity after exercise. Viscosity is, in layman’s term, the thickness and stickiness of blood. High viscosity is associated with increased risks of heart disease and stroke.
In a study in 2012, Koufman and Johnston suggested that pH 8.8 water might help with acid reflux. They found that the water denatured the agent pepsin, a digestive enzyme that adheres to and causes damage on laryngeal cells when someone has acid reflux. The alkaline water also acted as a buffer against stomach acid, which helps with the flux symptoms.
Those are small-scale studies, and more evidence would be necessary before we can confirm the benefits of high pH water. The good news is, if it may not be beneficial, alkaline water is still very safe to drink.
Of course, the overconsumption of it does come with side effects.
Risks From a High Alkalinity
The chances are slim, but metabolic alkalosis may occur if you drink too much alkaline water and take in an excessive amount of bicarbonate. Alkalosis can cause hand tremors, muscle twitching, and mild nausea. In more serious cases, it can lead to shock or coma. Luckily, it is extremely unlikely that one would drink enough alkaline water to get to this point.
When discussing the negative effects of basic water, overhydration is also a possibility. Overhydration, which may lead to confusion and seizures, happens when you drink too much of any liquid and your body doesn’t have enough time to get rid of it. This, again, is also not very common. As an adult with normal, healthy kidneys, you would have to drink more than six gallons a day before you can over-hydrate yourself.
Another possible non-healthwise side effect of drinking alkaline water is the overspending on bottled water. This, however, is reversible. There are many ways you can produce your own high pH water for drinking without bleeding the wallet.
How to Make Alkaline Water
Here are the 6 common ways you can turn your tap water into high pH water.
1. Baking Soda
With a high pH level, baking soda can alkalize drinking water.
With a pH level of 9, adding baking soda is one of the most popular ways to alkalize your drinking water.
The Canadian Society of Intestinal Research (CSIR) recommends 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda mixed in “at least 125 ml” (4 fluid ounces) of water for temporary relief from heartburn symptoms. For healthy adults, a popular recipe is ⅛ tablespoon (or 1/3 teaspoon) of baking soda in 8 fluid ounces of purified water. Stir or shake the mixture thoroughly so that the baking soda becomes completely dissolved, and you got your alkaline water ready for drinking.
Note, though, that baking soda may have side effects if consumed at large amounts. Also, baking soda is high in sodium. You may not like the taste of it in your water. Also, if you’re sensitive to sodium or are on a special diet that needs cutting down of salt, the benefits may not be worth the risks to try this method.
2. Lemon Juice
This may sound counterintuitive, but lemon juice is part of an alkaline diet. The juice, while highly acidic (typically having a pH of 2 or 3), is claimed to produce basic byproducts when metabolized. It was, in fact, found that lemon juice can increase urine pH. However, science has yet to confirm the real impact this juice has on your blood pH or the claimed alkalinity-related health benefits of this drink.
If you’d like to try this method, the good news is, diluted lemon juice is safe (and tasty) to drink. If anything, it’ll add some vitamin C, and a tart scent and taste to your drink. The aesthetic effects are similar to when you add lemon slices into your water jug.
Similar to the baking soda recipe, you can add ⅛ tablespoon of lemon juice in 8 fluid ounces of clean water. You may want to juice the lemons beforehand, and store the juice in the fridge for future use.
3. pH Drops
The use of pH drops is on the rise, as drinking alkaline water becomes a trend.
pH drops are liquids with highly concentrated minerals and electrolytes. You only need to add a couple drops to each glass of water to increase its pH. The liquids usually come in small handy bottles so you can carry them everywhere with you. One single bottle can improve the pH of hundreds of glasses of water. This makes these dops a favored choice compared to lemon juice or baking soda.
You can find the most popular pH drops here.
4. Water Filter Pitcher
A water filter pitcher is a jug with a water filtration function. The water you fill it with passes through some layer of filtration materials. Depending on the type of filter used, it can come out slightly alkalized. Note that not every pitcher filter can make high pH water.
The alkalization is rather only a byproduct. The main function of filter pitchers is to reduce the amount of chlorine and other impurities in the water. They can significantly improve the water smell and taste. They are also very affordable. The problem with them is that it takes a little while for the water to go through the filter cartridge. You have to wait a few minutes before the filtered water is available. Filter pitchers are thus not an ideal option for large households.
If you’re planning to buy a water filter pitcher, my buying guide and review of the best filter jugs might be helpful.
5. Water Filtration System
You can get alkaline water with a water filtration system
Household water filters not only remove various pollutants and contaminants like fluoride, chlorine and toxic heavy metals. Some of them are designed to make the water more alkaline.
Simple filters like multi-stage faucet-mount filters may include mineral balls among the layers of filtration materials for this purpose. On more advanced and complicated systems, this happens during remineralization. During this stage, a small amount of calcium and magnesium is released into the water to slightly increase the pH. This stage is popular on systems such as the under sink filter or the whole house filtration system, especially those of the reverse osmosis type.
6. Water Ionizer
The most efficient way to make alkaline water at home is to use a water ionizer/electrolyzer.
This type of machine works by taking advantage of the electrolysis phenomenon. It separates the negative and positive electrodes in the water. The machine returns two streams of water: alkaline in one stream, and acidic in the other.
The ionizer is highly effective in producing basic water. The icing on the cake is that it does so without introducing any substances into it. Beware, however, that some can be a little over-effective. They can the pH to up to 12, which might be a tad too high for drinking.
Compared to buying bottled water, ionizing machines are the more affordable option money-wise in the long term. They also reduce the need for plastic bottles, and are thus better for the environment. Unfortunately, this type of machine can be cost-prohibitive upfront to most people. They typically have a price tag of more than $1500 each.
Know of more effective ways to make alkaline water at home? Share your ideas with us!
I looked at the Weidman study. Seems like viscosity is reduced (thus thinned), not increased. See Fig 2, and note in the conclusions that they say ” Drinking high-pH ALK was shown to reduce systolic blood viscosity significantly…”
Hi Henry! That was a mistake on my part. Viscosity is indeed reduced, according to the study, which makes alkaline water potentially more beneficial. Thanks for pointing it out!
Great catch Henry. And an incredibly important one!!!
Excellent! Got good ideas about Alkaline Water.
Thanks for visiting, Shireen! I’m glad you found the article helpful.
Could you translate 1/8 Tablespoon into teaspoons?
Does 1/8 Tablespoon = 1 1/2 teaspoons?
Hi Theresa, ⅛ tablespoon is about ⅓ teaspoon.
1/8 Tablespoon = 3/8 teaspoon
Luna, thank you so much for this post. It answered several of my questions concerning the pH balance of the water I should be drinking. I would like to know if bottled lemon juice would have the same effect as fresh lemon juice. Thank you for your response.
Bottled lemon juice has been concentrated, boiled & remixed with water, before being sold. It is always best to use fresh lemons to juice. If you only have bottled lemon juice, then it’s better than [email protected]
Thanks, Yours is the first to actually give me the information I was looking for and not pitching me a product! I have an acid problem I take regular pills for but still crops up and drinking tap water has made me miserable for several years now. I can’t keep drinking soda to avoid it so I was looking for how to make my water actually drinkable. Thanks so much!
Thanks for your kind words Ama. Hope you found a sustainable solution to your acid problem!
I had bad acid reflux condition which I thought may have been leading to a problem with my gallbladder too. About three years ago I started drinking a mixture of about 20 ounces of water I half of a lemon juiced, and 1/2 teaspoon of bicarbonate with Stevia, honey, or a flavored no Cal water additive to sweeten the drink. I have not had to use medications like omeprazole since I started doing this. The first two weeks I made this drink about every other day. Then I went to about two times a week down to one time a week. I have not had a problem with my acid reflux or A center torso pain since. I also cut out fried food as much as possible and a lot of carbohydrates out of my diet. I found the medications sometimes make it worse shutting down the good acids Which in turn make your Body produce even more in your stomach.Creating a never ending cycle.
Great to know! This is the same reason why I’m researching this!
the best way is to use potassium -bicarbonate. K2CO3. SINCE OUR HEART IS WORKING WITH Na, K & Ca.
Imbalance of this by taking excess Na, Sodium weaken the Heart Muscles.So , please use K2CO3 , which is Potassium bicarbonate. It is expensive. $7 – 8 ? pound. in health store.
How to use ?? ( concentration?)
Saying lemon juice raises pH is the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard. Citric acid does not magically become a base. Does the phosphoric acid in soda also magically raise pH? How about the quinic acid in coffee? How about the hydrochloric acid in pools? Does that also raise the pH? How about you keep your stupid holistic medicine ideas to yourself and stop spreading misinformation. Please, in the future how about you focus on the ideas that are rooted in science and not some cherrypicked study. Every study so far has shown absolutely no benefits from drinking water with a slightly higher pH.
Science does verify that alkaline water can provide benefits for some people. Here is an example《Shanghai Journal of Preventive Medicine》
Preliminary observation on changes of blood pressure, blood sugar and blood lipids after using alkaline ionized drinking water
WANG Yu-lian (First Hospital of Shanghai Textile, Shanghai 200060, China)
Objective To observe the changes of blood pressure, blood sugar and blood lipids after alkaline ionized drinking water was used in cases of essential hypertension, diabetes mellitus (consists of mild degree of increased blood sugar) and hyperlipidaemia. Methods Blood pressure, blood sugar and blood lipids were assaied respectively pre-and 3 to 6 months after alkaline ionized water was drunk. Results The levels of blood pressure, blood sugar and blood lipids decreased significantly even to normal ranges after alkaline ionized water was drunk. Conclusions Alkaline ionized water may be used as one of the accessory therapeutic methods for essential hypertension, diabetes mellitus and hyperlipidaemia.
Zane, try to temper your views without the insults you only show your lack of reason and civility. You do not sound like an educated, science based researcher to be giving anyone advice.
Man!!? Forget the ph for just a moment! ..As Mr Zane clearly needs to reduce his ‘bitter’ levels!!? Perhaps one to many lemons after all!? Either way… I guess it’s better to “Ignor-rant(c)s” that appear to be exactly that!? A dollop of ice cream would most likely work for you. Good Day Pane!
Regurgitates
Maverexx
It should be noted that there is a significant difference between alkaline water, that which is made by chemical means which may be harmful to the body and ALKALYZED water which is made by passing an electrical current through the water thereby also creating a strong negative (-700 to -850) ORP (oxygen reduction principle). This negative ORP attracts the positivly charged free radicals in the body and starts breaking down the free radicals to the point where they the body is now able to flush them out naturally. This process is known as HOMEOSTASIS. It should also be pointed out that Alkalyzed water is also the most powerful antioxidant known to mankind. More pertinent information on ERW (electrolyzed reduced water) can be found by going to Google Scholar, which is a sub search engine of Google and typing in “Electrolyzed Reduced Water” or by visiting Pubmed.com and doing the same. Here you can find a great deal of information on what the Japanese have discovered to be the best kept secret the world has ever not known. My mom was working with this technology back in the early 60’s and had Russia not invaded our homeland (the Czech Republic, Czechoslovakia as known back then) which forced us to flee for obvious reasons, we would have been able to perfect this method of helping the body to heal itself with the assistance of alkalyzed water as it was having a staggeringly positive effect on her patients. Many hospitals throughout Asia, and Europe are utilizing this technology however it still remains relatively unknown in North America. Dor more information on this, please feel to contact me at [email protected] and I’ll do what I can to help. I hope this information was of value to you.
Yes! Thank you!
Curious about amount of ph water being okay with no negatives other than too much water: alkaline is in the acidic side of ph. Our bodies naturally process ph through kidney reduction filtering.
So, if we drink a large amount of ph intensive water are we stressing our kidneys, alkaline is toxic so how is this not an issue in replacement of a more purified treated water? Are you familiar with the amount of otc drugs that are flushed in public water supplies that municipality treatment can not test for? Just a thought. Consider birth control and its life cycle in the body. How it is expelled from our body. Ultimately where it ends. There are no tests for otc drugs currently being used in the water treatment plants are there?
Alkaline is the opposite of acidic. That’s the whole point.
Thank you so much for all the information. I find it very helpful. And yes I do agree, alkaline water is still foreign to American. My family is originally from Asia. A 3rd world Country in Asia but we are already advance on that particular practice. We have alkaline water dispensing station that you can buy from the distributor.
Grace please share the distributor.
Studies show Cancer cells CANNOT live in an Alkaline environment. Altho the FDA ( Fraud and Deception Agency ) does not want that information to get out. Lemons and limes counteract and become alkaline in the body. Read up friend
Please give more details how lemon juice creates alkaline environment. What was explained is not suffice
Norman you are correct. I have had 2 squamous cell carcinomas, one on my chest and one on my arm. I put baking soda and water on them (consistency of toothpaste) several times a day with a bandaid for a week to 10 days and they are gone. You can identify them by a white spot with a red ring around it. If left, the white part will grow conically. This had already started with one of them.
is it ok to mix baking soda with pure water and store in a plastic pitcher in the fridge? Or add baking soda to a pitcher of cold fresh brewed tea and store same method?
thanks for the article, what would be the recommended amount of baking soda per gallon of filtered water,,, thank you in advance,
Citrus juice in general does increase the pH of urine. Cranberry juice and Vitamin C both decrease the pH of urine, which in the face of a UTI (Urinary Tract Infection) helps kill the bugs in the urine. So, while lemon juice can assist the internal body/fluids to be more alkaline, if you have a UTI it should be avoided until the infection is cleared.
What will happen if u continue drinking alkaline water with a uti? Please reply dear
I believe you meant 1/8 TEASPOON to a 12 ounce glass of water. 1/8 TABLESPOON is a LOT of bicarb to ingest, especcially, if one is drinking a gallon of water a day! The rule of thumb is 1/2 teaspoon to a gallon of water. I’ve been consuming a gallon of adjusted water (per day) for years, and I believe it helps a lot. I’m 70, with 10 years of chronic Lyme, and this diet of alkaline water has helped me in many ways. It’s a simple task to order PH test strips (10.00) from Amazon and keep everything in order.
“especially”…would you fix that for me, please?
Wonderfully explained, thanks for the post.
Only one question is
is there any difference between alkaline water made with baking soda and alkaline water from water ioniser? Ph is same around 9.00 but otherwise can there be any major advantage or disadvantage of either of them?
I don’t think baking soda can ionize the water like a machine, but it can make it alkaline.
Is it safe for a pregnant woman to drink alkaline water?
Thankyou very much, useful information there!
Hello All you beautiful people
Ok I get confused so bare with me Please
Once in a while my Urine peepee Stinks really stinks
I drink a gallon of water a day .
I am ole lady
Now Whats is better for this stnky pee
lemons or Baking soda ?
I eat good no white carbs etc
very little beef mostly chick
not a drink
When I drink a bolthouse house Green juice or a Fruit one My Pee does not stink
why ??
my lowincome wont allow me to Buy these all the time
So whay can I do
please be kind
and remember I do not have the money to buy any gadget or tests or anything Baking Soda yes
I have that a lil old can of it
will that mattet ?
thank you
Stay safe
peace
Ps Remember if anyone “Demands Blind Obedience ” you be the fool not to peek
Hi az Rosie – your Not alone ! I never knew boathouse green juice doed that,,thankvyou . I’m in the same boat, ive been told a good cleaning choice Dove sensitive soap ,,but i too would love to see the answer. Hope this lil tidbit helps , cheers , be safe.
Thank you for this information will pass it on.
Never saw a reply to the comment of Tablespoon vs tsp – rather important. Also, would the same amount of lime juice be equivalent to lemon juice?
1/8th Tbs per 8oz means 2Tbs per gallon. Will try that mixture. If it tastes too funny, I’ll try the drops! I wonder if RealLemon packets do the trick. Might need some testing strips.
1 tablespoon = 3 teaspoons = 15ml
1 teaspoon = 5ml
1/8 tablespoon = 1.875 mls
1/8 tablespoon = 3/8 teaspoon