ANTIOXIDANTS AND ALKALINE WATER.
Alkaline water produced by a water ionizer can be a great source of antioxidants and other minerals. Hard water, which is found in many areas will contain large amounts of calcium and magnesium, and will likely have many other minerals in it as well, some of those minerals, such as zinc and manganese, are antioxidants.
While the filters in an ionizer work to reduce the levels of many substances found in tap water, they allow useful amounts of minerals to pass through. A water ionizer is the best way to get antioxidant minerals from water because they concentrate beneficial minerals in drinking water while rejecting harmful ones.
Water ionizers use a process called electrodialysis to divide water into two different streams, one alkaline, and one acid. The process concentrates essential dietary minerals on the alkaline side, while harmful elements are concentrated on the acid side. Then, the electrodialytic process causes the concentrated alkaline minerals to become ionized by freeing up hydroxyl ions from the water, which then instantly combine with any minerals present to form ionic minerals in their antioxidant form, which are highly bioavailable.
ALKALINE WATER CAN BE A GREAT SOURCE OF IRON AND ZINC
Vegetables have long been recognized as a source of vitamins and minerals, but research is revealing that vegetables may make it difficult for the body to absorb some essential dietary minerals. Scientists have found that antioxidants in plants, known as polyphenols, can interfere with the absorption of iron and zinc. Some plant acids, such as phytic acid will bind to iron and zinc making them unavailable to absorb in the intestines.
Some health experts have speculated that the binding effect of polyphenols may be the cause of mineral deficiencies in some people’s diets. For vegetarians and vegans, alkaline water can provide useful amounts of bioavailable iron and zinc in their diet because it contains no polyphenols.
MINERAL ANTIOXIDANTS FOUND IN ALKALINE WATER
Immune functions fail first if you don’t get enough antioxidant minerals
Some of the minerals found in drinking water supplies virtually everywhere have proven antioxidant effects in the body. Known antioxidant minerals commonly found in water include: copper, manganese, selenium, and zinc.
If they are present in your source water, alkaline water produced by an ionizer will have trace amounts of the above antioxidant minerals in it. The good news is – you only need trace amounts of these minerals in your diet! Drinking water is the ideal way to deliver minerals, because the body can only absorb small amounts of minerals at a time. This is one of the major drawbacks of mineral supplements, they deliver a lot of minerals, but only a small amount is actually absorbed. Minerals from supplements that can’t be absorbed are excreted in the feces.
HOW TO USE ALKALINE WATER FOR MINERAL SUPPLEMENTATION
It is incredibly easy to supplement your mineral intake with alkaline water. Simply drink alkaline water throughout your day each glass of water you drink will give you some minerals. Health experts recommend you drink eight 500 ml glasses of water each day to maintain proper hydration. By drinking alkaline water, you not only stay hydrated, but you add essential minerals to your diet. Drinking alkaline water may just be one of the easiest and most effective things you can do to maintain and improve your health.
References
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Burk, R. Selenium, an antioxidant nutrient. Nutrition in Clinical Care. Apr 2002 5(2): 75 – 79 (indexed for MEDLINE) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12134713
Penn State (2010, August 23). Polyphenol antioxidants inhibit iron absorption.ScienceDaily. Retrieved July 15, 2011, from http://www.sciencedaily.com /releases/2010/08/100823152309.htm
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