Water is necessary for life. It feeds our cells and is an essential part of all the human body functions. As we explored a few years ago in our second HealthBit, more than half of the human body is comprised of water. Water has a pH of 7. pH is a measure of the acidity/alkalinity of a substance, low numbers being more acidic and high numbers more basic, or alkaline. On the scale, which ranges from 0 to 14, 7 is neutral. Some of the more alkaline waters on the market have pHs of 8 and 9. Carbonated water, on the other hand, is significantly more acidic with a pH between 3 and 4. The one exception to this being sparkling mineral water (such as Perrier and San Pellegrino), which typically has a pH of 5 to 6.
Carbonated water is created by adding carbon dioxide to water under pressure. It used to be believed that carbonated water leaches calcium from the bones. Though this seems to have been disproven, the carbonation itself can cause gas and bloating in many people. In other studies, like this one, carbonated water has also been linked to an increase in tooth decay.The other problem with many seltzer products on the market is that they are infused with artificial sweeteners and other chemicals, which are known to be harmful to the body. If you want to read more about the good and bad of carbonated water feel free to visit this link.
Bottomline, it is necessary to consume half your bodyweight in ounces of water per day. For example, and 150 pound person should be taking in 75 ounces of water/day. If you’re looking at a basic water bottle, which contains 16.9 ounces of water, you would need 4 ½ of those/day to meet your minimum. If water is something that bores you after awhile, and you want to sub-out one of those glasses of water for a seltzer, or better yet a mineral water, it seems your body will still thrive. Really, though, there is nothing better for the human body than regular water, cleanly sourced of course 😉