Drinking water is crucial for your health and essentially keeps you alive but drinking the wrong water could be doing you all types of harm.
Thought Grade 9 science wasn’t useful for everyday life? Think again. It turns out at least one lesson could save your life – or at least make you healthier and happier. As we all know, staying hydrated keeps you looking and feeling good. There’s nothing like the glug-glug-glug from your cold bottle of water on a hot summer day. You are probably asking yourself ‘What does science have to do with the water I drink and why should I care about it?’ Well, it turns out the pH levels in the water you drink may be affecting you in all the wrong ways. Here’s everything you need to know…
What is pH?
You may [vaguely] remember experimenting with the pH levels in a range of everyday substances with slips of paper in the classroom. Either way, don’t worry, we’ll give you a quick crash course.
In a nutshell: pH measures electrically charged particles in materials that will ultimately tell you whether something is acidic or alkaline. The scale ranges from 0 to 14: if it has a pH of less than 7 it is acidic, alkaline if it has a pH of 8 or more, and 7 is neutral.
pH and your drinking water
So, why does knowing whether water is acidic, alkaline or neutral matter to you? The short answer is, it’s extremely important when you consider that the pH levels in water can be affected by chemicals.
Water from around the world will have varying pH levels based on weather patterns, human interference and natural processes. If water has a very low or high pH, it could be a sign of possible pollution. Water with a pH of 6.5 to 8.5 is consider safe to drink. Alkaline water that is higher than the “safe” pH range isn’t necessarily unsafe to drink, but it’s often not pleasant as it often has a bitter taste and smell, and it can cause water pipes to become encrusted. Acidic water, however, will actually corrode or even dissolve metals over time, just imagine what it would do to your body in the long run?
How does the pH levels affect you?
Our bodies are naturally alkaline and extreme changes to our pH levels could be a sign that something is wrong. If your pH levels are too high or too low, it can put added stress on your organs which could lead to reduced bone density and issues with the liver or heart.
Studies have shown that, because our bodies are naturally alkaline, maintaining a slightly alkaline diet could be key to good health as it can reduce your risk of vitamin D deficiency, diabetes, arthritis, low bone density, and more. And, if you want to lower your acidity, water with a good pH is best.
The final takeaway
Of course, it’s important to stay hydrated throughout the day, but we need to be more aware of the water we consume. Where is it coming from? How has it been treated? What is its pH level? That’s why we recommend a sustainable, healthy solution.
Using an innovative model of bottling water produced from the air, Aquasky offers a renewable and sustainable source of pure bottled water. Started in 2017, the Paarl-based water company created the first atmospheric water generating plant in South Africa which allows it to collect water from the air. “The main benefit is we’re not depleting any of the earth’s resources,” says founder and managing director Brendan Williamson. “We’re not using the aquifers or pumping out of springs or rivers. It’s from the air and very sustainable.”
Another benefit though is that they’ve created a “pure” water solution. The water goes through a rigorous filtration process down to 0.2 of a micron to ensure purity and is sterilised through ultraviolet light. “Quality-wise our water is extremely pure and we’ve got a very good pH of between 7,7 to 8.3,”,says Brendan.
They also offer a range of eco-friendly bottle solutions from their 100% compostable plant-based bottles made from sugar cane to their recycled, refillable upscale glass range.
Whether you are spending the day at the beach, working out at the gym or taking care of hungry customers at your restaurant, make sure you are putting your health and the earth first by choosing Aquasky.
