By Bob McCauley, CNC, MH

By Bob McCauley, CNC, MH

1.  Powerful Antioxidant – Reverses the aging process.

Alkaline Ionized Water has an abundance of electrons and a negative charge called Oxidation Reduction Potential (ORP).  Electrons are free radical scavengers and a negative ORP reduces the oxidation of the body, which slows down the aging process.  ORP is the most important term we can learn regarding health because everything we put in the body either increases or decreases oxidation in the body.  Therefore, everything we consume either reverses or accelerates the aging process.

2.  Balances Body pH

Alkaline Ionized Water has a pH of 9.5 – 10 which helps bring the pH of the body up to neutral (7.0) where it should be.

3.  Superior Hydrator

Alkaline Ionized Water has very small water molecule clusters that are able to hydrate the body’s tissue and its cells much more effectively than water that has not been ionized.

4.  Powerful Detoxifier

As the small water molecule clusters hydrate the tissue and fill them with water they push out all the things that don’t belong in the tissue, which are commonly referred to as toxins.

5.  Enhances Mineral Absorption

Minerals that have been ionized have extra electrons that make them better able to be absorbed by the body.

6.  Provides the body with oxygen

Once the hydroxyl ions (oxygen molecule with an extra electron) have donated their electrons to free radicals what is left over is a lot of dissolved oxygen that is available for the body to use.  Oxygen is one of our most important nutrients.

7.   Gives you lots of energy!

The extra oxygen that it provides to the body translates into more mental alertness and more energy.

8.  Helps prevent disease

When we Hydrate, Alkalize and Detoxify with Alkaline Ionized Water our body it is in a much better position to heal itself.

I absolutely adore Ionized Water. I wrote the bible of Alkaline Ionized Water. I have since I consumed my first glass of it over 10 years ago. And because I am such a strong proponent of Ionized Water, I’m often asked what it has done for me personally since I began drinking it in 1995. Simply put, the effects on my body have been dramatic and profound, even though these positive changes occurred quite subtly. That is what everyone can expect from drinking Ionized Water: subtle yet profound changes in their health, all of them positive.

I was already drinking a gallon of conventional water (spring and tap water) every day when I began consuming Ionized Water. I also was a cooked-food vegetarian so I did not suffer the detoxification effects of Ionized Water, which are extremely powerful. Only those who are quite toxic will notice these strong effects. That’s not to say I didn’t detoxify because I did and it was a deep detoxification. I was a 95% cooked foodist at the time so I had a lot of cleansing to do. I did not exhibit the more brutal symptoms of detoxification that some do. However, we should all be cautious when we first begin drinking Ionized Water. Many people who believe they are healthy, including vegetarians and fitness gurus, suffer from the intense detoxification properties of Ionized Water, which are like none other known. We must respect the power of tiny water molecule clusters because of their penetrating and cleansing properties.

I did get a few rashes in the early days as toxins came out of my body, but they were minor and I effectively treated them with Acid Ionized Water, which is excellent for treating rashes. I started by drinking Ionized Water at the highest level (pH 9.5 – 9.9) and consumed at least a gallon of it every day. Now I drink 1.5 – 2.0 gallons of Ionized Water each day and I have never felt better in my life. You’ll never have true energy and vitality without properly hydrating your body throughout each day. The subject of water should be the first chapter of every medical text book.

Since I was not ill when I first started consuming Ionized Water, I cannot claim that Ionized Water cured me of anything, although it has helped many others with a plethora of health conditions. Many people have written to me over the years testifying to the innumerable ways that Ionized Water has improved their health (Appendix 7: Testimonials). I have not kept them all, but if I were to have included them in this book, they would have easily doubled its size.

My body pH is balanced around 7.0 where it ought to be. My muscles are more relaxed because much of the lactic acid waste has been washed from my muscle tissue. I am 53 and do not ache in any of my joints. I am undoubtedly more limber, oxygenated, detoxified and better hydrated than any other time in my life.

My body’s cells are bathed in the negative ORP of Ionized Water, which helps extinguish the oxidation of my body. Thus, I am retarding, if not reversing, the aging process at a cellular level.

I was in my late thirties when I started drinking Ionized Water and the many years of accumulated acid waste deposited throughout the human body takes months, even years to remove. It will take a lot of water and lot of time to fully accomplish the goal of complete pH balance and detoxification throughout my body. But I could not have so easily gotten as far as I have without the daily consumption of Ionized Water.

Colds and flus have completely disappeared from my life since I began drinking Ionized Water. If I do feel a cold or sore throat coming on, I find that drinking a few extra glasses of Ionized Water quickly puts it at bay by hydrating and alkalizing my body so it can better fight the invasion.

Ionized Water is best used as a preventative health measure, although its healing properties are to be greatly respected as well. Water alone is the body’s greatest ally for healing, better than anything a physician could possibly do for it. Ionized Water has many times the healing properties of conventional water. However, it is the body and only the body that is capable of healing itself of any disease. All we can do is provide it with the right ammunition so it can provide us with health. Ionized Water should definitely be in the arsenal we provide to the body for its defenses.



Bob McCauley, CNC, MH

Dr. Mercola recently interviewed Dr. Gerald Pollack, of the University of Washington where he is a professor of bioengineering.  He has developed a theory of water that has been called revolutionary. The researcher has spent the past decade convincing worldwide audiences that water is not actually a liquid.  Pollack explained his fascinating theory in this 32nd Annual Faculty Lecture which can be downloaded here.

In his rather technical discussion with Dr. Mercola, Dr. Pollack repeatedly talked about structured water and the importance of consuming it.  Dr. Pollack scientifically talks over our heads about the most perplexing aspects of water, and that of structured water, which happens to be another term for Alkaline or Ionized Water.

Dr. Pollack: “That makes me think that there is a good possibility that the water really has the capability of retaining that structure over a long time… Therefore, it’s possible that if you drink water that has this structure, it might be good for your health.”

Alkaline or Ionized Water proves that structured water is good for your health.  The body craves a Negative Charge, Electrons, Alkalinity and water that has a molecular structure is small and ordered, rather than bulky and not easily absorbed.

Dr. Pollack: “So it’s possible that when you swallow properly structured water… it might be preserved. If this structure is then absorbed into your intestines then it’s possible it can be retained all the way into your cells. It’s also possible that it’s the charge within the ordered water that really matters.”

It only stands to logic that nature operates best in an orderly and efficient manner and structured water does just that, helps the body’s cells become more structured on a molecular level.  This is because the water these cells absorb is structured and orderly rather than bulky and unstructured.

Dr. Pollack: “Structured water contains a charge, negative charge usually. It’s possible that what you’re really doing is absorbing the negative charge, and that negative charge is critical for building the structure. That’s another possible route.”

Alkaline or Ionized Water is structured and the drinking water has a negative charge, exactly as Dr. Pollack is describing here.  Negatively charged structured water is the healthiest substance we can put in our body.  And if it has a negative charge (ORP – Oxidation Reduction Potential) it does because it has an abundance of electrons, which the body is constantly starved for.

Dr. Mercola Blog: Researchers have also investigated what happens to the structure of water when you run an electrical current through it.

This is exactly what Alkaline or Ionized Water is, water that has had an electrical charge, either positive or negative.  This is produced by an anode (-) and a cathode (+).  What happens then regarding Ionized Water is that the two waters, one negative and the other positive, are then separated between a membrane.  We drink the negatively charged water, that has now been “structured” as Dr. Pollack suggests it should be.  Alkaline or Ionized Water is hexagonal (6-sided) in shape.  They are compact, highly absorbable and extremely good for our health, since water is the foundation of health, and there is no better water than Alkaline or Ionized Water.

Water-molecule cluster size is measured by using a Nuclear Magnetic Resonance device.  We can also determine the change in the surface tension of Ionized Water, which is measured in dynes.  A lower surface tension demonstrates the existence of smaller water molecule clusters.

Dr. Pollack: “If you put an electrode in, it does work. It has a powerful effect… In the experiments we’ve done, it’s just a matter of 5-10 volts… We haven’t studied it in enough detail how much voltage you really need to put on to be effective. That needs to be done in the future. There are pilot experiments that we’ve done and we haven’t published them yet.”

Dr. Mercola, Dr. Pollack: The experiments you speak of have been done and have been conducted for many years now.  It’s called Alkaline or Ionized Water, and many studies have been done on the subject.  Dr. Mercola referred to Alkaline Ionized Water as “Snake Oil on Tap” in an interview with Houston Tomasz, a so-called water expert whose credentials were never disclosed and no one had ever heard of before in the Water Ionizer industry.  I wrote a rebuttal to that interview which was filled with more misinformation about Alkaline Ionized Water and water in general.

Further in the interview Dr. Mercola asks Dr. Pollack about the practice known as grounding, or walking around in your bare feet outside, which is healthy because the earth and therefore the ground we walk on is negatively charged, which was a surprise to Dr. Pollack since he was convinced that it was positively charged.

“Negative ions are typically found in high concentrations near waterfalls, in pine forests, after electrical storms and by the seashore where they are produced by waves crashing onto the shore.  The average household shower produces a substantial amount of negative ions, which is one of the reasons why people often feel better after showering.” From Achieving Great Health by Bob McCauley, CNC, MH

We become sick when we live in a positive ion environment because the mind and body do not function well in that environment.  Negative ions are healthy for us on the outside of our bodies and on the inside as well, such as those found in Alkaline Ionized Water.  You would think the light would go on over Dr. Mercola’s head as he was talking to Dr. Pollack for nearly an hour, but there was absolutely no mention of Alkaline Ionized Water when, ironically, it was what they were actually discussing the entire time.

References for Alkaline Ionized Water:
The Miraculous Properties of Ionized Water  - The Definitive Guide to the World’s Healthiest Substance By Bob McCauley, CNC, MH   Water Credentials

Ion-exchange Membrane Separation Processes, by Strathmann, H., Membrane Science and Technology Series, 9, Elsevier, Amsterdam, 2004. 360 pages.
This book is the bible of technical processes of ionization.  It is written at the PhD level and is meant for the scientific minded only.   An in-depth understanding of thermodynamic and physicochemical processes is required. This book discusses the most relevant aspects of ion-exchange membranes, such as those used in water ionization.  It discusses historical development, as well as the structure of ion-exchange membranes and their various processes.

Fantastic Voyage by Ray Kurzweil and Terry Grossman, MD.

The Secret Life of Water, by Masaru Emoto.  2005.  Publisher: Atria. 224 pages

The Hidden Messages in Water, by Masaru Emoto. 2004; Publisher: Beyond Words Publishing.  160 p.

Your Body’s many Cries for Water, by F. Batmanghelidj, M.D.  Publisher: Global Health Solutions, Inc.  3^rd Edition.  2001.  196 p.

Secrets of an Alkaline Body.  The New Science of Colloidal Biology, by Annie Padden Jubb and David Jubb.  Publisher: North Atlantic Books. 2004.

Consumer’s Guide to Purchasing a Water Ionizer, by Bob McCauley, CNC, MH.  Publisher: SE, Inc.  2009.  31 p.

Achieving Great Health – How Ionized Water, Spirulina, Chlorella, Raw Foods Can Make You Healthier than Ever Imagined in 90 Days or Less, by Bob McCauley, CNC, MH.  Publisher: SE, Inc.  2005.  211 p.

Honoring the Temple of God – A Christian Health Perspective, by Bob McCauley, CNC, MH.  Publisher: SE, Inc.  2008.  105 p.

Confessions of a Body Builder, by Bob McCauley, CNC, MH.  Publisher: SE, Inc.  2000.   104 p.

Las Propiedades Milagrosas del Agua Ionizada – La Guía definitiva  de la substancia más saludable del mundo,

Here is the first chapter of the book: Chapter One: Las Propiedades Milagrosas del Agua Ionizada.

Bob McCauley, CNC, MH

Bob McCauley, CNC, MH

“Beware of false knowledge.  It is more dangerous than ignorance.”

~ George Bernard Shaw

My Video on the Quack Watchers.

I have been hearing for years what a scam Ionized Water is.  I have heard it called “snake oil on tap”, yet no one has ever called for them to be removed from the market.  Alkaline Water, Alkalized Water, Kangen Water, Miracle Water, Micro Water, Ion Water, Ionic Water, Electron Water, Electrolyzed Water: It’s all the same.  Water that has been electrolyzed is most commonly called Ionized Water.  And for some reason there is a great deal of opposition to it.  Recently Dr. J. Mercola denounced Ionized Water.  Dr. Andrew Weil has also found some excuse to dismiss ionized water.  In fact, he did it twice.  I am not a “believer” in Ionized Water anymore than I am a believer that the world is round and not flat.  To have a belief Ionized Water and its positive effects on the health of those who consume it is a fact and not a “belief”.  It is a fact what ionization does to the pH, ORP and structure of water it ionizes.  I don’t have faith that raw fruits and vegetables are healthy for us, I understand it as a fact.  The same is true for Ionized Water.  I wrote the book on it.

To be perfectly honest with you it boils my blood to hear http://watershed.net/Water-Ionizers/, the healthiest substance we can possible consume, described as snake oil and a scam.  The main reason is because this kind of thinking plants doubt into the minds of so many people that it leads them to the decision never to purchase a Water Ionizer, never to drink Ionized Water, and never to make a part of their daily lives.  To me, Ionized Water is the bread of life.  I thrive on it.  As you will see below, none of the detractors of Ionized Water have ever consumed it or bothered to measure it’s pH or ORP.  If they did, they would find Ionized Water to be the healthiest substance we can consume.

I am considered a “crank” by some, which is aptly defined by Mark Twain as “a person with a new idea until it succeeds.” Without fail, there are those who attempt to debunk great advances in every scientific field and Ionized Water is no exception.  Continental plate tectonics was ridiculed when it was proposed by Alfred Wegene in 1912.  Now it’s established fact.  The same will be with Ionized Water.  It too will one day become established fact taught in every school. Debunkers suggest that the ionization of water simply isn’t possible.  One debunker states that Ionized Water should be dismissed simply because it is too good to be true.  Others state that ionization is impossible to verify when in fact its properties are demonstrated using scientific measuring devices such as pH and ORP meters because the changes that ionization produce are radical, immediate and measurable.

Debunkers contend that most new health technologies developed outside of the traditional medical establishment are worthless and have no value beyond their hype.  They claim that nearly every unusual invention that doesn’t easily fit into the framework of conventional thinking turns out to be yet another urban myth that needs to be debunked.  And if something that they have denounced turns out to have merit, not another word is ever said about it and the debunker’s web page is quietly removed.

What health debunkers do best is plant doubt in our minds when we are trying to search out the truth about breakthrough health devices.  It’s easy to be a skeptic.  It’s difficult to blaze trails and fly in the face of every conventional thought and precept science has established.  It’s hard to believe in something that you discover and want to be true when someone with a scientific background who claims to be an expert is soundly denouncing it.  It is even harder to believe in things that others are ridiculing.  Debunkers have a chilling effect on open debate because of the way they often scoff at the technologies they are challenging.  Their attack on new health technologies that have not been conducted, sanitized and approved by the medical establishment often extends to the promoter of the new invention.  They become the focus of derision much the way Galileo was when he claimed the Sun was the center of the Solar System, not the Earth.  Debunkers ridicule those who have found a new path, uncovered a new truth and consequentially have surpassed an old belief system.  The water ionizer is a prime example of this kind of attack that stifles progress.

We tend to accept the denunciations of the debunkers because we want to believe that we can’t be so easily fooled.  We want to deem ourselves too savvy to be deceived by promises that sound too good to be true.   We enjoy hearing that ideas and inventions that may sound a little weird, or too good to be true, could not possibly be true.  Debunkers want us to believe that life is too harsh for good things to be true.  Life is too difficult for something like Ionized Water to be healthy for us and possess the miraculous health properties it is said to have.  And since someone with a scientific background has claimed it to be a hoax, it must be one.  Thus, we doubt and dismiss it, exactly what debunkers want us to do.

Debunkers tend to be heavy on opinion and light on the facts.  And they often present their opinion as fact.  They are sometimes chemists or chemistry professors who understand book chemistry, but don’t seem to comprehend the simple chemistry of Ionized Water, that of charging water by creating negative ions       (-OH) and positive ions (+H).  Nor do they understand how these ions are created by the simple process of electrolysis then separated through a membrane.  It is not difficult to understand Ionized Water, but it is difficult for some to accept that something so simple can have such a profoundly beneficial effect on everything it comes in contact with, especially our health.

I don’t expect that debunkers will ever disappear.  Ironically, debunkers’ websites are a good resource for groundbreaking technologies since they tend to dismiss anything that might possibly work.

The notion of having people around to challenge the traditional conventions and new inventions is a good one because there is plenty of fraud in the world.  Debunkers, on the other hand, are often something different than those who expose charlatans.  Debunkers stand in front of progress by denouncing and ridiculing any radical new concept.  However, armchair investigations and conclusions drawn from them will never replace field testing and something debunkers almost never do is conduct their own legitimate scientific investigations.

Debunkers often ply their trade in order to protect the status quo and the safety it provides to those who are afraid of the future and the change that it inevitably brings.  Debunkers sometimes serve no other purpose than to confuse us regarding complex issues, which is especially disappointing and destructive when it comes to natural health.

When a radical scientific concept is first introduced, there is commonly resistance to it by the prevailing scientific community.  New ideas are generally ridiculed and derided because they make people uncomfortable.  Scientists don’t want to accept new ones because their life’s work is based on the foundation of these old ideas.  They become particularly defensive and resistant when the new ideas destroy, override or completely supersede the old ones.  Often, the members of the established scientific community must die off so the next generation can be raised with the new concept and accept it from the beginning without any unnecessary bias and hand-wringing about what they once embraced as the truth that has now been superseded by the next wave of scientific discovery.  With the coming of the next generation, the new concept will no longer be regarded as radical, but rather another stepping stone to understanding the whole truth about health, nature and the very essence of human existence.   The acceptance of Ionized Water is yet another stepping stone that cannot be ignored because it is a critical component of health.

A considerable amount of research has been conducted on the effects of Ionized Water, most of it by Japanese researchers, which should be no surprise since they have embraced the concept of water ionization more than anyone else  (Appendix 5: Scientific Studies).  All of the research done on Ionized Water has arrived at the same conclusion: Ionized Water benefits everything it comes in contact with as long as it’s used correctly.[i] Physical scientific measurements, not conjecture, demonstrate the properties of Ionized Water. With this hard evidence in front of us, there is no other conclusion to reach than to claim that the properties of Ionized Water are best described as simply miraculous.

The strong detoxification effects of Ionized Water alone are enough to demonstrate that it is not like any other water you will ever consume.   This is due to the small water-molecule cluster size.  How water molecules group together is another thing that debunkers claim can not happen, thus it is so much more quackery.  This conclusion is reached despite the fact that a substantial amount of scientific research has been done on water molecule clusters.[ii] Water-molecule cluster size is measured by using a Nuclear Magnetic Resonance device.  We can also determine the change in the surface tension of Ionized Water, which is measured in dynes.[iii] A lower surface tension demonstrates the existence of smaller water molecule clusters.[iv]

Debunkers do not accept the basic concept of positive and negative ions and how they affect human health.  If they did, they would understand how important it is that we put alkaline substances in our body. Those who would attack Ionized Water and claim it is a hoax do not understand the value of consuming substances that are negatively charged and possess negative ions.  By their own admission, those who debunk Ionized Water have never consumed it, claiming there is no need to because the concept of ionizing water is impossible to begin with.

Debunkers are part of a faux-intelligentsia that does not believe in field testing before they arrive at conclusions.  The truth is that field testing often reveals many things that formulas and theories written on paper could never have predicted.  Examine debunkers and their methods closely for they are self-appointed watchdogs.  The methods of debunkers are never based on scientific evidence, but rather their own personal interpretation of the science they are debunking.  Debunkers, more often than not, need themselves to be debunked.  This has never been truer than when it comes to the debunkers of Ionized Water.  They don’t understand the simple truth that ionizing water takes it to a level of health many times above that of conventional water.

Here are my Seven Components of Great Health.

[i] For instance, never consume Acid Ionized Water because it is an oxidant that contains free radicals.

[ii] “Theoretical Study of the 6 (H₂O) Cluster,” C.J. Tsai and K.D. Jordan, Chemical Physics Letters 213, 181-88 (1993).

“Theoretical Study of Small Water Clusters: Low-Energy Fused Cubic Structures for (H₂O)n, n=8, 12, 16 and 20,” C.J. Tsai and K.D. Jordan, Journal of Physical Chemistry 97, 5208-10 (1993).

This research is supported and validated by the National Science Foundation.

[iii] A dyne is an extremely small measurement of force. 100,000 dynes= 0.224 lbs of force.

[iv] “Water molecular arrangement at air/water interfaces probed by atomic force microscopy”,  by O. Teschke and E. F. de Souza. Chem. Phys. Lett. 403 (2005) 95-101. (b)

“Water molecule clusters measured at water/air interfaces using atomic force microscopy”, O. Teschke and E. F. de Souza, Phys. Chem. 7 (2005) 3856-3865.

Each has a story to tell of how adding superfoods such as chlorella and spirulina, along with herbs that have been tableted with them, have improved their performance and overall health.  Randy Couture offered us a video testimonial of his experience with Ionized Water and Spirulina with Tribulus has done for his workouts.

“Since taking Watershed products I am more energetic and recover faster. I don’t get the muscle soreness from workouts getting ready for a fight.” - Randy Couture

“I initally was in search of an alternative source of quality protein. Taking the Watershed products not only did I feel more energy in my day but overall my body felt incredible. It helped me build lean tissue while reducing my body fat as well as the layer of excess tissue just below the skin. Bottom line, I love Watershed products.”  - Jennifer Widerstrom

“No jokes, gimmicks or false claims when it comes to Watershed products….this stuff really works and my body speaks louder than words!”  - Stan McQuay

“My fiance and I love the products that we received from Watershed Wellness Center!! During my training camps I drink 2 gallons of the ionized water a day!!! Along with taking the chlorella and spirulina, I feel more energy and efficiency throughout my body!! I feel much more hydrated when I drink ionized water while I’m working out and sweating a lot. The products are an important part of my training and my life in general. Thank you!!”   – Gray Maynard

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“The further you get from nature,
the closer you get to the doctor.” ~ Dr. Bernard Jensen

One of the most common false criticisms of Ionized Water I continue to hear is that it is not found in Nature.  Therefore Viktor Schauberger would be  appalled because I compared the qualities of Ionized Water with those found in nature. They seemed to think Schamberger would be appalled because he understood nature or something. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a big fan of Viktor Schauberger and his work with energy and the properties of water.  But he knew nothing about Ionized Water and if he had, it he would have been fascinated and I’m sure approving.  Ionized Water is found in nature.  For instance, it can be found in turbulent waters such as water falls, mountain streams, ocean waves.  Hydroxyl ions form under these conditions, although they are quickly negated by positive, hydrogen ions, which are far more prevalent.

“When Nature has work to be done, she creates a genius to do it.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

In nature, Ionized Water is most often found in mountain streams where water bounces off rocks, which results in a mild ionization effect by the creation of hydroxyl ions. The ionization of water also occurs in other places such as water falls or waves crashing onto a beach. These two natural events also create negative ions in the environment. The hydroxyls that are created under these circumstances are short-lived due to the reactive substances that surround them. They are also cancelled out by positively charged hydrogen cations. We are surrounded by active oxygen in the environment and throughout our diet, which we call free radicals.

“Ionization happens in the body as oxygen and hydrogen atoms gain or lose electrons, making them electrically charged and therefore more chemically active.”

A balanced state of health is that in which the body thrives and is most apt to operate to its capacity. However, if you change the body’s environment through poor diet, meaning foods that have been oxidized by processing or cooking, a build up of hydrogen ions results. The consequence of this is an acidic state and a low pH. To be healthy again, you need only change the environment of your body by adding alkaline substances that have an abundance of electrons such as Ionized Water and raw fruits and vegetables.

Ionized Water reflects the characteristics of raw foods in several ways:
• Ionized Water has an abundance of electrons as do raw foods.
• Ionized Water has a negative charge, or ORP, as do raw foods.
• Ionized Water possesses negative ions as do raw foods.
• Ionized Water is alkaline as are raw foods.
• Ionized Water is hydrating as are raw foods.
• Ionized Water is detoxifying as are raw foods.
• Ionized Water provides the body with ionic (organic) minerals as do raw foods.

Cooked foods have a deficit of electrons, a positive ORP and an abundance of positive ions. They are dry and dehydrating. They also acidify and add toxins to the body. All these qualities lead to disease and therefore are the exact opposite of what we should put in the body.

Ionized Water mimics many of the same attributes in nature that bring us health. And only nature can bring us true health. Vitamin and mineral supplements attempt to mimic nature although with dismal results. Medicine attempts to overcome the natural mechanisms of the body, thereby attempting to control, alter or outsmart it. Pharmaceuticals only mask symptoms of disease. No drug has yet been invented that cures the body of any disease, nor will one ever be. Pharmaceuticals never lead to health, but only allows people to hobble along a little further as they become sicker until the quality of their lives diminish to a point where the option of death is more appealing than continuing to live with such agony. True health is only found in nature. Ionized Water mimics and magnifies nature better than any substance known.

We need to approach the concept of Ionized Water with the understanding that it is a phenomenon created in nature, however, here we are able to intensify and concentrate its incredible properties. Ionized Water helps the body to flow with nature, not oppose it. This is a lesson that we are still learning in the West. Ionized Water was accepted by Asians first because it is found in nature and therefore it is a natural substance that enhances our health. At its core, Asian philosophy has tenets that readily accept the concept of Ionized Water because it is completely natural.

What can not be found in nature is purified water, distilled or reverse osmosis water. Purified water has had all the minerals removed from it, which is a substance that cannot be found in nature. When we drink purified water, we are consuming a pure chemical substance, H2O. Pure chemical substances of any kind are not found in nature collected together, but instead are always mixed with other substances.

The path to health does not lie in these artificial protocols and procedures, nor will it ever. True health is found only in nature. And Ionized Water is commonly found in nature.

Bob McCauley, CNC, MH

Dr. Andrew Weil has responded again to a question about Ionized Water and whether it is healthy for someone to consume.  This time someone has called it “Kagen Water” and asked the question of Dr. Weil: “What do you know about the efficacy of Kangen water?” Published September 13, 2010.

A multi-level marketing company known as Enagic has renamed Ionized Water (electrolyzed water) Kagen Water in an attempt to make claims that the water their water ionizers creates is superior  to ionized water, which it is not.  Kagen in Japanese means “return to the origins”, meaning that Ionized Water will help you return to the origins of your natural state of healthiness, which is exactly what Ionized Water does.

The mark “Kangen Water®” has been used by Enagic Co., Ltd., a Japanese corporation(“Enagic Japan”), in the general promotion of electrolytic water generators which cancontrol the pH level of water. Enagic Japan registered the mark Kangen Water® with theU.S. Patent and Trademark Office, whose registration number is 2990706. Enagic Japanhas licensed the mark Kangen Water® to Enagic USA. Inc.(“Enagic USA”).   It’s best to survey the market when purchasing a water ionizer for pricing and quality.

Dr. Weil: “I’m sorry, but I am prejudiced against all such pyramid marketing schemes and urge you to avoid them, whatever the products are.”

We must not let “pyramid marketing schemes” (MLM’s) dictate to us what is valid in the world of health and this is because most MLM’s are legitimate, even though some of us may not like the way they do business.  If you hear about Ionized Water from a Kagen dealer then my suggestion would be to check the Internet for what else might possibly be out there that doesn’t cost $4000.

Dr. Weil: “the notion that it is somehow protective of health and can prevent disease by balancing the body’s pH. . . . the human body needs absolutely no help in adjusting its pH.  Normally, the pH of blood and most body fluids is near seven, which is close to neutral. This acid-base balance is under very tight physiologic control because all of the chemical reactions that maintain life depend on it. Unless you have serious respiratory or kidney problems, body pH will remain in balance no matter what you eat or drink.”

Dr. Weil is claiming here that body pH essentially remains the same no matter what we put into it because of buffers.  I wish that was so, but I am afraid that Dr. Weil is entirely wrong here.  I agree that blood pH is always stable at 7.25 – 7.45, but his statement includes “most bodily fluids,” meaning fluids other than blood.  The blood immediately cleanses itself all acid waste and toxins into bodily tissues that enters it.  All disease thrives in an acid environment in the body and will not live in a more alkaline, or neutral, pH of about 7.0, which should be measured through the urine and not the blood or saliva.  One must test their urine each morning upon waking for one month to get a moving average of their body pH.  I am quite surprised at Dr. Weil’s assessment of blood vs. body pH.  I cannot say that his medical training has served him well in that regard.

Dr. Weil: “I’ve even seen claims that it can cure obesity, high blood pressure and breast cancer.”

Because someone has misrepresented what Ionized Water is capable of doing for our health does not change the truth about what Ionized Water actually is.  Ionized Water is the healthiest substance that we can possibly put into our bodies that mimics most of the qualities that raw (uncooked) fruits and vegetables have.  They both have an abundance of electrons, a negative ORP (Oxidation Reduction Potential), and are alkaline and detoxifying.  However, no food or water is capable of healing our bodies of any disease.  Rather it is what the body does with these raw foods and water that allows the body to heal itself.  The body is capable of healing itself of any disease if you stop putting the wrong things into it and start putting the right things into it. My Seven Component Health Protocol explains exactly how we can do that.

Dr. Weil: “As for water, you should consider the fact that alkaline water is common throughout the western states but to my knowledge it has not protected anyone from the diseases common in our population.”

This is a fair statement for Dr. Weil to make however we need to recognize that it would be impossible to determine one way or another without comprehensive studies being conducted of people who drank this water verses those who did not and lived in the same location.  Only then could we determine whether Dr. Weil’s assessment of naturally occurring alkaline water in the Southwestern US was indeed healthy for a person to consume or whether it had no substantial effect.

Dr. Weil: “Bottom line: The health claims for water ionizers and for alkaline water are bogus”.

I doubt Dr. Weil has ever consumed Ionized Water because if he would drink it each day for a month he would not be making this statement. Ionized Water is a powerful antioxidant that alkalizes and removes acid waste from the body.  It is also extremely hydrating and consequently detoxifying because it pushes toxins (poisons) out of the body.  It has two antioxidant properties, an abundance of electrons and a negative ORP.  If Dr. Weil does not recognize these antioxidant properties that exist within Ionized Water then he does not recognize the most fundamental tenants of natural health because both of these antioxidants are found in nature and only in nature can true health be found.

Like the vast majority of medical professionals who know a lot about medicine and next to nothing about health, Dr. Weil should stick to commenting on subjects he actually studied and consumed himself. The evidence of the miraculous health properties of Ionized Water is abundant and irrefutable.

I believe that Dr. Weil should take the advice of Walt Whitman who said: “You must travel it yourself.”

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By

Bob McCauley, CNC, MH

This is not the first time someone with gravitas in the natural health industry has made disparaging remarks concerning ionized water, dismissing it as a “fad”, “snake oil on tap” and/or simply as a “scam” that will eventually be exposed for the fraud it really is.  Dr. Andrew Weil, who has in the past offered a lot of excellent natural health advice, dismisses Ionized Water and I wrote a rebuttal to his dismissive comments.  I have also debunked the debunkers of ionized Water, none of whom I believe have ever tried it. These misguided health professionals have missed the most important health advance in the history of mankind. Worse, they have potentially kept scores of people from integrating ionized water into their lifestyle and making themselves healthier.

However, I did not expect misinformation to disseminate from Dr. Joseph Mercola whose website www.Mercola.com I have followed for many years now.  It is informative, a great resource and Dr. Mercola seems sincere in offering the information and promoting the products he sells, one of them being Chlorella of which I am proud to say that we are one of the largest importers of Chlorella in North America.  I believe in Chlorella the way I believe in Ionized Water.  Both have been scientifically assessed and documented.  However, when it comes to Dr. Mercola’s opinions about Ionized Water I have concluded he knows nothing more about it than what he might have heard, but he certainly has not investigated it thoroughly the way he has about so many other things, such as his negative assessment of soy, which I completely agree with.  This makes the situation even more troubling and saddening to hear Dr. Mercola offer such a negative assessment of ionized water. Clearly, he understands almost nothing about it, and for someone who is supposed to be on the cusp of natural health advances it has taken him quite a long time to comment and then to denounce it as though it has suddenly appeared on the market when the fact is that  Ionized Water has quite a long and interesting history.

I have been drinking Ionized Water for 14 years, since January 1996.  Don Strayer walked in with a story about some incredible water he was promoting and the rest is history.  When I first discovered Ionized Water I thought it was one of the most incredible things I had ever seen in my life and my assessment has not changed one bit other than to say I am even more adamant now about it than I was then.  I have written six books on health, including The Miraculous Properties of Ionized Water, which is in its 3^rd Edition and is by far my biggest selling book.  It has been translated into Spanish and soon Chinese.  I also wrote a guide to purchasing a water ionizer, all this in an effort to legitimize ionized water and tell the world about the healthiest substance we can possibly consume because there is nothing better for our health than water and there is no better water than Ionized Water.

The fact that Dr. Mercola is a medical doctor neither qualifies or disqualifies him from making an assessment about Ionized Water and anything else regarding natural health, nor do you need to be a water expert. Health and medicine are two completely different things and should never be confused with one another.  I am a Certified Water Technician with the State of Michigan.  I am also a Type II Public Water Supply Specialist and have both S-5 and D-5 certifications.  I have been in the bottled water business since 1993.  My family has a long history in the water industry.  My father, who had a PhD from MIT, pioneered environmental issues regarding ground water and drinking water quality.  I have two credentials in Natural Health.  However, none of that or anything I could possibly say about Ionized Water verifies whether it is the healthiest substance we can consume.  This is because the truth of what Ionized Water is does not depend on witnesses.  But that doesn’t mean that witnesses can’t help.  Let me and so many others stand witness to the healthiest substance available: Ionized Water.

DR. MERCOLA, LET’S GO TO SCHOOL:

MERCOLA: First of all, I don’t doubt that some people notice improvements from them. There is no question.

HOUSTON: That’s probably from drinking more water.

MY REPONSE: This begs the question of whether Dr. Mercola is suggesting that drinking ionized water is actually healthy for people or whether it is a placebo and people only “think” it is benefiting them.  This is the first of many contradictory statements that both Dr. Mercola and Houston make in this interview.

MERCOLA: One of the primary ones is that most all of them are multilevel marketing systems. They are very expensive. They are well over a thousand dollars. There is a strong incentive to sell those that are unrelated to the quality of the water that’s being produced.

MY REPONSE: Most companies that sell water ionizers are not multilevel marketing companies, but rather are traditional companies that sell direct to the consumer and their prices are always much lower for comparable products.

MERCOLA: But even more important from the quality of the water, I don’t think that we were designed to drink alkaline water — at least all the time. It is my understanding, some of the healthiest waters maybe even acidic. At least from some of these mountain spring sources.

MY REPONSE: Dr. Mercola is unclear as to whether we should drink alkaline water some of the time or not at all. I have never heard of any mountain spring water sources that are naturally acidic. Nor do I know on what basis Dr. Mercola makes his claim that some of the healthiest waters may be acidic.  The only water that is acid is purified water, such as reverse osmosis or distilled water. Rarely do we find a ground water that is below a pH of 6.5. I would like Dr. Mercola to explain his reasoning as to why he considers some of the healthiest waters to be acidic.  The statement is blatantly wrong in my opinion.

MERCOLA: I think the central guiding natural process that I try to follow is that I don’t think you’re going to find naturally occurring alkaline water.

MY REPONSE: The primary component in ionized water that makes it an alkaline is hydroxyl ions, i.e. molecules that possess an extra electron. The more of these there are in the water the higher the pH of the water will be. Hydroxyl ions are found commonly in nature. They can be found in abundance in waterfalls, the waves crashing on the beach and water bouncing off the rocks as it comes down a mountain. However, these hydroxyl ions are quickly neutralized by the abundance of hydrogen ions that are also present in nature. Therefore, the effects of the hydroxyl ions are short-lived and nearly impossible to harvest from nature.

By producing ionized water, we are able to magnify and concentrate the same hydroxyl ions that are commonly found in nature. Ionized water possesses all the same qualities as raw fruits and vegetables:

 
• Ionized water is alkaline as are raw foods.

 

• Ionized water possesses an abundance of hydroxyl ions that are free radical scavengers, as do raw foods.

 

• Ionized water is a negative charge, oxidation reduction potential (ORP), that reduce oxidation in the body and as do raw foods.

 

• Ionized water is detoxifying due to its small water molecule cluster, as are raw foods.

The only differences are that raw foods have nutrients and ionized water is extremely hydrating.

MERCOLA: I think the central guiding natural process that I try to follow is that I don’t think you’re going to find naturally occurring alkaline water.

HOUSTON: Not at a level of 10 or 12 or 13 on the pH scale.

MY REPONSE: There are several instances of naturally occurring ground and spring sources that have a pH 9.4 or higher, such as Trinity Springs in Colorado. More importantly, ionized water should never be consumed over a pH 9.9. While some marketers mistakenly encourage people to consume ionized water at a pH up to pH 11.  It should never be consumed above pH 10.

MERCOLA: No. When you try to play with natural processes and think that you’re academically, intellectually superior what’s happened over thousands of years — that you’re going to produce a better–, sometimes you can, but when you do that, you have to be really careful and especially with something foundational like water.

So I like to keep it as simple and basic and as close as to what we find in the natural environment as possible.

MY REPONSE: I appreciate Dr. Mercola’s sentiment of wanting to get everything as simple, basic and close to nature as possible, especially when it comes to water which is the foundation and cornerstone of health, and I maintain that ionized water fits that description exactly.

HOUSTON: All the water you find on the planet has minerals in it.

MY REPONSE: Technically that is true although many water sources such as glaciers, rivers, lakes and even some ground water has extremely low amounts of minerals in the water (TDS). However, Houston is right in concluding that naturally occurring water contains minerals and that purified water (reverse osmosis and distillation) are not natural and therefore are not found in nature.

HOUSTON : I absolutely believe that we should all be — from our dogs and cats and fish, to us, that all of our water should have minerals in it.

MERCOLA: Well if doesn’t it’s a problem. This is incontrovertible, absolute documented fact that if you are having demineralized water you invariably suffer some health consequences as a result of that.

MY REPONSE: I absolutely agree with Dr. Mercola and Houston.  All water we consume should have TDS (total dissolved solids) of at least 100 ppm (parts per million). This would include almost ALL ground water and Spring water.

HOUSTON: I personally, I feel that if you’re close to 7, you can’t be all that wrong. I personally believe that alkaline is better for you.

MERCOLA: Maybe 6 to 8, somewhere in that range. When you start going beyond that…

HOUSTON: 6.5 to 7.5.

MERCOLA: 6.5 and 7.5, so even more defined. It’s probably a healthier range to shoot for.

MY REPONSE: Upon hearing this exchange between Houston and Dr. Mercola my sense is that they have not really carefully considered what the pH of water and foods that we consume should be. Dr. Mercola offers a range between pH 6 – 8, which is a 100 fold difference between the two numbers since the pH scale is logarithmic. Then Houston offers a more narrow range of 6.5 – 7.5, which Dr. Mercola tends to go along with and then states that it is a “healthier range to shoot for”.  I get a sense from that exchange that they are making it up as they go. For the record, anything below a pH of 7.0 is acid and should not be consumed in my opinion.

HOUSTON: So my feeling is the closer to the middle you are, the better we are for what our bodies processes are designed to operate on.

MY REPONSE: Yes, the optimal body pH is 7.0, which is measured through your urine, not saliva.  However, to bring it up to neutral, 7.0, we need to constantly add more alkaline substances such as Ionized Water and raw fruits and vegetables.  This is because we are constantly acidifying our bodies with our lifestyle, diet and environment. The cooked foods we eat are acidic, in particular the animal protein we consume, which most of us put at the center of our diet.  This is why I recommend ionized water and raw foods that are both alkaline.

HOUSTON: The reason why I personally and this is just my personal opinion feel that alkaline water is optimal is because by definition you can’t have free radicals in an alkaline environment. There are no loose hydrogen atoms flying around looking for electrons.

I feel that if you want to minimize the possibility of having free radicals in your body, keep your body alkaline and your body will stay in balance that way.

MY REPONSE: Although he is correct in stating that ionized water is a free radical scavenger, Houston is demonstrating with that comment that he does not fully understand the principles of ionized water. Is not the alkalinity in ionized water that makes it a free radical scavenger, rather the presence of hydroxyl ions which are molecules that have an extra electron attached to them, giving them the ability to attach itself to a free radical and neutralize its potential for cellular damage.

There are several ways to make one or more alkaline such as alkaline drops, which typically contain potassium hydroxide or sodium hydroxide. However, for a water to be considered a free radical scavenger it must contain free electrons, which only ionized water and raw foods have. The purpose of drinking alkaline water is to balance the body’s pH by bringing it closer to neutral at 7.0, not negate free radicals.

HOUSTON: My feeling is, I always like a pH above 7.

MY REPONSE: I agree with Houston that the pH of whatever we consume, whether it is food or liquid, should have a pH above 7.0. However, in this interview, Houston has stated that he prefers to drink water with a pH of 6.5 – 7.5. Therefore, his statements in this interview are contradictory since pH 6.5 is acid. This again demonstrates that neither of them has really thought any of this through.

HOUSTON: Now getting that I don’t have the medical background, and you [referring to Mercola] do, I just know water.

MY REPONSE: You certainly do not need a medical background to understand health or water. Health and medicine are completely unrelated, therefore whether someone has medical credentials does not impress me one way or the other when discussing what is healthy. In that regard Dr. Mercola and Houston are equally unqualified to discuss ionized water since neither of them have bothered to research it.

HOUSTON: They’re electrocuting the water.

MY REPONSE: ionization is a simple concept that involves the use of an anode (negatively charged electrode) and a cathode (positively charged electrode) to produce positive and negative ions.  It is naive and misrepresentative to state that the water is being electrocuted.

HOUSTON: They do make outrageous claims for health. Those are short lived. The companies just can’t do that. I’ll . . .

HOUSTON: So they use a selective filtration device like the technology that use so that they can actually take out some contaminants because those ionizers don’t remove anything from the water.

MERCOLA: It’s an important point to consider, very important point. Thank you for mentioning it. These ionizers are not water filters.

HOUSTON: No, they’re not treatment devices.

MY REPONSE: We should not confuse a water ionizer with a water filter. However, all water ionizers that are marketed today have a built-in filter that cleans the water before it is then ionized. It is important that contaminants be removed from the water before it is ionized by filtration and ionization have nothing to do with one another, although they should be used in conjunction with one another.

HOUSTON: The ionizers, they give you that range of 9 to 13, and 4 to 2 on the low side. It’s not a natural process.

MY REPONSE: Residential water ionizers are only able to produce a pH in the range of 4 to 11 depending on the source water. Once again Houston’s assessment of ionized water is wrong, demonstrating he does not know much about it other than what he is heard.

HOUSTON: This is difficult to get as NSF or they’ll lean on their UL mark. What they’re not telling you is those certifications are electrical components that were not going to burn your house down. Those have nothing to do with water quality. So when you see those —

MERCOLA: Or distinction in an area that creative marketers can give you the impression that it’s certified and it is truly certified. It’s not illegal but it’s unethical and it’s deceptive.

MY REPONSE: Filtration cleans the water while ionization takes the water to another level of healthiness that has not been seen before. A water ionizer could never get NSF certification because it does not treat or filter the water in any way. A better way to look at a water ionizer is that it enhances the water and makes it healthier to consume. I often recommend a pre-treatment filtration system before the water ionizer, which would give you double filtration.

HOUSTON: There is certainly a place for acidic water and alkaline water . . .  I do see a place for ionizers industrially. But when it comes to human health, we don’t know if it’s good for you to drink water with a pH of 10 or to wash your skin with water with a pH of 3.

MERCOLA: Because the studies haven’t been done.

HOUSTON: Right.

MY REPONSE: There have been hundreds of scientific studies done on the subject of ionized Water. I have collected them in my book the Miraculous Properties of Ionized Water, and they are available on my website. There are also numerous studies that have been conducted on ionized water in other languages such as Russian and Japanese. I carefully chronicled the development of ionized water in Russia beginning in the early 20th century.

MERCOLA: It’s probably not going to be your best long term solution when you’re drinking water that doesn’t appear this way in nature.

MY REPONSE: As I previously stated ionized water does appear in nature and mimics the attributes of raw foods which are also only found in nature. Since Dr. Mercola suggests that we should only consume things found in nature I would like to remind him that cooked foods do not appear in nature yet he promotes cooked foods such as fish, ostrich and other cooked meals.  Wild deer and squirrels live on a raw food diet, not a cooked food diet. My point here is that if we want to discuss what is naturally healthy for the body as those things only found in nature then we should be consistent.

MERCOLA: I think this may be more of a public health service announcement to really warn people that if you are consuming alkaline water, an ionizer, you really want to give it a second thought and maybe want to eliminate it from your house and certainly not promote or recommend it to anyone else because more than likely, in the not too distant future, this is going to be well known and publicized and these devices will not even be available anymore.

MY REPONSE: I have been consuming and promoting ionized water for 14 years and I have been listening to the prediction of its death knell for that long.  Ionized water is the healthiest substance we can consume and debunkers such as Dr. Mercola and others are not going to get rid of it by simply stating they are a fad or by denouncing it as others have as “snake oil on tap”. Ionized water is here to stay because the truth cannot be kept a secret forever.

HOUSTON: I mean, when you’re selling a product that 10 people get a commission on, it’s expensive.

MY REPONSE: We should never put a price on our health because without our health we have nothing. Having said that, my suggestion to those who do not wish to buy a product where 10 people are getting a commission is for them to buy the product from a company that sells directly to the public and not through a multilevel marketing structure. There are plenty of us out here who do just that.

It has been my experience that water technology professionals such as Houston know a lot about water, but nothing about health.   There have been numerous attempts to get the water tech industry interested in marketing water ionizers, but there is no interest because fundamentally they are a health product, not a water product.  The biggest mistake that Houston and Dr. Mercola both made in this interview is assuming that a water ionizer is just another water product trying to pass itself off as something special.   The fact is that a water ionizer produces the healthiest substance we can possibly consume.

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My book, HTG, lays out exactly how we get disease in the first place, what we can do to avoid and what we should do if we do get sick. My seven component health protocol explains my entire philosophy regarding health. I’ll also introduce you to my Beginner to Master (Copper to Diamond) step by step progression toward incredible health, the kind of health most people only can dream of.

“Jesus speaks of the body as being the living temple of God and refers to his own body as a temple. His words are misunderstood, as was much of his message to those who lived in those times. The Bible states that health and wellness is found with God. If your body is full of disease it is because of the choices you have made. All disease comes from our diet. Our genes have nothing to do with whether we get sick or not. Disease does not run in our families due to genetics, but rather dietary habits that tend to lead to many of the same diseases.”

My health protocol is simple to understand, but parts of it are difficult to adhere to completely. However, I break it down into simple, understandable steps so that the average person do it if they are determined.

More information is available about the book at: http://ow.ly/sPXS

This is a response to some of the opinions put forth by others, regarding the source of water and which water we should drink.  In particular, I am responding to those in the raw food movement.  I’ve been hearing and reading a lot about water from various individuals and I find myself in profound disagreement with some of them.

I am a raw foodist who believes we all should ideally be on a 100% raw food diet.  There are many opinions regarding which foods we should consume and in what quantities and I can see that these arguments will continue for some time without a conclusive agreement amongst raw food “experts”.  But water is a different matter.  There is water that should be consumed and water that should not be consumed except in emergencies.  Let me clarify which is which.

My Background in Water

I have been in the bottled water business since 1993 and have sold and promoted ionized water since 1996.  I am a Certified Water Facility Operator in the state of Michigan (S5, D5).  My father had a doctorate from MIT in Environmental Engineering, taught at Michigan State University for 15 years and ran his own engineering company for 17 years designing municipal water treatment and purification plants throughout mid-Michigan.  He taught me most of what I know about water and its various sources.

Wild Springs

I have heard the term “Wild Spring” used lately, which apparently refers to a spring that occurs naturally.  This is a term that has been invented out of thin air and now is beginning to be used as a term of reference.  There are springs that have been built and developed where there was no spring before, but they do not differ from naturally occurring springs. Spring water is ground water that has been naturally pushed to the surface, usually from deep within the earth, but not always.  Water that comes from springs has been exposed to pollution in the first 3 – 5 feet of the soil where it is most concentrated.  It is best to draw the water you drink directly from the source from a deep well at least 100 feet down.  It is best to draw water from this depth to avoid the pollution that is most highly concentrated in the first few feet of soil.

Springs are also prone to bacterial contamination since bacteria counts are highest in the first 3 feet of soil.  Bacterial counts are even higher in surface water such as that found in lakes, rivers and streams.

Other kinds of water are artesian and mineral water.  Artesian water is ground water usually below 100 feet that has been forced toward the surface by pressure.   Artesian is not an indicator of quality, although it tends to be good quality water.

Water Filtration

I have heard some talk that suggests spring water should not be filtered and I could not disagree with that notion more.  I personally don’t drink any water that hasn’t flowed through a carbon filter, preferably a one micron block carbon filter.  They remove chlorine and particles from the water down to one micron.  There are other filters with various media that can remove iron, fluoride, sulfur and other undesirable elements in water.

I heard one “health guru” state that if he couldn’t drink spring water that they would go days without drinking water until they could get some.  This is an absurd statement, especially considering that finding a natural spring is quite difficult.  In fact, the chances of finding a natural spring and collecting water from it are next to impossible.  I personally am not aware of any natural springs that are open to the public in the state of Michigan.  So where will we all go to find our natural spring water?  It’s a completely impractical idea for the average person to even considering doing on a regular basis.  And to go days without drinking water would be extremely detrimental to your health, therefore I am very much opposed to the Russian concept of dry fasting, that of eating or drinking nothing at all for days at a time.

Consuming Tap Water

I often hear it said that tap water (municipal or city water) should never be consumed under any circumstances.  I do not agree with this notion at all.  Most tap water can be consumed if it is properly filtered through an adequate carbon and/or KDF filter.  Again, I recommend a 1 micron activated carbon filter for this.  This removes the chlorine that is found in most tap water.  For tap water that contains chloramines instead of chlorine to disinfect I recommend a carbon/KDF filter, since KDF is slightly more effective at removing chloramines than carbon.

I also recommend everyone use a KDF filter to remove chlorine and/or chloramines for your shower or bathtub.  If you don’t, then you are absorbing these chemicals into your body through your skin and in your lungs, which is extremely dangerous since they are carcinogens.   Carbon will not remove chlorine from hot water.

Pharmaceuticals and Caffeine in ground water

Larger cities quietly started recycling their water in recent years.  This policy was kept quiet and not published in any of the trade magazines.  Coconut shell carbon is the most effective way to filter out pharmaceuticals, but it certainly won’t get all of them.

The best way to remove anything and everything from your water source, including pharmaceuticals (even caffeine, which is any extremely small molecule), is with reverse osmosis (RO).   This purifies the water, meaning it removes everything except the water molecules themselves so you end up with pure water.  Distillation achieves the same results.  This water should not be consumed since it is acidic, leaches minerals from the body and does not hydrate the body’s cells or tissue.  If water is purified then it must be re-mineralized if you wish to consume it.  Re-mineralization also makes the water more hydrating, less acidic and it will not leach minerals from the body.

Is water conscious?

David Wolfe has stated that water is conscious, perhaps even more so than Buddha and Jesus.  This is one of the most ridiculous notions I’ve ever heard regarding water.  Water is an inert, inorganic substance with two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen molecule.  It has no more life than a stone, some plastic or a wooden table.  Before the wood was fashioned into a table it was a tree.  All plant and animal life created by God is conscious on some level.  However, an inanimate object does not have consciousness and to state that two hydrogen molecules and one oxygen molecule that have bonded now has consciousness is absurd and the claim has absolutely no scientific evidence to support it.  The anthropopathic practice of assigning feelings or consciousness to inanimate objects has its roots in primitive cultures and has not been in vogue for thousands of years.  Water does not think nor is it omniscient anymore than a plant is.  Although a plant or animal is conscious, it is not sentient or does it have the ability of self-reflection.  Only humans are sentient, which is a gift from God.  As for water, when you consume it, you are not drinking anything that thinks.

The vortex effect of water spinning

It has been claimed that water spins from deep within the earth as it reaches the surface and there is no truth to this.  It would be nearly impossible to prove that water actually spins as it rises to the surface.  Victor Schauberger stated that nature creates vortices as a result of a tremendous and sudden release of energy.  A tornado is a good example of this.  But water spinning as it rises toward the surface of the earth is unfounded and improvable.  It’s another idea that has been invented out of thin air.

Does Water self replicate?

It has been stated that water has the ability of self-replication.  Inorganic substances cannot self-replicate or self-reproduce themselves.   Living cells are capable of self-replication through mitosis or meiosis.  As with regards to whether water is conscious, it is inert and therefore incapable of self-replication.  Water is not a living thing.

The Best Drinking Water

Having clarified some of the issues regarding spring water the question remains which water is the best water to consume.  That would be Ionized Water of which I have researched and written about extensively since 1996.  I have done so because there is nothing more important for the body than water and quite often people recommend the wrong kind of water to drink, such as purified water.  Ionized Water has two powerful antioxidant qualities, a negative ORP which reduces oxidation of the body and it is a free radical scavenger because it contains an abundance of electrons.  It is alkaline and therefore helps balance the body’s pH.  It also has smaller water molecules which penetrate bodily cells and tissue and hydrates them more efficiently than conventional water.  This also pushes out substances that don’t belong in the body and are potentially harmful which we call toxins.  You can read about Ionized Water in great detail in any of my books, in particular The Miraculous Properties of Ionized Water, which describes what Ionized Water, how it is produced and what we can expect when drinking it.  My other publication, Consumer’s Guide to Purchasing a Water Ionizer explains the best way to choose a water ionizer, as well as filtration options.

I recommend the documentary called “Flow” (http://www.flowthefilm.com/) It explores the issue of water control and distribution, who is benefiting financially from it and who is getting hurt because of those decisions.  It is quite an eye-opener and a cautionary tale about the future of the world’s fresh water supply.

The Watershed Wellness Center
Lansing, MI
1-888-826-4448
www.watershed.net