Distilled Water

[seinna023]

Does anyone know if distilled water is safe to drink?

Annie Sayo

[bejustintime]

Distilled water is not safe to drink in large quantities IMHO. It may actually lead to dehydration. When you are buying water at the supermarket choose the water labeled "drinking water". That is what I choose. I prefer water bottled from a mountain source, which means it is melted snowpack, or rain water which has been sitting in a lake.

Less desirable water comes from wells (ground water). Water from wells has too much minerals and is called hard water. People who drink well water for decades sometimes develop kidney stones. Check with your local water department to see where your water comes from.

Distilled water, also known as de-ionized water, has no minerals in it. This makes it very reactive. Water is a solvent and likes to dissolve things. In its purest form it likes to dissolve minerals and is very aggressive. We actually add Calcium (lime) to our water from Hetch Hetchy (which is pure rain water, the closest thing to distilled water you can find in nature) reservoir to reduce pipeline corrosion. This is based on what is called the "langlier index", which is a formula which factors in temperature, pH, and Calcium concentration.

I have been working for the San Francisco water Dept. for the last 8 years, as a lab analyst and drinking water treatment plant operator, treating both surface water and groundwater.

Unrelated but relevant topic:

There was a case of a women dying of water toxicity in Sacramento, CA around Xmas time, because she actually drank too much water. A radio station was running a promotion called "Wee for a Wii." The goal of the contest was to see who could drink the most water and hold it the longest. It was a really stupid contest, and the DJ's got fired.

[bejustintime]

Minerals are electrolytes. You can drink distilled water but it may affect the electrolyte balance in your body. Distilled water will not replace the electrolytes you lose when you perspire from working out. Also the rate at which you imbibe the water is important. I do not know the exact biology of what is the ideal balance of electrolytes in the body, maybe we can ask somebody who makes pedialyte?

I started a new thread called Water intoxication which you may find helpful.

http://www.rmaxinternational.com/forum/showthread.php?t=14252