The health hoax of “acid-base constitution theory” has long been exposed, but many people still believe that drinking alkaline water for a long time is good for health. Based on this, many water companies in the market market products with the concept of alkaline water. For example, the promotion and advertisement of a well-known mineral water in Yunnan suggested that “drinking alkaline water can cure diseases”, but it was publicly refuted by experts: it is worse than plain water.
In recent years, various “functional waters” have emerged one after another. Do they really have the so-called nutritional and health care functions?
Can alkaline water cure diseases? Better than plain water
The myth of alkaline water is still going on. Taking a well-known brand of mineral water and bottled water in Yunnan as an example, its advertising slogan and water bottle packaging are deliberately rubbing the edge, suggesting that alkaline water has a “treatment” effect on tumors, gout, osteoporosis, blood sugar, and fatty liver.
Is alkaline water really good for health? Wang Silu, a national senior food inspector and food safety science expert, said that the concept of “alkaline water” is just a gimmick for businesses to create publicity, and there is no need to be overly obsessed and praised.
In the opinion of Xu Jian, director of the Department of Rheumatology and Immunology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University, the publicity of water companies that drinking alkaline water is good for people such as gout is completely hype, and its help to the human body is not as good as it is. Boiled water.
Yu Wen, deputy chief physician of the Physical Examination Department of Beijing Anzhen Hospital Affiliated to Capital Medical University, said that the acidity and alkalinity of the human body have nothing to do with the acidity and alkalinity of drinking water. Self-regulatory effects, usually not changed by pH in the diet. On the contrary, drinking alkaline water for a long time will increase the burden on the gastrointestinal tract, leading to gastrointestinal disorders and even indigestion. In addition, drinking alkaline water for a long time will also increase the burden on the kidneys to excrete alkali.
Boil it to 135℃ and then let it cool down. Is the cooked water easy to absorb?
Nowadays, there is also a “cooked water” on the market. To put it simply, it is boiled and cold boiled. For example, an aquatic product claims that it is “boiled at an ultra-high temperature of 135°C, and the cooked water is easy to absorb”, which sounds very advanced and healthy. Is the truth really like this? In this regard, Yun Wuxin, a Ph.D. in biological and food engineering from Purdue University, made a detailed analysis.
Let’s talk about “135℃ ultra-high temperature sterilization”. First, there is no need to boil the water to this temperature at all. Secondly, “ultra-high temperature sterilization” is not an advanced technology, it is the most conventional processing technology in the food industry. For example, normal temperature milk is completely killed by ultra-high temperature sterilization method.
Let’s say “cooked water is easy to absorb”. Although the advertisement does not explain the principle, it can be seen in other marketing articles: Small molecular water, better absorption. In fact, a water molecule is a molecule composed of one oxygen atom and two hydrogen atoms. No matter how it is processed, it is impossible to make a water molecule smaller. So it’s just a selling point and a gimmick.
Drinking water to supplement oxygen? Lack of scientific basis
“Oxygenation, treatment of diseases…”functional water’ gimmicks, don’t believe it.” Li Fuxing, president of Shandong Weihai International Health Water Science Institute, said that functional water needs to undergo strict Such products can only be defined as having a certain function when it has been proved by scientific experiments and similar conclusions can be drawn after repeated scientific experiments. At present, the international research on functional water is still in the stage of research. There are many waters claiming to have certain functions, but there are no corresponding research reports that can stand up to scrutiny. The same is true in my country.
For example, some businesses have launched oxygen-enriched water, claiming to use cutting-edge oxygen-locking technology. The dissolved oxygen content in the product is 6-10 times that of ordinary drinking water, which can effectively supplement the oxygen needed by the human body. In fact, there is no scientific basis for this claim. Even if the oxygen in the water is sufficient, the moment after the bottle cap is opened, the oxygen in the water will immediately communicate with the air, and it will inevitably be released. How can we supply oxygen to the human body? What’s more, oxygen enters the human body through the respiratory tract, and there is no sufficient evidence to prove that the digestive tract can absorb oxygen.
Summary
Li Zhenhua, associate professor at the School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Kah Kee College, Xiamen University reminded that some “functional water” under the banner of various new technologies, In order to highlight its so-called “functional” gimmick, the water will undergo partial electrolysis, strong oxidation, and pH adjustment, etc., which will cause the “functional water” produced by it to deviate from the range of drinking water safety indicators. If you drink it for a long time, it may be Causes damage to the oral cavity and gastrointestinal mucosa, and even affects the normal metabolism of the human body.