Health Farm

-- Water companies have added a galaxy of herbs and spices, minerals, and vitamins in a bid to sell more bottled water – a global market expected to grow to 625 billion litres by 2021.

Alkaline water is yet another option, popularly included on “detox” lists – that ever-growing multi-billion-dollar sinkhole of the wellness industry.

Marketing claims promoted by alkaline water companies are based on an old idea called the acid-ash hypothesis. This posits that eating certain foods such as meat, dairy, and eggs increases acidity, causing adverse health effects, including osteoporosis. Drinking alkaline water, they say, helps combat acidity by increasing pH.  

But drinking alkaline water won’t change the pH of your body – that’s because your body does a great job of keeping blood pH within a very narrow range, around pH 7.4

Meanwhile, the masses would rather believe Beyoncé, who helped kickstart the trend in 2013 when reports surfaced that she specified alkaline water on a rider for her world tour.

According to data from the Beverage Marketing Corporation, a research and consultancy group, the alkaline water market has grown from being a $47m business in 2014 to a $427m business in 2017. It’s projected to be worth $700+m by 2020.

Pro drinking tip: Stick to tap water. Think of the plastic bottles you’ll keep from the ocean.