What is Alkaline Water?

At Proud Source Water, our water is naturally alkaline with an 8.5 +/- pH level.

You may be thinking, okay, great, but what does that actually mean?

To understand alkalinity, you must first understand what pH represents.

pH stands for potential of hydrogen and is a measure of hydrogen ion concentration. A pH level is a number that measures how acidic or alkaline a substance is on a scale of 0 to 14. A pH of 0 would be completely acidic, while a pH of 7 would be neutral or balanced, and a pH of 14 would be completely alkaline. Standard drinking water generally has a neutral pH of 7. Alkaline water has a higher pH level than regular drinking water at around 8 or 9. 

pH scale

Not all alkaline water is created equal, and there are two types of alkaline water- natural and artificial alkaline, with each process occurring differently. 

How does pH or hydrogen ions affect my body?

Proteins are essential to the body’s functioning, and rely on hydrogen bonds to maintain their shapes. The body has to keep the pH at a stable level to make sure the proteins keep their shapes and do their jobs. Hydrogen ions also contribute to the formation of hydrochloric acid in the stomach to digest food, and to form a molecule called pepsin, which helps break down food proteins.

The pH in your blood is tightly controlled to stay in a narrow range, from about 7.2 to 7.4, using carbon dioxide, a cellular waste product of energy metabolism, and inhaled oxygen.

What is Alkaline Water?

By definition water with a pH (potential of hydrogen) greater than 7.4 can be considered alkaline. And simply put, alkaline water is water with a higher concentration of hydrogen ions. These hydrogen ions can be naturally occurring or injected into water.

Not all alkaline water is created equal, and there are two types of alkaline water- natural and artificial alkaline, with each process occurring differently. Common tap water has a pH that often ranges between 6.0 to 7.0.

Naturally Alkaline Water

Water becomes naturally alkaline when it picks up mineral nutrients such as calcium, magnesium, potassium, and other essential minerals from rocks while flowing through streams. These natural minerals affect the pH level and therefore make the water naturally alkaline. Since these nutrients are naturally occurring, you never have to worry about the benefits disappearing from the water. 

Mackay, Idaho. Proud Source Water's water source

Artificial Alkaline Water

One can also artificially make water more alkaline, also known as alkaline ionized water, and this form is more commercially available than its natural version. Most bottled water you find at the grocery store is artificial alkaline water.

To create artificial alkaline water, a process known as water ionized/electrolysis must occur. This process takes tap water and raises its pH by using electricity to separate the incoming water molecules into separate acidic and alkaline sections. The alkaline stream is then bottled and sold. 

How artificial alkaline water is made

(Photo Credit: Ocean Geothermal Energy Foundation)

 Although natural and artificial alkaline water are considered the same to many, when broken apart and analyzed, the chemical makeup is very different. 

Loss of Benefits

Artificial alkaline water can lose the benefits that it claims to have. In fact, it tends to drop its antioxidants after 24hrs and then drop its alkalinity about a week following production. When ionization occurs, the beneficial molecules are weakly-bonded; therefore, the molecules can easily return to their original state, losing the original benefits of alkaline water..

How Proud Source Water Compares

Unlike many other alkaline water brands, Proud Source Water is naturally alkaline with minerals and electrolytes coming straight from the Rocky Mountains and bottled at the source. We deliver water with long-lasting benefits, just as nature intended.