Add Minerals to Distilled water?

[WaterLine]

I currently have a water softener installed and I wish to get rid of the extra sodium for my drinking water. So I figured a reverse osmosis system is the best, (only?) way of doing so.

After searching around for a system I see alot of people complaining about health issues when drinking too much distilled water over time.

Is there some minerals I can add back to that water after the process?

Or do I simply mix it with tap water?

Yes I know I can just use potassium chloride in the softener, but thats really expensive over a long period of time.

Thanks

[OldBaldy]

The Kinetico K5 RO system has a mineral cartridge as an option. It supplies magnesium, calcium, and phosphates (for distribution of magnesium and calcium) into the filtered water. We are thinking of purchasing this but don't have any experience with it yet (still doing research). There may be other RO systems with mineral cartridges.

[Andy CWS]

I currently have a water softener installed and I wish to get rid of the extra sodium for my drinking water. So I figured a reverse osmosis system is the best, (only?) way of doing so.
ROs are the only effective way to remove sodium from drinking water. Distillation will also, but it is not very economical or produces much volume. Also, distillation may not remove VOCs.

After searching around for a system I see alot of people complaining about health issues when drinking too much distilled water over time.
The biggest opponents of RO water are those trying to sell something else. There are no negative health issues concerning drinking RO water. Yet there are a multitude of benefits. The arguments against are extremely weak and motivated by directing others to 'their' recommendations.

Is there some minerals I can add back to that water after the process?
Minerals for health and well-being are to be gathered by diet, and perhaps some suppliments. I believe water should be a transporter of nutrients, not a supplier. Think of water as a cleasing/flushing source. To gain the adequate amount of nutrition, focus on your diet (oatmeal instead of Bacon McMuffin for breakfast). If you relied on water to supply nutrients you would have to drink scores of gallons every day and then you run the greater risk over-hydration.

Or do I simply mix it with tap water?
That would defeat the purpose of the RO, afterall, wouldn't it?


Yes I know I can just use potassium chloride in the softener, but thats really expensive over a long period of time.
Cost of that is nuts... And woulnd't replacing sodium with potassium be a horse of a different color?

Thanks

[Andy CWS]

The Kinetico K5 RO system has a mineral cartridge as an option. It supplies magnesium, calcium, and phosphates (for distribution of magnesium and calcium) into the filtered water. We are thinking of purchasing this but don't have any experience with it yet (still doing research). There may be other RO systems with mineral cartridges.

I'm not sure about those phosphates....!

[OldBaldy]

What concerns you about the phosphates? They are listed on the filter package and the content is 13-38 ppm.

[Andy CWS]

...... John Quest plastic stop valves.

I think you mean John Guest fittings. John Quest was the former kid cartoon star along with the late "Race" Bannon (died in an ultralite accident in Thailand) and his close friend Hadji, who now resides in Mombai and serves as a prefect in the local government.

John, now a single father of three, John, Jr., Caroline, and Shamine, is currently living in Northern California as an owner of a small winery near Fess Parker's winery. His father, Dr. Quest, also lives in California and occasionally writes articles for a local travel magazine.

John doesn't use plastic stop valves in his wine production or water treatment equipment.

[Garythemessage]

I have the water softener and reverse osmosis filter system. We use the RO water for cooking, drinking, coffee, tea, etc. My wife and I have studied far and wide on the subject of mineral consumption and the effect of drinking water in this matter. As has been said in this thread: water is more a carrier for nutrition rather than an actual source. Minerals suspended in water are most often excreted from the body and not even absorbed. You best bet for nutrition lies in your food - not your water. BUT! Good, pure drinking water is very important. My wife supplements her drinking water with "Willard's Water," which is not a nutrient supplement but a mechanism to help transport nutrition within the body. There are some easy and excellent ways to supplement your diet with organic minerals. We sprout our own sprouts. They are filled with base nutritional and organic minerals, taken directly from the soil. We have a small above-ground garden and provide it with soil we mix ourselves (peat moss, vermiculite, and our own highly varied compost). You don't need a massive garden! Just enough to eat something regularly, to supplement your other foods. I'm not much on a total 100% pill supplement solution. Certainly some pill/powder supplements can be very convenient and helpful, but I believe in diversity in nutrition! My wife has cured my foot and leg cramps with an external (liquid) magnesium product. Magnesium will penetrate right trough your skin! (be careful though, you can overdo magnesium if you go nuts with it). I also suggest fresh caught fish (do not overcook or deep fry!) and fresh mushrooms (from a reputable dealer, try your local farmers market or county square). You've already got the most important factor needed in nutrition: desire. Make it a hobby, continue to ask questions and search for the answers. After all, what is more important than your body and the stuff that makes it up? My wife and I have a blast searching for good health!

Oh! Oh! Forgot! We have 4 different sized cast iron skillets. Three of them are nearly 80 years old (made by my great-grandfather). We use cast iron almost exclusively for cooking and frying (I know, I know, you shouldn't fry...) We even have a cast iron pizza pan. Then, the coup de gracie: real, honest-to-god, sea salt. Sea salt. Get it. Use it. Toss the white stuff in the trash, or use it to kill slugs.

[Genie @Healthy Living Now]

Hi Waterline, you do lose the minerals with the Reverse Osmosis system and distillation as well; however, making the decision to drink our water straight from the source should not be an option. While you can add minerals lost through distillation or reverse osmosis to your diet, you cannot remove the impurities from the water without getting rid of some minerals. Two ways you can get back those well needed minerals are 1) from foods and 2) dietary supplements. I recommend getting most of them back from foods. Here are a list of some foods that are packed with minerals:

Calcium - green leafy vegetables (such as broccoli, cabbage and okra), soya beans, tofu, soya drinks with added calcium, nuts, bread and anything made with fortified flour, and fish where you eat the bones, such as sardines.

Iron - liver, meat, beans, nuts, dried fruit (such as dried apricots), whole grains (such as brown rice), fortified breakfast cereals, soybean flour and most dark green leafy vegetables (such as watercress and curly kale).

Magnesium - green leafy vegetables (such as spinach) and nuts. Other sources include bread, fish, meat and dairy foods.

Phosphorous - red meat, dairy foods, fish, poultry, bread, rice and oats.

Potassium - fruits such as bananas, citrus fruits, potatoes, tomatoes, broccoli, mushrooms, nuts and seeds, fish, poultry, beef, dark leafy green vegetables and dairy products.

Sulphur - eggs, beans, garlic, onions and pulses. Both red and white meat are also good sources of sulphur.

Zinc - oysters, crab, lobster, red meat, poultry, beans, nuts, whole grains, fortified breakfast cereals, and dairy products.

Try to include as much of these foods in your daily diets, preferably from an organically grown local market. Mass produced foods are not as nutrient rich and this is where supplement is needed to add what the foods cannot.

Mixing your water again with tap water will only defeat the purpose of cleansing your water in the first place. Allow foods and/or supplements to replace what was lost.