Only oxygen is more essential than water in sustaining the life of all living organisms. Human beings can live for several weeks without food, but only a few days without water. The daily cleansing of wastes from each cell, the flushing of the alimentary canal and the purifying of the blood are all dependent on our water consumption. The quality of our tissues, their performance, and their resistance to disease and injury are linked to the quality and quantity of water we drink.
The wrong kind of water can pollute, clog up and hinder health and vitality. But what is the right kind of water?
Tap water is not a safe option: besides the cocktail of chemicals intentionally added, including toxic chlorine and fluorine, it can contain lead and other heavy metals leached from pipes, along with any number of synthetic poisonous substances that seep into the water supply via industrial and agricultural pollution. Spring or well water is also no guarantee of purity: today the underground rivers (aquifers) are recipients of myriad man-made chemicals absorbed into the earth from farms, lawns, and factory discharges. Filtered water is not a reliable purification method: too many chemicals pass through and residues remain that can be a source of toxicity. And tests that claim quality are no cause for reassurance – too many of the poisons are impossible to detect because detection systems have yet to be developed.
In today’s increasingly chemicalized world, the purest, safest water is steam distilled – the closest thing to pure H20, which is what nature intended for our bodies. Rainwater is distilled water, created by natural evaporation, condensation, before falling to the earth as precipitation. In pre-industrial times, rainwater sustained populations, but now becomes polluted merely passing through the atmosphere. Fruits and vegetables contain distilled water, but unless organically grown, produce also contains chemical residues from pesticides, herbicides, fertilizers, etc.
Steam distilled water is the best choice because the prolonged boiling process of distillation kills virtually all types of microorganisms, including bacteria, viruses and parasites and is virtually 99 % free of all impurities, including heavy metals and most chemicals. Freshly made, it has a pleasant, pure taste.
The biggest misconception about distilled water is that, because it contains no minerals, the body will somehow be deprived of vital nutrients. The fallacy is in thinking that we can readily absorb minerals in whatever form they may enter our bodies. As an article in the Natural Food Associates Newsletter explains: “Unfortunately, most people fail to realize that the body can only use ORGANIC minerals effectively…Plants, however, can make use of inorganic minerals, converting them into a form which the body can assimilate. Plants, therefore, are the proper source of minerals.”
Tap, spring, filtered and other bottled waters absorb INORGANIC minerals from rocks or soil they have flowed over, plus all the chemical contaminants picked up along the
way, which can cause all kinds of mischief. As the newsletter article notes, inorganic minerals “are not absorbed, but will remain, resulting in arthritis, hardening of the arteries, stones, spurs, etc.” Clearly, food is our best source of mineral nutrition NOT water.
Studies have shown that, because it contains no minerals, distilled water acts as a solvent, picking up inorganic mineral and toxin deposits accumulated in the joints, artery walls, or wherever such deposits occur, and carrying them out. Gall stones and kidney stones get smaller and smaller until they can safely pass through their ducts. Little by little arthritic pains lessens as joints come to be more supple and movable. Arteries gradually become more elastic as blood pressures trend down toward normal. Skin is more hydrated and vibrant. Overall health and vitality improve and the body feels and becomes, in effect, younger!
Perhaps the best example of distilled water’s safety and benefits is Norman W. Walker, D.Sc., inventor of the first hydraulic vegetable juicer and nutritional health expert, who was the earliest and most forceful distilled water advocate. His research confirmed the gentle cleansing action of distilled water in the body, leeching out contaminants and relieving a whole host of ills. Walker lived energetically to the age of 99.
The Natural Food Associates Newsletter lists other benefits: “A baby’s rash disappears if distilled water is used in bathing an infant. A spot on a fabric is more easily washed out and will not leave a ring if distilled water is used.”
So what is the best source of distilled water? Bottled distilled is expensive (not to mention a pain to lug home!) and the quality is not assured because it comes in plastic jugs which can affect purity and taste. A home water distiller is the easiest, most inexpensive way to go. There are many models available, from compact manual countertops to larger automatic units. (Most all have automatic shut-off, so you just turn on and go about your day.) The process is simple: tap water is poured into a stainless steel boiling chamber, heated to evaporation, then cooled, condensed and collected for drinking, while the impurities remain behind in the tank. Anyone who has ever cleaned the boiling chamber of their distiller will be struck by how much gunk came out of the water instead of into their body!
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The reality today is that synthetic toxic chemicals have become a ubiquitous presence in our food, air and water. This is not a reason for paranoia or despair. Trying to achieve absolute purity in an impure world is not possible, nor wise, as it would only add more stress that can be toxic to health. But there are some areas where we can take charge. Our bodies are 70% water, so it’s worthwhile putting the purest water into it – water that will flush out inorganic minerals and pollutants that would otherwise be retained in vital organs and glands. Be on the safe side: whenever possible, drink distilled water.
