Last Updated on August 14, 2023 by HBW2
WHO recommends a minimum of 20 mg/l and an optimum of about 40-80 mg/l of calcium in drinking water for a maximum beneficial health effect. All the reverse osmosis (ro) water purifier purifies the untreated water to a TDS level of 10 ppm. If you convert the 10 ppm to mg/L it will be just 0.1 mg/L. So a huge difference is seen in between daily calcium requirement and the calcium concentration in ro purifiers’ treated water. Therefore taking ro water for a long time negatively affects the health of bone and teeth.
What is TDS?
TDS stands for total dissolved solids, and represents the total concentration of dissolved substances in water. TDS is made up of inorganic salts, as well as a small amount of organic matter. Common inorganic salts that can be found in water include calcium, magnesium, potassium and sodium, which are all cations, and carbonates, nitrates, bicarbonates, chlorides and sulfates, which are all anions. Calcium and magnesium are two major constituents in the normal water. Excess of these substances make the water hard. Hard water is not good for drinking. The prominent ro water filters separate all those substances and drop the TDS level to almost 10 ppm.
What is the health problem arising due to the demineralized treated water?
The main constituents of bone and teeth is calcium. Calcium accounts for 1.5 – 2.0% of our total body weight. Most of it is stored in the skeleton as a primary structural building block. Other functions of calcium are the regulation of enzymes and hormones, blood clotting, nerve transmission and muscle/vascular contraction. Thus calcium is necessary for maintaining healthy bones and muscles, we all know that. In addition, this mineral is essential to heart and cardiovascular health, simply because some blood vessels are lined with muscles, and our heart is a muscle, too.
Calcium deficiency leads to a decrease in bone mineral content, resulting in weaker bones and ultimately an increased risk for fractures.
According to the EU nutrition labelling regulation daily requirement of calcium of an adult 800mg. This calcium will come from food which we are taking daily. In addition to that drinking water is other major source of calcium. Not only calcium other minerals will also come from drinking water. The RO water contains nearly no minerals (TDS less than 10 ppm) including calcium in it. That is why it is harmful to bones.
What are the preventive measures one should keep in mind?
First of all, recently there some ro water purifier companies available in the market which are giving ro membrane with added mineral cartridge. This mineral cartridge adding the essential minerals like calcium, magnesium, potassium etc which increases the pH level to 9.5. Making the treated water to some extent alkaline. The added minerals are fulfilling the daily requirement of minerals to some extent. So you can upgrade your ro to added mineral cart ridged ro.
Secondly, calcium rich foods should be taken daily. These are as follows:
Dairy products
Milk and dairy products are among the best calcium sources. Just a few servings per day can give you all the calcium you need. When choosing dairy products, don’t forget to look at the calories, fat and sodium, which can be high in some dairy foods. Yogurt is very good source of calcium. Yogurt also provides the gut friendly essential bacteria.
Yogurt
Vegetables and fruit juices
Leafy greens and broccoli are excellent sources of calcium. Fortified orange juice has more calcium than a glass of milk.
Broccoli
Nuts and seeds
Some nuts and seeds contain a robust amount of calcium. Try incorporating chia or sesame seeds into a smoothie, salad or your morning cereal. Almonds, figs are also rich source of calcium.
Sesame
Pulses
Pulses like moong dal, Chana, Moth beans, massor dal etc are the rich source of calcium.
Pulses
If you are facing some bone and teeth related issues please consult with doctors and take proper medicines. Stay healthy.