The Arab Healthy Water Association is a non-governmental,
non-profit body,
legally registered at the Ministry of Social Affairs (MOSA) by decree
No. 6086/2005, Cairo-Egypt.
Rough Draft
Magnesium prevents 25-40% of heart disease; cramps, stroke, asthma, migraine, and more. For benefits, see: http://www.MgWater.com
1 gram MgSO4 = 98 mg elemental Mg. Add 1.12 grams of Magnesium Sulphate to each liter of water, to achieve a concentration of 110 mg/L magnesium. However, there is a minority view that the sulphate is cardiotoxic in the long term, and that other compounds of magnesium may be healthier, especially magnesium bicarbonate.
http://www.mineralwaters.org/ lists 79 brands of water containing at least 110 mg/L magnesium, which indicates that this level is generally accepted as safe.
Silicon promotes strong bones, cartilage.
Silicic acid has been used to achieve 11.25 mg/L of elemental silicon, as per In Search of the World's Best Water. Supplement range is 5-20 mg/day, according to http://www.healingwithnutrition.com/mineral.html
At http://www.mineralwaters.org100 brands of water are listed having SiO2 content of at least 40 mg/L, which indicates that this level is generally accepted as safe.
At http://www.mineralwaters.org221 brands of water are listed having calcium content of 220 mg/L or more, which indicates that this level is generally accepted as safe.
Adding Calcium salts to Water:
"Soft" waters in non-limestone areas and rainwater contains little or no calcium, which is necessary for health. It may also be acid enough to dissolve traces of toxic metals. Calcium may be best added as calcium sulphate, which does not cause lime scale, and made alkaline with a small amount of calcium hydroxide, or carbonate.
RDA is 0.15-0.18 mg/day. Prevents goiter.
At http://www.mineralwaters.org 19 brands of water are listed having iodine content of 0.12 mg/L or more, which indicates that this level is generally accepted as safe.
Boron builds strong bones.
At http://www.mineralwaters.orgof about 2000 brands of water in the world, only 3 brands of water are listed as containing borondioxide (BO2), averaging 0.9 mg/L. Elemental boron supplementation of 3-9 mg/day are commonly recommended. http://jctonic.com/include/minerals/boron.htm
Lithium promotes mental health.
At http://www.mineralwaters.org 19 brands of water are listed having lithium content of 1 mg/L or more, which indicates that this level is generally accepted as safe.
Fluoride may prevent dental cavities.
At http://www.mineralwaters.org 933 brands of water are listed having fluoride content, with a median of .3 mg/L, which indicates that this level is generally accepted as safe. See http://www.mineralwaters.org for overdose concerns.
The American Academy of Pediatrics and the Canadian Paediatric Society both recommend that water contain 1 mg/liter of fluoride for children ages 6-16, and about half that for children 3-6 years of age.
North American adults generally get enough fluoride from food, with an average fluoride daily intake from food of 1.8 mg.
An emerging view is that topical, applied fluoride (as in toothpaste) can be beneficial, but ingested (swallowed) fluoride supplements do more harm than good. There are experts on both sides of the question, but the anti-fluoride case appears to be stronger.
Historically, the aluminum smelting industry (e.g. Alcoa) needed to get rid of large quantities of toxic fluoride waste as a byproduct of aluminum smelting, and apparently convinced everyone that it would be good to put in water supplies--but the decision was made without adequate studies, on a political basis. Many of the pro-fluoride studies appear to be flawed or biased.
The most convenient fluoride additive is:
"Fluorosilicic acid" which is also called "Hydrofluorosilicic acid", H2SiF6.
The advantage of this additive is that it is easy to dilute--not requiring anything but quick mixing--and it adds some healthful silicon to the water.
Fluorosilicic acid is commonly 77% water, which makes it easy to dilute. One liter of Fluorosilicic acid will treat 71,428 liters of water, to provide 1 ppm fluoride in the water.
Cheaper alternatives are "Sodium Fluorosilicate" also known as Sodium Silicofluoride" Na2SiF6--and "Sodium Fluoride" NaF. Both of these have to be dissolved, which may make them too complicated for bottling operations.
Fluoride vendors include:
Pencco Inc. (800) 864-1742
Solvay Fluorides Inc. (800) 325-3332
Potassium prevents heart disease.
At http://www.mineralwaters.org100 brands of water are listed having potassium content of 41 mg/L or more, which indicates that this level is generally accepted as safe.
Copper deficiency prevents the uptake of magnesium.
At http://www.mineralwaters.org24 brands of water are listed having copper content of at least 0.02 mg/L, which indicates that this level is generally accepted as safe.
Selenium: Under construction.
Sodium is necessary for many things.
At http://www.mineralwaters.org1000 brands of water are listed having sodium content of 13 mg/L or more, which indicates that this level is generally accepted as safe. The FDA considers water containing only 6 mg/L to be "sodium-free". The RDA for sodium is 2000-3000 mg/day, but some people are sodium-sensitive, and have to restrict their intake.
Much of the information presented here has come from Bill Sardi's
excellent book,
In Search of the World's Best Water, available at:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0970564090?tag=openlibr-20