Alkaline Water Lowers Cholesterol and Heart Disease Risk in Rats
- Authors
- Z. Salemi, , H. Farahani, , B. Moradi, , R. Sharif Moghadasi,
- Journal
- Alborz University Medical Journal
- Year
- 2015
- DOI
- 10.18869/acadpub.aums.4.3.184
- Study Type
- Rat
- Outcome
- Positive
- Peer Reviewed
- Yes
- Country
- Iran
- Health Condition
- High Cholesterol
- Body System
- Cardiovascular
TL;DR
Drinking alkaline water may help lower bad cholesterol and fats in the blood, potentially reducing the risk of heart-related diseases.
Key Finding
Alkaline water reduced cholesterol and triglyceride levels in rats, with some reduction in LDL cholesterol, but had no significant effect on HDL cholesterol.
Summary
Researchers gave alkaline water (water with added minerals that make it less acidic) to rats for 32 weeks and measured how it affected their blood fat levels. Rats drinking alkaline water had lower cholesterol and triglycerides (a type of blood fat) compared to control rats, though results were mixed for LDL (bad cholesterol) and HDL (good cholesterol) didn't change significantly.
Practical Takeaway
This rat study suggests alkaline water may help improve certain blood fat markers, but the results were inconsistent across different measures and this is animal research only. Much more research—including human studies—would be needed before drawing conclusions about whether alkaline water could benefit human heart health.
Abstract (excerpt)
Backgrounds: Alkaline water could be prepared through both electro-chemical and natural ways and previous studies have shown that alkaline water scavenges oxygen radicals in cell culture. It’s expected that alkaline water has positive and preventive effects on diseases related to stress oxidative…