When we go to buy we must be demanding and not take the first thing that is put in front of our noses. In the case of mineral water, we should also apply this maxim. Perhaps you will find a display of waters on sale that cost half as much as the rest, but… Are they the most suitable for promoting health?
Other brands are promoted as “weakly mineralized” and are not exactly cheap. What we don’t know is which one is best for us and what is the ideal amount of calcium, sodium and magnesium that the ideal mineral water should have.
Urologist Cristina Barrera has published a video on TikTok and Instagram where she explains what levels of minerals the water should ideally have.
In his video, Barrera explains that he pays close attention to mineralization. Contrary to what most people think, weakly mineralized water is not better, since it would be a kind of “empty water”, without any extra contribution of minerals in the diet.
Apart from hydration, water provides very important mineral elements. First of all, sodium should be low, since it is the main component of salt. To do well it should have less than 10 mg/l.
Given that we should consume approximately one gram of calcium daily, the doctor recommends that waters have a moderate calcium content, between 50 and 100 mg/l.
Although there are not many brands with this characteristic, the urologist recommends choosing one that has a high magnesium content (at least 10 mg/l).
If we suffer from lithiasis or kidney stones, first of all, you should drink a lot of water. You should also look at what type of formations you have, whether they are uric acid or calcium oxalate. If they are the second type, you should choose waters with a low or moderate amount of calcium.
Additionally, you should look for water that has the lowest possible sodium content. And since magnesium prevents stones from forming, water with a lot of magnesium will be beneficial.
If what you have are uric acid stones, apart from water low in sodium and rich in magnesium, you should look for water that has bicarbonate, because it will alkalize your urine and you will have less uric acid.
Of course, always make sure that this baking soda is accompanied by low levels of sodium.
Although Cristina Barrera does not comment on which brand she buys, she has given a clue as to the type of water she prefers to buy. In one of the comments in the first video, responding to a question, she acknowledges that “with everything I have said, I like to choose waters that I know will prevent me from forming stones. I propose them in my part II.” That is to say: after everything she has said, she opts for those with little calcium, little sodium and a lot of magnesium.
This article was originally published on RAC1.
