Risks of Distilled Water

What Is Distilled Water? 

Distilled water is a type of purified water that has been boiled until it evaporates. The water vapor is then condensed back into liquid form, leaving the water devoid of impurities.

At first glance this sounds great. However, the term “impurities” doesn’t refer only to the unwanted things in your water. The term includes a wide range of dissolved and suspended solids–from contaminants to minerals. While we all want our water free from contaminants, the non-discriminatory distillation process strips water of the good and the bad.

Potential Health Risks of Drinking Distilled Water

There are a handful possible negative effects that come with drinking demineralized (or distilled) water regularly. The World Health Organization claims distilled water “might not be fully appropriate for consumption” because it: 

• Can cause metals and other materials to leach from pipes and storage containers
• Can lead to low intake of essential elements and micronutrients

While distilled water is better than contaminated water, it is not better than regular tap water. 

Why does distilled water cause pipes and storage containers to leach undesirable contaminants?

If you store distilled water for drinking, you may be at risk of consuming parts of the container you store the water in. Because low- or demineralized water is molecularly unstable, it is “highly aggressive” to materials with which it contacts. Subsequently, distilled water can leach undesirable compounds from any material it comes in contact with.

Distilled water more readily dissolves plastics, heavy metals, and some organic substances from pipes, coatings, storage tanks and containers. As a result, if you do drink distilled water, we recommend that you store it in glass.

Why does distilled water taste worse than regular tap water?

It is often reported that distilled water doesn’t taste as good as tap water. Some even claim it is less thirst quenching. When distilled water is created through the boiling process, the dissolved air within leaves the water, resulting in a flat taste. Additionally, along with the loss of the dissolved air, minerals such as calcium, magnesium and potassium are also eliminated, which, when present, often contributes to water’s pleasant taste.

While neither flat taste nor lack of thirst-quenching are considered to be health effects, they could negatively affect the amount of water one drinks.

How does distilled water impact nutrient intake?

While regular tap water is generally not a major source of nutrients, it does contribute to your overall intake — particularly when it comes to calcium and magnesium. As noted by the World Health Organization (WHO), the typical modern diet may provide inadequate amounts of minerals and microelements. 

Elements in drinking water are usually present as free ions (rather than being bound to other substances as they are in food), making them more readily absorbed in the body.

In fact, the same WHO report goes on to discuss a handful of epidemiological studies from the past half century that indicate that water low in calcium and magnesium (also known as "soft water") is often associated with:

• Increased morbidity and mortality from cardiovascular disease
• A higher risk of fracture in children
• Certain neurodegenerative diseases
• Preterm birth and low weight at birth

What Are the Uses of Distilled Water?

While we don’t typically recommend drinking distilled water, it certainly has its merits. Distilled water is often used for in laboratories for experiments, as well as for a variety of industrial applications. It is also a good choice for humidifiers, aquariums, and for use in cooling systems (as many many minerals found in tap water can damage lead-acid batteries).

What it Boils Down To

While we (generally) recommend drinking tap water over distilled water, this only holds true if you know what’s flowing from your tap. You should always test your water before making a definitive decision as to what is the best choice for you. If you find that you have low-quality or contaminated tap water, then distilled water is a better (and safer) choice

Check our our mail-to-lab water test kit collections to make an informed decision or send us a message at support@mytapscore.com for more information!