Poisoning from RO
>Guys, please don't write about how I should have flushed the system. I flushed it as instructed, and even with a surplus. Today, the system has been flushing almost non-stop for 4 days, and the pure water from the system still irritates my gastrointestinal tract.
>With the help of AI, I discovered a recipe for restoring neutral pH (boiling the water for at least 30 seconds) and adding a pinch of salt. So far, this is the only way I can drink a large cup of tea made with this water.
I installed a reverse osmosis system (geyser allegro optima) and on the 2nd day (I drank water normally on the 1st day), I made a strong coffee for me and my 75-year-old mother's using filtered water, and almost immediately, both of us experienced all the symptoms of poisoning, including vomiting, headaches, and today, we are much better, but we are both exhausted as if we had been seriously ill.
Gemini, after a long correspondence, suggested that the post-filter (coconut activated carbon) was not properly rinsed, resulting in overly alkaline water.
How could this have happened, and what could have caused it?
So, my preliminary conclusions after 2 days of investigation:
Manufacturers sell reverse osmosis filters without a mineralizer, calling them "drinking" filters, which is not entirely accurate, as the water from these filters in its pure form can be harmful under certain conditions due to two factors:
- Reduced pH. Filters without a mineralizer often give water at an outlet with PH6 or even less, which will not be a problem for an absolutely healthy person, but it will be a problem if: (the effect is cumulative) drinking on an empty stomach, brewing strong coffee in such water, weak or recovering gastrointestinal mucosa.
- The effect of "Osmotic shock". Since RO water has a PPM of only 10-50 (+usually a PH below 7.0), it will inevitably remove minerals from your body, which your body may not like. As a result, you may experience short-term mid-heavy discomfort (especially in hot weather) and long-term local mineral deficiencies.
I ask real experts to comment on my findings in order to inform people. I came to these conclusions after two days of suffering, not only for myself, but also for an elderly person, which deeply affected me and made me feel that I had been deceived by the manufacturer, as there was no mention of the two most important aspects of water from such a system, and there were no warnings.