Isn’t Distilled Water Just as Good as CatWater?
I recently interviewed Pierre-Luc Gingras in Montreal on Dog Talk® — the developer of CatWater — about the health benefits of this feline-specific water which was clinically proven at the University of Montreal School of Veterinary Medicine to reduce minerals in cats’ urinary tracts. When one of my listeners wrote in and said “I’ve been using distilled water for years, it’s just as good,” I wanted to be able to scientifically explain to her why this was not true. Pierre-Luc explained as follows:
The water used in demineralized and distilled waters usually comes from city treatment plants and contains all the chemicals used in these plants, such as chlorine. The method usually used in demineralization is reverse osmosis, a type of filtration that can expose the water to bacterial contamination. Additionally, the filtration process does not completely demineralize the water — there are always some minerals left. CatWater is a distilled natural spring water, which means that it contains no minerals.
What Does the pH Level Mean and Why Does it Matter?
The pH level in water refers to the degree of acidity or alkalinity and can be measured using a pH scale. This scale ranges from 0 to 14, with 7 marking neutrality. As such, anything below 7 on the pH scale is considered acidic while anything over 7 is deemed alkaline (or basic). Ideally, a cat’s urine should have a pH level ranging between 6.2 and 6.4, which si why CatWater guarantees a lightly acidic water which has the ideal pH environment for cats, between 6.2 and 6.4.
By comparison, the water we drink every day normally has a pH ranging between 7.2 and 7.8, which is too alkaline for a cat’s needs. Distilled water from the supermarket has an average pH of 5.4 which is too acidic for cats. A pH level that is too high or too low in a cat’s urine can potentially lead to the formation of crystals and/or stones which can lead to problems and pain in urination or even become a medical emergency for the kitty.
So raise a glass to your kitty’s health — Cheers! Salute!, L’chaim! Sante! Prost! Salud!
—Tracie Hotchner
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