What is the Difference Between Distilled and Hydrogenated Water

Read our explanation of a quite common question of what is the difference between distilled and hydrogenated water in the real world and how both relate to us.

It's all about purity in water.

There is quite some confusion out there when it comes to distillation, hydrogenated water, and pure natural water; that is why the online query “What is the difference between distilled and hydrogenated water” is still trending. Putting the comparison aside, it is worth mentioning that water is life, and its purity greatly impacts the life it gives birth to. This purity is naturally altered or sometimes artificially introduced to change it into other materials. The two most common forms of such altered forms of water are distilled water (chemically not altered) and hydrogenated water.

Distillation is a cleaning process in which boiling, condensation, and purification are done to yield a pure substance. In this case, water is distilled by first heating it until it evaporates into steam and is later collected with rapid cooling. In this way, the end result is pure water free from other impurities. This happens because the impurities in the water are usually minerals, which are filtered out due to their higher melting points and basic chemistry.

Hydrogenated water, just like hydrogenated oils, is another form of water molecules that are introduced with extra hydrogen ions. Remember electrolysis, the fascinating process we learned in chemistry classes? That process is directly involved in creating hydrogenated molecules.

When electricity does its thing during electrolysis, it breaks apart the water molecule into hydrogen gas and oxygen, which we all know, but what's interesting here is that the hydrogen gas produced here is pulled back by the solution and is then infused into the water molecules.

This literally increases hydrogen content in the water molecules, hence becoming hydrogenated. So, what's the deal about it? Well, this “extra” hydrogen is studied to be more beneficial than just your plain water you drink every day. And lastly, pure natural water is really a combination of water and added minerals coming from Mother Nature herself. The content of minerals depends largely on where this natural water was obtained from.

So, what is the difference between distilled and hydrogenated water? 

1. Enhancement vs. Purification

Hydrogenated water is literally altered, and it is done by chemical alteration of its molecule; more hydrogen is added through certain procedures. The distilled water is just plain water with a very low level of molecules other than the ones of water.

2. Antioxidant Vs Hydration

Hydrogenated water is studied to work against the oxidative stress in the human body. Limited studies are available, but early research supports this claim. Distilled water is plain and clean water that can provide only hydration. In fact, drinking only distilled water is not recommended, as it lacks essential minerals.

3. Concentration of Minerals:

Hydrogenated water can have mineral content since it is not distilled or purified at the scale of distilled water and is pretty much the normal drinking water we drink every day. Distilled water, on the other hand, is treated as pure water and has no mineral content, at least as labeled.

In reality, there is always some content of other unwanted minerals in distilled water, but these are at very, very low levels, which are even hard to detect due to the 100-degree boiling point of water, so it is regarded as pure.

4. Applications:

Distilled water has been linked with scientific settings, including medical and industrial uses where high purity is needed. It is often used in premium cosmetics, where its property of being free from contaminants and minerals is important. Its counterpart is tagged to be healthy water used as a well-being drink, although more profound research is still pending.

5. Mineral Content

Distilled water is filtered from all minerals essential and nonessential whatsoever. So, if you consume it, you will not get hydration with electrolyte balance. Hydrogenated water also lacks mineral content but can have a low content of minerals as impurities along with its added hydrogen supply with water molecules.

Wrapping Up:

To conclude a rather confusing topic of what is the difference between distilled and hydrogenated water, we can conclude that both are water, one being very pure and the other one with added hydrogen atoms, touted to be a healthier option than your regular tap water. Distilled water is still not 100 percent pure, and hydrogenated water's anti-oxidation properties are also not heavily supported.