Is drinking distilled water safe?

So, what actually happens if someone drinks distilled water? I’ve heard a bunch of different things—some people swear it's totally fine, while others claim it messes with your electrolytes so bad it could actually kill you. Anyone know the deal? Thanks!

I honestly don't think anything is going to happen; it's just purified water. But hey, I can't make any promises (just in case it turns out that Emily Phillips16 actually took out Charles Thompson12 😁 )

Don't you worry, you'll be just fine.

Thanks, but honestly, this whole thing feels pretty weird to me. Someone over at the dental clinic mentioned that electrolyte imbalances are actually documented in some medical textbook... apparently, if certain ions get all out of whack, it can be fatal. I'm not looking to test that out myself, obviously, but I’d love to wrap my head around it. So, if there's any medical pro in here with the actual expertise to weigh in, please jump in! Thanks!

You’d probably drop dead if you tried to survive solely on distilled water.

The same thing would happen if you were just drinking regular tap water.

Look, you can choose to be obsessive about it if you really want, but honestly, you're finding those minerals in plenty of other foods anyway... Water's got the highest calcium levels, sure, plus a decent amount of potassium and sodium too. As for anions, you're mostly looking at carbonates. You get all that stuff from regular food items regardless... Just stick to drinking distilled water if you're that worried, toss an extra couple of apples into your daily routine, salt your meals properly, and everything will turn out just fine. 😉 😁

I honestly can't wrap my head around why anyone would bother drinking distilled water... the taste is just revolting.

I say we start a campaign to switch the municipal supply entirely to distilled water! I’d love to see how people try to buy their produce or even season their food with sea salt once they realize what it's like to live without tap water.👍 😁 😁

Man, I wouldn't touch it either. It honestly didn't even cross my mind until a couple of my buddies were getting into it the other day, arguing over whether it actually does any damage or not... but whatever, I'm still leaning towards the one from the tap being better.

I guess distilled water is probably best for making those antioxidant teas. Like, I think people suggest brewing Taheebo in distilled water specifically. Maybe it’s so the antioxidants don't get wasted fighting all the metals in regular tap water. So, it’s not like it's toxic or anything, but it's probably not the ideal choice for everyday drinking.

Peter Taylor63 said:So, basically, it’s not toxic, but it probably isn't the best thing to be using every single day.

Yeah—it’s not poisonous if you have a little bit once in a while (I mean, even Coca-Cola isn't poison 😉). But it’s definitely risky if you make it a daily habit!

dustycanyon6 said:Look, it’s not like it’s some lethal poison if you just have a little bit here and there... I mean, by that logic, even a Coca-Cola wouldn't be considered toxic either... 😉But man, you really have to be careful with that stuff... it’s just way too risky for anything you'd do on a daily basis or if you're using it all the time...

Nah, you could honestly drink that stuff your entire life instead of sticking to the regular stuff...

Charles Thompson12 said:What actually happens if someone drinks distilled water? Some people claim it's harmless, while others argue it causes electrolyte imbalances that could be fatal. Any insight? Thanks.

It all comes down to how much you're drinking! 😁 😉

(Water is water; as long as there isn't beer involved, it's perfectly fine 😉 )

dustycanyon6 said:Yeah—I mean, it’s not "poison" if you just have a sip here and there (just like how Coca-Cola isn't poison 😉). But using it every single day or making it part of a routine? That’s where things get sketchy!

Distilled water is basically just a tiny step away from being toxic compared to regular water. I don't know if you realized that you can actually kill yourself with plain old tap water. If you chugged—I'm not totally sure of the exact math here—maybe like 50 liters of regular water without eating anything else, you could pretty much drop dead.
It's because of those little electrolytes it carries, which distilled water completely lacks... so honestly, distilled might actually take you out even faster.

But it’s definitely not harmful on its own: like driftinggull13 was saying, you could probably drink nothing but distilled water your whole life instead of regular stuff and be just fine...

Rachel Brooks63 said:If you chugged—I don't even know the exact number—maybe 50 liters of plain water without eating anything else, you’d pretty much drop dead.

There was actually a news story recently about some soldiers who were drinking nothing but regular water during training, and one (or maybe more 🤔) of them ended up dying after just eleven liters. Americans... 🙄 😁

1000 - that was a post from Rachel Brooks63. Huge congrats 👋 👋 :klap: :klap: 🙂

Hey, driftinggull13, thanks so much...

I seriously can't believe I didn't realize—I almost missed such a huge anniversary!

👋 👋

On topic: only eleven liters? That's wild...

I live in Southern Australia, which is easily the driest continent on the planet.
I’m in an area where finding decent water is a constant struggle.
Back when I was living in Whyall, 242 miles we relied on pumped water delivered through massive one-meter diameter pipes, feeding into huge backup concrete tanks.

Almost every house had its own rain barrel connected to a galvanized steel or concrete tank holding over 1,000 liters.
I've been drinking rainwater here for 34 years. It's basically distilled water at this point since I boil everything before making coffee or prepping pet food. The only thing I do is run my drinking water through a filter that strips out 99.9% of all minerals and everything else.

I wouldn't say I'm sentimental, but this is one of those things that makes me feel a bit nostalgic...
The water... back home near Arlington National Cemetery in Washington, D.C., it came from Mount Rainier,
or from the wells out in the Midwest.

Now, the water in Adelaide isn't terrible, but it's way too heavily treated. We really only use it for brushing our teeth, because you need those minerals for dental health.
Plus, we deal with strict restrictions on how much water we can actually use.

And honestly, there are bigger problems than just dealing with rainwater or distilled water!

👋 👋
🙂 😉 😎

Water
Good grief, how many people live entirely in the present moment without having any grasp of history?
Based on some of the theories floating around these forums, the entire population of the island should be dead by now. But, shockingly, they aren't.
Distilled water is essentially just rainwater—only it’s been distilled naturally.
Look at the old sailors. Back in the days of sailing ships, they’d collect water by connecting tanks to the catchment systems on the sails; whenever it rained, they filled up on distilled water.
Now, look at the flip side:
Drink 15 liters of water and you're a dead man.
Eat 10 kg of bacon and you’ll end up in the same spot.
In my view, any kind of extreme excess leads to total imbalance.
I just caught Jamie Clark74's post.
Jamie Clark74, you're the only one here who actually thinks like I do—bravo.

steelsailor17 said:Water
Man, so many people just live entirely in the moment and have zero clue about history.
Based on what some of you guys are saying on these forums, the entire population of the island should be dead by now. But clearly, that's not happening.
Distilled water is basically just rainwater—it’s just how nature does its distillation.
Look at old-school sailors. Back on those classic sailing ships, they’d get their water by hooking up tanks to the rain catchments on the sails, filling them up with distilled water whenever it rained.
It works both ways, too:
Drink 15 liters of water all at once and you're a goner.
But eat 10 kg of bacon in one sitting? Same result.
I really think any kind of extreme excess is just going to throw your body out of whack.
Just saw Jamie Clark74's post.
Jamie Clark74, you're the only one here actually making sense... nice work.

What were you even reading when you checked this thread? I mean, almost everyone except the OP said exactly that...

God, I can't stand the people who try to act smart without actually reading the topic first!👎