The War On The Tiny And Innocent

[Maxmars]

I recently bought a small water-still to make distilled water.  The city water where I live tastes okay but often has a strong chlorine odor which is understandable during the hot summer months.   Recently I tried to grow a sourdough starter and it just wouldn't take.   I read that chlorine will inhibit growth so I switched to distilled and voila!    I now distill an average of 2 gallons of water a day to drink, cook and make coffee with.   The amount of brown "goo" leftover in the boittom of the tank is pretty shocking and indicates a plethora of "stuff" in our water supply.

Don't get me started on Fluoride

@Budgie - I used to homebrew and would ONLY buy grains from Germany/Europe.  They prohibit the use of glyphophosphate which if you do some research on, is one of the worst things you could expose your body to but unfortunately in the US, it's everywhere.

I recommend a documentary called "What's With Wheat" for some great background

I didn't think it was considered healthy to drink straight up distilled water... something about it leeching essential chemicals from you, or some such. 
Or when you distill the water do you have some mineral salts or something to throw in?  Just curious.

[UltraBudgie]

I didn't think it was considered healthy to drink straight up distilled water... something about it leeching essential chemicals from you, or some such. 
Or when you distill the water do you have some mineral salts or something to throw in?  Just curious.

You know, I looked into that claim, because I too only drink distilled water. While I have no definitive proof, I believe it to be complete propaganda. It makes no sense. The amount of mineral content in food far exceeds that in water. Also, the body is quite able to maintain osmotic balance. I regard it as similar to the marketing technique of "pH balanced" water -- although pH is something that can be measured, and no one wants to drink lye or acid, the stomach is quite able to maintain an appropriate environment all on its own.

[Raptured]

I didn't think it was considered healthy to drink straight up distilled water... something about it leeching essential chemicals from you, or some such. 
Or when you distill the water do you have some mineral salts or something to throw in?  Just curious.

Did some reading on this.  Any essential minerals needed are easily supplied by the food we eat.  No harm in sticking to distilled.  I was curious too

[Maxmars]

@UltraBudgie and @Raptured...

Thanks...

I was never quite comfortable with the assertion that drinking distilled was "unsafe or unhealthy"... it seems to lack scientific legitimacy... and it was from a YouTube talking head that was 'selling something' so... 

I was fortunate to have you to ask...  (and now I won't embarrass myself with a casual statement like "You should never drink distilled water.)  

[Sirius]

I guess it depends on your part of the world.  Strong chemicals in water is good here, shows things are still working.  Idiots connect sewage to mains, pipes breaks, dead bodies...needs to be fixed and flushed.  As long as the water doesn't smell I drink it 

[Ray1990]

And be happy.  Stress is worse for your gut than most chemicals (because of the stress chemicals your body produces https://tristategastro.net/how-stress-af...e%20(IBD).

Antibiotics can cause IBS, so does sorbitol...

The gut really is a second brain and effectively has it's own senses and ways to react that are independent of the actual brain. 90% of serotonin we produce is done in the gut.

It's really fascinating stuff to read about, essentially antibiotics and food additives can literally have you hallucinating since the loss of a healthy gut biome means less nutrients (like b 12) and can seemingly have far reaching consequences.

In terms of serotonin there's the other side of the coin too, if the gut produces too much there's a chance of serotonin syndrome.

[UltraBudgie]

Antibiotics can cause IBS, so does sorbitol...

The gut really is a second brain and effectively has it's own senses and ways to react that are independent of the actual brain. 90% of serotonin we produce is done in the gut.

It's really fascinating stuff to read about, essentially antibiotics and food additives can literally have you hallucinating since the loss of a healthy gut biome means less nutrients (like b 12) and can seemingly have far reaching consequences.

In terms of serotonin there's the other side of the coin too, if the gut produces too much there's a chance of serotonin syndrome.

This is a fun rabbit-hole, the idea that the mind embodies not only in the right-brain, left-brain, hind-brain, etc., but also in the aggregate organism of the gut biota, like an ant colony having a seeming singular intelligence, and that's part of us, too. Connecting to the rest of the mind via neurotransmitters and other pathway, rather than the neuron connections elsewhere. Although I understand the gut has the most neurons in the body, other than the cranium, too?

It's weird thinking of ourselves as a symbiotic intelligence; a multi-species aggregate, but I guess that's really what we are. "Trust your gut", indeed.

[Maxmars]

More recent research and analysis has indicated that the human neural system is well-dispersed throughout the body.

They have found neural activity many places outside the brain. The heart, the gut, etc. are all areas of some form of neural processing... always have been.

It might explain the 'phantom' phenomena which accompanies many organ transplants.