Is Reverse Osmosis Water Good or Bad for You?

Reverse osmosis filtration systems have become a popular in-home option for households looking to improve the quality of their water, but is RO water actually good or bad for your health?

By: Maggie Pace

If you’re looking for a water filtration system for your home, chances are you’ll encounter a variety of options with reverse osmosis capabilities. However there’s a lot of confusion about whether reverse osmosis water is good or bad for you, and if investing in these systems is worth your money.

To help you make a decision, we’ve provided answers to some common questions about reverse osmosis water that will clarify a few misconceptions.


What is reverse osmosis and how does it work?

Reverse osmosis is a water filtration method that involves pushing highly pressurized water through a semi-permeable membrane in order to remove sediment, contaminants, and other unwanted particles from drinking water. 

Reverse osmosis filtration membranes have a pore size of around 0.0001 microns — small enough to let water molecules through, but not big enough for larger contaminants to pass through. As tap water goes through the RO system, the membrane acts like a net — catching contaminants and leaving them behind while water passes through.


Is RO water safe to drink?

Reverse osmosis is considered one of the most effective water filtration methods, removing up to 99.99 percent of contaminants. This method also removes contaminants without the chemicals that are commonly used by municipalities to treat public water, like chlorine and chloramines. So, yes! It’s safe to drink.




Since healthy minerals like calcium, magnesium, and potassium have larger molecules than water, they too get filtered out of the water along with harmful chemicals during the reverse osmosis process. The lack of minerals can result in water that has reduced health benefits, and a “flat” taste that some people find unappealing.

However, systems like Aquasana's SmartFlow® Reverse Osmosis features a remineralizer to restore healthy minerals and improve the taste, pH, and health benefits of your drinking water. For these reasons, we highly recommend going with an RO system that has a remineralizer included, because you may be unable to add a remineralizer later due to compatibility issues.

"Reverse osmosis is considered one of the most effective water filtration methods, removing up to 99.99% of contaminants."
UNDER SINK WATER FILTER

SmartFlow® Reverse Osmosis

High-efficiency reverse osmosis system removes up to 99.99% of 90 contaminants, including fluoride, arsenic, chlorine, and lead.




What is the pH of reverse osmosis water?

Reverse osmosis water has a pH between 6-6.5, where regular water straight from the tap typically has a pH of 7-7.5. Because of its lower pH, reverse osmosis water can taste slightly more acidic, but it won’t have any negative impacts on your health. According to Environmental Protection Agency standards, any drinking water with a pH between 6.5-8.5 is safe for consumption. 

Reverse osmosis water has a lower pH than other water types because it has no mineral content. And because it’s pure water, a glass of reverse osmosis water that’s left out on the counter will pull carbon dioxide out of the air, reducing the pH to as low as 5.5. While it makes for a cool science experiment, reverse osmosis water won’t likely become any more acidic than that. Still, investing in a reverse osmosis system with a remineralizer is a great way to keep the pH (and the taste) of your filtered water consistent.

Get reverse osmosis filtered water for your home

Reverse osmosis is a powerful filtration method that can help make your water safe to drink by removing contaminants, but the process can also strip healthy minerals, reducing the benefits and changing the taste of your tap water. To get the benefits of reverse osmosis without the cons, you can invest in a reverse osmosis system with a remineralizer to replenish healthy minerals that were removed along the way. 

Aquasana’s SmartFlow® Reverse Osmosis filtration system is a highly-rated, highly effective, and proven to reduce five times the contaminants versus other RO systems. It removes 90 different impurities like microplastics and lead, while adding healthy minerals back into your water for optimally alkaline drinking water. Contact us for more information and browse more of our under sink filtration solutions for your best drinking water yet.