Nutrition

The Kangen™ Water Alkalizer/Ionizer

The SD501 — only water machine to be certified as a medical device (Japan)

Do Enagic's water machines (available on prescription in Japan) produce the world's best man-made water for health maintenance, healing, detoxification, prevention & eco-friendly sanitary/pest-control applications among commercial drinking water filter systems for home use?

Introduction to Kangen™ water
I learn more about Kangen™ (ionized/alkalinized anti-oxidant) water
Alkalinity vs. acidity to prevent sickness: how can Kangen alkaline ionized anti-oxidant water help?
Commonly observed effects of drinking Kangen™ water
On the importance of drinking fresh Kangen™ water
A fountain of youth?
Just hype and resultant placebo effect?
A water of all trades
A company showing some holistic perspective
Sacred healing springs and man-made water
Notes on bottled water
Can anyone drink Kangen water?
Why Enagic's water alkalizers/ionizers eclipse the competition by far
5-year warranty
Buying a Kangen™ water machine
Payment options
What if you don't have the money to buy a Kangen™ water machine
No double-blind placebo-controlled studies
Negative experiences
Water alkalizers/ionizers: possible side effects & controversy
Kangen Water negative testimonials: people who didn't benefit from drinking Enagic's Alkalizers/Ionizers water
On cheaper water technologies promoting detoxification & healing

Introductory note and caveat, February 5, 2009

The following article while containing some interesting information is also partially based on the incomplete knowledge available to me at the time of its writing. It will thus be updated, corrected and expanded as soon as I make the time for doing so.

My first introduction to Kangen™ water

After reading many testimonials and watching first-hand what the simple act of drinking water (even any water) or stepping up one's water intake can do in terms of healing, even in some cases in which recovery from cancer was reported^[4], there is no doubt in my mind regarding the importance of consuming liberal amounts of water and/or fresh organic juices and/or raw organic fruit and vegetables to further health and healing of possibly any kind of dis-ease, including cancer.

In May 2008, a site visitor I will call Jane Smith (not her real name) acquainted me with a water machine newly introduced to the US and Europe. Jane wrote among other things (her full testimonial here):

"...I have been on a healing journey for 26 years ... Not cancer, but other health issues. I made tremendous progress, then backslid due to extreme mineral depletion caused by drinking distilled water for 15 years. ... I nearly died and nearly lost my teeth! I found out later that drinking distilled water on a regular basis is quite controversial.

My experience led me to investigate what is often overlooked in many health protocols — the WATER that we drink.
Despite many supplements, juicing, greens, etc. I could not seem to recover from the extreme mineral loss.
Until recently.

About 3 years ago, when I realized that distilled water was detrimental, I shopped for a water purifier. I read about alkaline water's health benefits and it made sense, so I bought a Jupiter water alkalizer, with high hopes.

Unfortunately, I never got any results from the Jupiter machine, and after just 2 1/2 years, it broke, so once again I was in the market for a water purifier of some sort.

This time, I discovered the Enagic machine. It claimed to have the same features, but with an important difference: it had documentation to back up its legitimacy. I was surprised to learn that the Enagic SD501 water alkalizer/ionizer is the only water machine sold as a MEDICAL DEVICE in Japan^[2]! The Japanese can actually get their doctors to order the machine as treatment, and it is used in 250 Japanese hospitals. Interestingly, 1 in 5 households in Japan own a water alkalizer, and Japan is ranked #1 for health and longevity in the world!^[3]

Within days of drinking the highly alkaline, mineral-rich, antioxidant water, the severe insomnia I had suffered with for 10+ years vanished! My teeth are regaining their bone mass before my very eyes, my gums are actually growing back, my husband's hair is nearly all black again (after being nearly all gray), and my elderly dog, who had severe arthritis and could barely walk, is now running around with the other dogs!

Dr. Carpenter has 250+ patients who had advanced stage cancer, who have recovered, within months of drinking the Kangen™ water.^[5] (In the interview he tells the story of how he tried 7 other machines, none of which got these results.) He had already recommended a pure, vegetarian diet and various supplements, but the results dramatically increased upon adding the water to their protocol.

Judging by how quickly the sharp pain in my left ovary disappeared (and I had had it for about 2 years — not sure if it was a fibroid or a cyst, doesn't matter, it's gone!) I can easily believe that people have experienced tumors shrinking and disappearing. Mine was gone by the 2nd month of drinking the water.

I see that you have covered nearly all the factors that contribute to health and cancer prevention and alternative protocols. I invite you to add this very important piece of the puzzle to your list of resources.

The benefits of reducing our body's acidity has long been recognized in the medical profession even in the United States. The challenge, of course, is keeping our bodies at the proper pH. While diet is extremely important, many people on a health regimen drink bottled or filtered water, both of which are very acidic and oxidizing, both of which contribute to an environment in which cancer and other diseases thrive.

Enagic's Kangen™ Water machine produces more than twice the negative ORP (Oxidation Reduction Potential) of any other machine on the market, ranging from -250 to -800! This is no mere 'filter' but a machine that ionizes, alkalizes, and micro-clusters water, producing the most powerful antioxidant in the world.

...

The alkaline/antioxidant water alone is, in my opinion, well worth the price of the machine. The high alkaline water (produced by our machine only) that removes pesticides is an added bonus. The low acidic water (also produced by our machine only) that kills E coli, salmonella, staph, MRSA, and other infections is an additional added bonus. For some people who are in varying stages of health, this might come in useful, while they work to restore balance. I have also found it to be useful with my cats, who tend to sometimes come home with wounds. I now have a way to treat the wounds effectively.

I recently treated a cat's infected ear with the strong acidic water in the ear and Kangen water internally. This elderly cat was living at my son's college dorm, but just came home a month ago. She had a tumorous mass in that ear, along with a nasty-smelling infection. (You can read the entire cat story involving Kangen water and strong acidic water in Jane’s full testimonial).

On the above website, you will find a video with 'before' and 'after' pictures of colonoscopies. Just below the bottom video, it says 'click here for part 2' — that will take you to the machine and water demo. The demo is the most important part!
See also 'Detailed info' on the left for info specifically for health practitioners, including an interview with the doctor who invented the colonoscopy and now endorses the Enagic machine.

On the left, please click on 'Competition Facts' for a detailed comparison of the Enagic machine with the Jupiter machine, which is the same machine relabeled with other brand names. This is the video that convinced me to buy the Enagic after my Jupiter broke after 2 1/2 years.

... I know that you want to offer your website visitors all the tools that can help them in their recovery. I urge you to take a close look at this Enagic water machine. It could very well be the missing piece for many people, like it was for me. Not just with cancer, but with many other illnesses as well.
Wishing you health, peace and prosperity,
Jane Smith

PS. At the time of this writing, Enagic is licensed to sell their machines in 27 countries, with offices in about a dozen countries, and can ship anywhere in the world."

I learn more about Kangen™ (ionized/alkalinized anti-oxidant) water

Intrigued by the above-listed evidence and what looked like a possibly promising health tool, I took the time to thoroughly peruse the above website and listen to the audio CD Jane sent me, featuring testimonials of people healed of various illnesses, including that of a woman with breast cancer which disappeared within a couple of months of drinking Kangen™ water^[1]. Based on this and observations Jane reported in private emails, apparently a wide variety of illnesses has responded to Kangen™ alkaline/antioxidant water, including many people with fibromyalgia and arthritis who’ve reported getting relief from their pain.

A more recently reported dramatic cancer cure involves a person with "terminal" throat cancer given three months to live who was healed in a matter of months even after suffering the ravages of chemotherapy and radiation which destroyed his immune system (in my eyes, there is also a powerful placebo effect involved as in many such cases where people make a rapid recovery which is attributed to various factors). (You can see his cancer cure testimonial on Youtube, just enter "Kangen Bill Powers" into the search box and you will find several sellers [he also became a seller of the machine] who have posted his testimonial.)
Re throat cancer remission, also refer to Apán medicinal mushroom in complementary cancer care: superior herbal formula — many cancer remission testimonials.

Alkalinity vs. acidity to prevent sickness:
how can Kangen™ alkaline ionized anti-oxidant water help?

One of the contributing or underlying factors of many diseases (even conditions such as obesity etc.) apparently is having high levels of unexcreted “acid waste” within one’s system, a condition also known as acidosis. Acid waste can be accumulated in various parts of the body (for instance the fatty and connective tissues) under a number of conditions such as overeating, lack of proper circulation and elimination, dietary emphasis on acid-producing foods and drinks such as meat, grains, soft drinks/soda pop etc., as well as stress (which actually creates acids in the body in addition to slowing down and impairing digestion and circulation).

This is why there are so many detoxification and health benefits reported from switching to an alkaline organic diet, fresh juicing and/or stress reduction.

Also, by regularly flushing the body with alkaline, ionized Kangen™ water, acidosis apparently can be prevented or reversed. The result is better functioning organs and overall increased health, which then improves your immune system and keeps you from getting sick as often.

Technical and scientific background details for anyone who'd like in-depth information on the workings and benefits of alkaline, ionized water can be found in the pdf document of the same name written by Dr. Hidemitsu Hayashi, M.D., Director of the Water Institute of Japan.

Commonly observed effects of drinking Kangen™ water

Kangen™ Water System users repeatedly observe the following health benefits: dramatic weight loss, lowered blood pressure, various signs of rejuvenation, increased energy, improved immune system. In fact, the medically certified effects (by the Japanese Ministry of Health) of ionized alkaline Kangen™ water are:

inhibition of abnormal fermentation in the digestive tract (by indirectly reducing metabolites such as hydrogen sulfide, ammonia, histamines, indoles, phenols and scatoles)
relief of acid indigestion
relief of chronic diarrhea
relief of indigestion
astringent effects.

On “microclustered” water (water of reduced molecular size)

Original picture credit:
Benefits of Alkaline, Ionized
Water by Dr. Hidemitsu
Hayashi, M.D., Director,
Water Institute of Japan,
edited by Healing Cancer
Naturally © 2008.

Water (H20) “congregates” in clusters formed of a number of H20 molecules. In the case of tap and well water, these clusters consist of 10 to 13 H20 molecules (as shown by NMR [Nuclear Magnetic Resonance] analysis). On the left you see an illustration of one such cluster as found in “normal” water.

Now compare this with the illustration on the left. This shows a water cluster from water after it has been submitted to electrolysis. This process has reduced the originally larger water clusters to about half their normal size, with just 5 to 6 H20 molecules per cluster, making these clusters approximately half the size of normal tap water clusters. (In addition, but not illustrated here, the electrolysis/ionization process also charges this “microclustered” water with excess electrons (e-) and reduces its molecular weight).

It stands to reason that such “smaller” “microclustered” water will permeate the body and its cells as well as various substances more readily than untreated “large-size” tap water. And water as the universal solvent of course both brings nourishment and flushes and carries out wastes at the cellular level.

For the same reason, it is a known property of the micro-clustered structure of the water produced by Enagic’s water alkalizer/ioniser that any nutrients, supplement, medications etc. will be absorbed better. This is desirable when taking helpful supplements, but not when taking medications, since you don't want to get a stronger dose of the drug. (Hence, Enagic recommends that people not drink Kangen Water for 30 minutes before and after taking any drugs.

This is also why their machines have a 'clean water' ie. filtered only, neutral pH option.) Natural supplements, however, are wonderful to take with Kangen Water, since you'll get a more potent amount of the nutrients (and thus actually save money).

This enhanced permeating/extracting quality leading to a greater “yield” is powerfully demonstrated in videos where the same teabag is used multiple times to yield a glass of tea while their “sister” steeped in tap water only yields one glass of tea, and more slowly at that (although of course the hardness of the tap water used will also play a role).

I already had my own amazing and unexpected (i.e. as far as I can tell, not placebo-induced) experience with this “permeating” and detoxing property regarding a badly bruised ankle. This ankle and in fact my entire left foot had been off and on strongly swollen after gliding off a ladder sometime at the beginning of June 2008, and showed little signs of improvement.

After purchasing Enagic’s SD501 “flagship” machine, I set it up at my friend's place on Tuesday, 5 August 2008, and drank some 600 ml (c. 2 glasses) of Kangen™ water at pH 9.5. On Wednesday, I had c. 950 to 1250 ml (3 to 4 glasses) of the same, then set off to my place which involved walking up and down 12 flights of chairs, going shopping and lugging some heavy stuff in warm weather wearing shoes that were too heavy for the temperature.

On Thursday, 7 August, I woke up with my ankle back to normal (slim and trim) except a certain slight pain lurking in two spots or so (only noticeable when I moved it). This I think cannot be attributed to placebo. While I did hope and expect the water to help with the ankle and foot in the long run, I never expected it to help that quickly and dramatically after drinking just 1.5 liters or so and putting a heavier strain than normal on my injured foot!

Since I had left my machine at my friend's I had to wait till I would be back to take more. So without drinking any more Kangen™ water, it was only on Friday, 8 August, that the slightest swelling reoccurred, which was however far from the elephantine proportions my ankle and foot tended to reach beforehand which had regularly turned my walk into a limp.

A friend had told me that when he had sprained his ankle at some time, it took him 2 years for it to properly heal. He thinks it was due to the fact that he didn't heed the advice to perfectly rest the foot for several days after the damaging event, an advice which I had equally ignored.

Now, October 23, 2008, in spite of drinking the Kangen™ water just sporadically, my foot is close to normal and importantly, never once was there another swelling after August 7, beyond some minor ones. This getting better could of course be attributed to the simple natural healing propensity of the human body. Whatever the case may be — August 7 definitely marked the decisive turning point, and was clearly triggered by drinking a few glasses of 9.5 Kangen™ water.

Update to my ankle story 2009: how to get the same effect using simple natural means!

1 Apple cider vinegar: as I have learned in the meantime, people have effected a similar swift cure of swollen extremities simply by drinking apple cider vinegar in a glass of water or wrapping the affected part in a compress soaked in apple cider vinegar!

2 Swedish Bitters compresses: eminent herbalist Maria Treben in one of her books reports the story of a woman who had sprained her ankle which was very swollen and hurt. Compresses with Swedish Bitters immediately brought some relief and the following day the ankle was back to normal.

On the importance of drinking fresh Kangen™ water

As mentioned below for bottled water, the antioxidant property does not survive the bottling process, and the same applies to the water from Enagic’s machine. I was told, “that is why Enagic does not bottle the water but sells the machine instead. It is crucial that people, especially those dealing with serious illnesses, drink the water immediately, fresh from the machine. Of course, we all have busy lives, so we do carry jugs of water with us during the day*, but while at home, we drink the water straight from the machine. The alkaline pH lasts, but the antioxidant property will be lost by the end of the day. Both properties are crucially important when dealing with illnesses, especially cancer.

* When traveling, we use polycarbonate bottles, which leach a lot less than soft plastic. At home, we use only glass, and drink it straight out of the machine.”

A fountain of youth?

After meeting Mr. Oshiro, Enagic's president who has been drinking Kangen™ water for many years at a June 2008 Enagic conference and who was in his mid-sixties at the time, Jane adds, "...jet black hair...and a very beautiful spirit! I was expecting him to talk about the company and the $$, but mostly he talked about COMPASSION and helping people by giving them water! I was very impressed!”

Just hype and resultant placebo effect?

To some degree or other, the placebo effect seems to play a role in most any kind of human healing (possibly apart from those achieved in children) and to my pleasure, the Enagic company recognizes this. One of Enagic's official promotional documents mentions the placebo effect and writes that 50% of people respond to this (often powerful) mind-induced healing mechanism (see placebo cure examples under Real-life healing stories). But does this also apply to the case of those animals who, far beyond any of their owner's expectation, have responded most eagerly to the Kangen™ water offered them, or the healing story of Jane's dog featured above?

The above-mentioned CD featuring testimonials from people who suffered for instance from fibromyalgia, arthritis, and even cancer, includes, in addition to those who could be attributed to a "simple" mind power/placebo effect a couple of very interesting ones where the placebo effect really couldn't have played any part. These are, of course, the truly valuable testimonials which show that indeed, there is something to the Kangen™ water which sets it apart from other types of water and which is independent of any mind-mediated healing effect.

In fact Jane Smith’s testimonial itself beautifully illustrates that there is more than placebo involved: just look how she describes the high hopes (placebo effect) she had after buying her first (Jupiter) water alkalizer/ionizer and how none of her expectations re health improvement were fulfilled by that machine within 2 years of faithfully drinking the water produced by it.

That Kangen™ water is indeed different is also Wade McNutt's opinion, a three-time Natural National Bodybuilding Champion. Quote, " ... I had been exposed to other ionizers and, frankly, I hadn't been impressed ... this time I was feeling something quite different in my body in just the first few hours. ...

Over the next few days I drank more water ... by the 3rd day I looked in the mirror and I could not believe the results. I was losing body fat at a rate that was quite shocking…my recovery at the gym was at a phenomenal rate ... with only 2 weeks preparation I won in two different categories and qualified to compete for Natural Mr. Olympia in Greece... because of the Kangen™ Water my physique transformed; my life transformed; I'm thrust back into competition. I believe that Kangen™ Water, produced by the Enagic machine, is going to be the next great thing in athletic performance!"

Compare No double-blind placebo-controlled peer-reviewed studies available to date.

A water of all trades

To add to the apparent benefits already listed, Enagic's Kangen™ water filtration device actually produces 5 different types of water that can be used in multiple eco-friendly and sometimes dramatically healing ways. That's because the Kangen Water system allows you to control the pH level of the water it creates. These are some of the things you can do with this flexible water system:

Cleaning food of pesticides, cleaning dishes, cleansing your face and hair (replacing most or all of your skin care products and hair conditioners), washing clothes/removing stubborn stains without soap or detergent (!), disinfecting food products, sanitizing kitchen utensils, greasy countertops, sterilizing restaurants, bathrooms etc. to keep areas safe and free of germs, and even pest control (greenhouses etc.) and gangrene reversal.

A company showing some holistic perspective

In addition to acknowledging the power of placebo, I liked the fact that the promotional documentation distributed by the Enagic company includes references to the fact that our body’s acid/alkaline status is contingent upon and influenced by a number of factors, including non-dietary and non-environmental ones. Non-tangible influences are factors such as stress which acidifies the tissues while meditation, prayer and joy have an alkalizing effect. Hence the reported longevity and health benefits derived from a happy outlook on life versus the potentially "sickening" impact of stress and other negative emotions, compare emotions & cancer healing.

“Sacred healing springs” and man-made water

I have a "natural" skepticism versus any man-made products. So much of human production has been geared to provide short-term satisfaction of often artificially created "needs", without regard to long-term effects of the respective product on humans, animals and the earth. Hence the environmental and health emergencies we are facing today in the industrialized nations (and even the developing nations which have been frequently used as dumping grounds for our toxic wastes).

So why do I tend to think that water “manipulated” and “denatured” by a water filter and alkalizing/ionizing system such as the one produced by Enagic is recommendable? First of all, unless one lives in one of the rarer locations on earth which still boast pristine land and water, all drinking water today is laden with toxins and/or denatured and processed, particularly in countries such as the US which allow fluoridation and use chlorination on a regular basis. So some kind of water purification system seems to be a must. But why drink water that is alkalinized/ionized/microclustered on top?

In addition to those healing testimonials that aren’t reducible to mere placebo referred to above, one fact that truly impressed and thus swayed me is that there are several recently discovered “sacred wells” in the world which give alkaline water. One of them is situated in Nordenau in my home country Germany and boasts a number of medically documented healings. While these wells also have some additional qualities, they all have in common that they give alkaline water.

Notes on bottled water

Apparently, as soon as even the best type of natural water is bottled, it loses most of its health-giving attributes. Jane Smith writes, “I have tested many varieties of bottled water, each claiming to be from some special spring, and ALL of them have tested oxidizing and usually quite acidic (or, at best, oxidizing but neutral on the pH). The antioxidant property does NOT last during the bottling process.

In addition, when water is bottled, [most] plastic leaches into the water. Sometimes bottled water sits in trucks, in the hot sun, which accelerates the leaching of the toxic chemicals” [such as xenoestrogens whose cellular growth-enhancing properties seem to contribute to the cancer epidemic].

... water from glaciers has crystalline properties when drunk FRESH at the site, but, again, as soon as the water is transported, it loses most of its beneficial properties. I have seen bottled waters with the name 'glacier water' that were absolutely worthless — they tested acidic and oxidizing.”

(Hopefully) needless to add, bottled water is not eco-friendly.

Can anyone drink Kangen water?

Disclaimer for those with kidney disorders

According to the SD105 operating instructions, people with kidney problems (kidney weakness and potassium excretion problems) should not drink Kangen water. This however, is simply erring on the side of the caution.

Kangen water is absorbed by the body very well, and hydrates the body more effectively due to its microclustered structure as explained in On microclustered water. Some people with kidney disorders may be following some special instructions from their doctors, such as a special protocol regarding the amount of water they drink. For this reason, the official Enagic literature includes a disclaimer regarding people with kidney problems, advising those people to abstain and/or consult their doctors.

We have however heard many testimonials from people with kidney problems who have reported that the Kangen water helped them, including some people with kidney failure! (Some stories available upon request.) However, anyone with a kidney disorder should seek the advice of a health professional regarding whether Kangen water might be appropriate for them.

Why Enagic's water alkalizers/ionizers are claimed to eclipse the competition

Jane Smith adds: "In addition to being alkaline and antioxidant, the minerals in the Kangen™ water produced by Enagic's water machines are ionized, meaning they are more assimilable by the body. And, the water is micro-clustered, having a hexagonal crystalline structure.

Dr. Shinya, the inventor of the colonoscopy machine, has a book entitled 'The Enzyme Factor' in which he outlines the importance of hexagonal water, and even [goes as far as stating] that no disease can exist if the body consumes hexagonal water. This property is perhaps the most important of all, and Enagic's SD501 machine has been tested to show that it produces the largest number of microclusters in the water, and is the most consistently crystalline-structured.

[To add a significant anecdote,] last week, I went to visit a woman who sells colonic machines and massage tables to wholistic practitioners. She had just bought a water ionizer machine the previous week, and had a sign on her wall saying 'Alkaline water, $3/gallon.' I asked if I could test her water from her new machine. She said yes and got a glass of water. When I put in the ph testing drops, the water turned green...GREEN! which means a pH of around 7, which is just neutral. Then I got a glass of tap water from her bathroom sink and tested it also, and it too was green! It was the same! She bought a piece of junk for $1400!

In all fairness, I've tested several other machines that had water turn blue — meaning they got to about 8 pH [i.e. slightly alkaline]. But none of them turned purple, the 9.5 — 10 pH which the Enagic machine makes. I've heard that there are some machines that can produce the alkaline water, but they do not produce the negative ORP (antioxidant), nor do they produce the micro-clustered water in any great quantity (meaning that MOST of the water molecules are NOT structured, though a few might be).

Even if some of the competitor machines do produce alkalinity and antioxidants, all of them, as far as I know, operate on much lower wattage. Most of the machines are 80 watts, with only a few running on 120 watts. I don't know of any that have as much power as Enagic's — 235 watts! The stronger power is necessary to produce the hexagonal structured water — an important attribute of Kangen water [as mentioned]!

In his book “The Water Puzzle and the Hexagonal Key — Scientific Evidence of Hexagonal Water and its positive influence on health”, Dr. Jhon writes that the fluid in cancer cells and those of AIDS patients always lacks structure, whereas the fluid found in healthy cells is structured. This author asserts that the hexagonal water (produced in quantity ONLY by Enagic machines, due to increased wattage and larger titanium plates) is actually the main thing in the water that is helping people to heal.
So, bottom line is that, most of the cheaper machines do not even produce the alkalinity or antioxidant properties reliably, nor do they keep producing those properties past the first few days out of the box, and if they do, they do not produce the hexagonal water molecules in quantity like Enagic’s machine does."

5-year warranty

Kangen Water Systems come with a 5-year warranty (which is surprisingly short considering there are much less expensive alkaline water ionizers [at e.g.one quarter of the price of the SD501] that come with a lifetime or limited lifetime guarantee).

Buying a Kangen™ water machine

As someone of good health and desirous to keep and further enhance it, I've bought a machine and signed up as an independent distributor to help support my work on this and other humanitarian sites I have created. For those who may think I am only doing this for the money (rest asured that I don't or this site wouldn't be all about helping people heal from cancer on a shoestring budget, see Welcome), I can tell you that I have only sold a single machine in five years (but I know that this page has been used by at least one [more likely many] other distributors to clinch their own sales, thus taking advantage of the good name and integrity of this humanitarian labour-of-love site).

Payment options

In case you currently don't have the funds to buy a machine, you can sign up (it's free) as an independent distributor without needing to purchase anything (which I heard is a rare option offered in the world of business). After selling 12 of the flagship model to friends, you will have earned enough commissions to pay the full price for one of the machines. There are also several easy financing options available (including with zero downpayment) which would allow you to get a machine immediately.

What if you don't have the money to buy a water machine, don't want to become a distributor and don't want to take out a payment plan?

Since the important factors seem to be the alkalizing property and low (negative) ORP (Oxidation Reduction Potential), the (at least) next best thing would appear to be doing lots of fresh organic juicing and eating fresh organic fruits and vegetables. Additionally, alkalize yourself via joyful activities, meditation, prayer etc. In fact, alkalizing yourself via creating a positive emotional internal climate is said to be imperative in one of Enagic's documents, stating that stressful emotions can thwart any positive effect reached by drinking alkaline water alone.

Also before you are tempted to rush out and buy an apparently equivalent cheaper model by another water alkalizer/ionizer manufacturer, make sure to read up on, learn and understand about the differences and experiences made with some of these machines on websites comparing machines. Since there is lots of money that can be made in this market, be careful.

Incidentally, you can also ask to be given Kangen water for free or at cost by submitting a pertinent request to me which I will publish for you at an independent distributors forum. If you happen to live close by one of these distributors or owners of a machine, you may be lucky.

PS to distributors

If you send your “prospects” to this page to benefit from the good name and integrity of this humanitarian site to close your sale, I ask that you show the integrity to disclose your distributorship to your potential client from the start and thus respect my time. In addition, I ask that you reciprocate in one of the easy ways shown at Support This Site and thus benefit many.

No double-blind placebo-controlled peer-reviewed studies available to date

Enagic has been producing its machines for four decades and its competitor companies will have a similar history of successfully marketing their devices. In spite of their obvious commercial success (as seen for instance from the extremely high revenues gained by successful Kangen water representatives) — and rather surprisingly -, there is no double-blind placebo-controlled peer-reviewed study available to date (not even a preliminary pilot study) regarding the water's effect on cancer in humans.

Searching the biomedical database PubMed (which publishes only scientifically validated research) for the terms "electrolyzed reduced water cancer", "electrolyzed reduced water tumor" or "alkaline ionized water cancer", currently (2015) brings up three studies on human and murine^[7] cell lines showing some anticancer effect of electrolyzed reduced water when directly applied to cells in the laboratory. (PubMed does not feature any animal studies showing malignant tumor reductions in animals.)

The only study type of true value able to demonstrate anticancer activity in humans are of course double-blinded placebo-controlled human studies.

It would appear that Enagic (as the company producing the most expensive water electrolyzer) or any other manufacturer with high profit margins could easily silence most criticism levelled at them^[8] by investing some of their earnings in watertight (pun intended) research, even just a small-scale preliminary double-blind placebo-controlled human study, but after forty years of marketing success they have not done so. One can only speculate on the reason why they do not take the opportunity to have the value of their products and representatives' claims officially substantiated.

Negative experiences

The only negative experiences I can report relate to Enagic’s customer service. When I had an intractable problem with the taste of the water, I wrote six times to 3 different addresses over the course of several months, incl. enagic.com, and never received a single reply, not even an acknowledgement of receipt of my urgent missive (to say that I was disappointed at this unexpected lack of ethics demonstrating a “business as usual” attitude on the part of the Enagic company, is an understatement). Thankfully the problem sorted itself out over time. Similarly, the Düsseldorf branch responsible for European customers did not reply to letters when I needed to order replacement filters, or they replied without giving proper and complete information.

On the other hand, it’s also true that I received generally good service from Jane Smith, my “upline” from whom I bought my machine, and she is right in saying that Enagic mostly relies on its distributors to handle customer service requests. This notwithstanding, there is no excuse for the above behaviour in my book of integrity. In the meantime, another similar instance has happened to be detailed at a later date.

On cheaper water technologies promoting detoxification & healing

As mentioned, the simple act of drinking (more) water (even any water) or stepping up one's water intake can do much for a person’s healing, even to the point of recovery from cancer (see these two cancer cures attributed to simple purified water fasting).

In addition to fresh organic juicing which, as mentioned, I recommend since it seems to be a powerful healing tool for many, meanwhile I have learned that there are other more economical “water-based” technologies which apparently promote sometimes dramatic detoxification & healing, even of cancer, and further the hydration of the human body. One of them is the Roxtract “mineral” water system which among other things claims numerous cancer cures, another is the Stirwands water technology which claims great hydration, detoxification and healing benefits.

Incidentally, according to Andreas Moritz' information-packed book Timeless Secrets of Health and Rejuvenation [Amazon partner link — commissions earned], ionised water can be self-made at home by boiling water for 15 to 20 minutes.

For now the reader is encouraged to do an internet search (using a non-invasive and non-censoring search engine such as duckduckgo.com) for other promising water technologies and check them out for themselves.^[6]

My opinion in summary

I consider Enagic’s water alkalizer/ioniser a good machine which is likely to give health and healing benefits even (and perhaps particularly) for those who don’t wish to make “healthful” dietary and lifestyle upgrades or changes. On the other hand, the machine appears to be overpriced (including the replacement filters) and above all, long-term results may not be as favourable if rat experiments can be transferred to humans — for this and other "negatives" see Water Alkalizers/Ionizers Possible side effects & controversy. Additionally the large amounts of water required to see health benefits may overstrain the kidneys at some point.

Is there a cure for cancer? After 20 years of research

discover what this German expert thinks.

Footnotes

1 'Kangen' means 'return to origin’ and is a registered trademark of Enagic Inc. Kangen™ Water is produced by electrolysis* to yield “pure, healthy, alkaline drinking water rich in minerals, purged of impurities, and ionized through electrolysis to obtain active hydrogen which is abundant in ‘extra’ electrons. These extra electrons impart strong anti-oxidant properties to the drinking water. ...

Kangen water is perhaps more powerful than any single food or vitamin supplement” due to its active hydrogen content supplying large amounts of extra electrons to the body. “Most water electrolysis equipment will not create active hydrogen in the water, therefore, the equipment merely produces ionized alkaline water, not Kangen™ water. In fact, the antioxidant potential of a single glass of Kangen™ water would cost several dollars to duplicate with vitamin supplements and they would never be absorbed by our body the way water is. In fact, Kangen™ water is so powerful as an antioxidant that your body will no longer have to use up calcium to supply electrons to free radicals.”

* Electrolysis is the process that separates water into alkaline and acidic water.

2 To the best of my knowledge, this is a unique accolade and there is no other machine of this type certified and used as a medical treatment device in any other country. While other companies have made claims about being medical devices, they could not produce the actual certification. Enagic does have the certificates, complete with certification numbers, posted on their website, so there is no doubt about their credibility.

In fact, “Enagic is the only company in the entire water purification industry whose products have been endorsed by the prestigious Japanese Association of Preventative Medicine for Adult Disease. Kangen™ Water Systems is also the only water-related technology that has been officially recognized for its health merits by the Japanese Ministry of Health and Welfare (the equivalent to the US Food and Drug Administration).”

For this reason (each company with a Medical Device certification must manufacture and repair all of their own machines to receive and maintain this accolade), “Enagic does not outsource anything. They make everything from the plates right down to the styrofoam packaging” and thus have “total quality control on every item from start to finish. Each machine is hand-built by a SINGLE experienced craftsman. He is accountable for the quality of the machines he builds.”

3 I think a major reason for Japan's high ranking, in spite of being a high technology country, is the widespread use of seaweed and fish products with their high trace element and iodine content. In addition, the Japanese presumably don't all own an Enagic water alkalizer (or Enagic would certainly say so), but a variety of brands (which according to Enagic distributor statements don't show the same good results).

4 ...including two (normal) water fasting testimonials which induced a permanent bladder cancer cure in both cases, see Detoxification for Health: Two Bladder Cancer Cures Achieved via Water Fasting (yes!).

5 Jane Smith added: “I have heard Dr. Carpenter speak of his cancer patients in person, but I'm not sure if this has been recorded. We all have to be very, very careful here in the US, because the AMA/FDA is very strict about making claims. ... I also heard a woman [on a conference call] talk about her advanced stage breast cancer disappearing in 3 months.”

6 Incidentally, one intriguing modality that works via raising the body's pH (making an overacidic body more alkaline), that is both inexpensive and apparently boasts healing benefits including in cases of cancer is using sodium bicarbonate (baking soda — yes!).

Simply adding baking soda to purified water (for instance adding a tablespoon of aluminum-free baking soda to a gallon of water) increases the water's pH and is indeed suggested by a number of people for health, detoxification and healing purposes.

As you can see, these treatments even can be self-applied (although some precautions need to be observed). See for instance this Prostate cancer testimonial with osseous spread: oral baking soda and blackstrap molasses therapy has helped wipe out bone metastases and reduced PSA to 0.1, Country doctor cures cancer — with baking soda & maple syrup and Destroying Tumors with Baking Soda (Sodium Bicarbonate): Is Cancer “Just a Fungus”?.

7 pertaining to, the mouse, rat or any member of the Muridae family

8 Compare Water Alkalizers/Ionizers possible side effects & controversy and Kangen Water negative testimonials.