What is an RO water purifier and how is it good for health?

We all need safe and clean drinking water to survive. Hence, water purifiers have become a necessity and not just a gimmick or a novelty device at this point. While they have become a common sight, do we really know how they work?

In this regard, we have one term that everyone knows is RO. Many of us, in fact, use it synonymously with water purifiers. Well, not all purifiers use this technology but a majority use it. Let’s try to understand it a little better so that we know what we are using.

Reverse Osmosis: Background and mechanism

It is the most common technology available on the market. RO stands for Reverse Osmosis. It is not a very complicated process as most of us know what osmosis is. In easy terms, it is a spontaneous movement of a liquid through a selectively permeable membrane from one side to another. RO utilises the same principle. This powerful, yet simple, technology was developed for the marines so that they can purify salty water and make it fit for drinking.

ALSO READ: What is MTDS in a water purifier?

In an RO system, water under high pressure passes through a semipermeable membrane. This membrane has innumerable pores in it. The pore diameter is roughly 0.0001 microns. As a result of this, only water molecules pass through it and remove up to 90% of the hardness of the water. It gets rid of impurities, heavy metals, microorganisms as well as minerals. The resulting water you get is pure, sweet in taste and transparent. One of the issues with this is that it strips off the natural mineral content of the water in the process as well. It makes the water demineralized. But there are tons of benefits to using it.

5 health benefits of an RO purifier

– Removes waterborne diseases: RO gets rid of tiny pathogens like harmful bacteria and viruses and protects you from drinking contaminated water and makes it safe for consumption. Though for killing 99.99% of microorganisms, you should have a water filter with a UV chamber as well.

– Improves metabolism: We all know that drinking mineral-rich clean water can help us maintain vital bodily functions. Some RO add minerals such as copper after purification which in turn helps improve our Metabolism.

– Healthy hair & skin: Our body is approximately 70% water. It has a huge impact on things such as hair and skin quality. Drinking healthy amounts of clean water is important for skin and hair health. RO provides you with contamination-free pure water which helps you maintain healthy skin as well as hair.

– Hard water: It is a powerful technology, only RO is capable enough to remove up to 90% of the turbidity and hardness of the water. It makes hard water drinkable for you to consume without worrying about any bad impact on your health.

– TDS controlling: A permissible level of TDS is desired as it retains the natural mineral content of the water which is beneficial to us. Many RO comes with TDS controllers, thus allowing you to set a level of TDS and reap the benefit of the natural mineral content of the water.

There are plenty of RO water purifiers in the market that comes with MTDS, which lets you control the TDS level. In case you don’t have it, you can store the water, after purification, in a clay or copper pot for a while to improve its mineral content.