pH stands for “potential of hydrogen,” but don’t let that scare you. It’s just a scale from 0 to 14 that measures how acidic or alkaline something is. Pure water sits right in the middle at a 7, which is neutral.
Anything below 7 is acidic (think lemon juice at a 2), and anything above 7 is alkaline (like baking soda at a 9). So, what should your drinking water be? Ideally, between 6.5 and 8.5 is the sweet spot for tap water, according to the EPA.
But here’s the kicker: your body is a master regulator. Your blood stays at a very strict pH of around 7.35 to 7.45, no matter what you drink. So don’t panic—you can’t “fix” your body’s pH with fancy bottled water.
A Little Story: The Sour Morning Coffee
Remember that time you grabbed a cup of coffee that tasted like battery acid? That’s acidic water at work. If your tap water has a pH of 5.5, it can make your morning brew taste sharp and unpleasant. On the flip side, water that’s too alkaline (above 9) can taste bitter or like chalk.
I once visited a friend whose water tasted oddly metallic. We tested it, and it was acidic—pH of 5.8. Turns out, his old pipes were leaching copper into the water. That’s why pH matters for more than just taste: low pH can damage your plumbing and pull heavy metals into your drink.
