Effects of Alkaline-Reduced Drinking Water on Irritable Bowel Syndrome with Diarrhea: A Randomized Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Pilot Study

Shin DW, Yoon H, Kim HS, Choi YJ, Shin CM, Park YS, Kim N, Lee DH · Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine · 2018 January

DOI 10.1155/2018/9147914

Objective

To investigate the potential efficacy of alkaline-reduced water (ARW) in improving symptoms and quality of life in patients with diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).

Conclusions

In a randomized controlled trial involving 27 patients with diarrhea-predominant IBS, those who ingested at least 2 liters/day of alkaline-reduced water (ARW) for eight weeks showed significant improvement in IBS quality-of-life scores compared to the control group ingesting placebo water. Additionally, a higher percentage of patients in the ARW group reported symptom improvement, and the abdominal pain score showed a numerical decrease in the ARW group. The findings suggest that the consumption of ARW for eight weeks may positively impact the quality of life in individuals with diarrhea-predominant IBS.

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Insights

Drinking alkaline-reduced water can improve the quality of life in patients suffering from diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome.

In this study, twenty-seven patients with diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome were divided into two groups: one group that drank at least 2 liters of alkaline-reduced water a day, and a control group that drank placebo water. The duration of the experiment was eight weeks, during which symptom scores (including quality of life and abdominal pain/discomfort), stool form, and frequency were evaluated via questionnaires both before and after the treatment duration. The results indicated that an overall greater percentage of patients in the alkaline-reduced water group experienced symptom improvement across the majority of the treatment period compared to the control group. Specifically, the quality of life score in the alkaline-reduced water group significantly improved, a change which was significantly more substantial than the minor improvement seen in the control group. The report about abdominal pain also showed its reduction in both groups, but this change did not significantly differ between the two groups.