Kidneys are responsible for filtering your body's blood and controlling your fluid levels. Although you have two of them, you really need only one to function. However, your kidneys are extremely important to your overall health. Knowing the differences between how carbonated water and flat water affect your kidneys can help your body work more efficiently.
History
Carbonated water was accidentally invented in 1767 by Joseph Priestley, according to absoluteastronomy.com. The original purpose of the water was to kill mice. Priestly tasted the concoction and determined that it actually tasted good, and shared it with peers. Torbern Bergman, a chemistry teacher from Sweden, created the process of making carbonated water in 1771 for the purpose of drinking, with the hopes of reaping health benefits from the concoction.
Function
Kidneys flush the body's toxins to help it run more efficiently. Because of this, drinking many fluids, specifically water, is extremely important to all parts of the body. Kidneys help clean the body's fluids and blood and ensure the body's pH remains balanced. Carbonated water does not provide the same benefits of flat water.
Significance
Flat water and carbonated water, such as seltzer, have different effects on kidney function. Regular water helps the kidneys flush the body of toxins and other excess materials, but carbonated water can complicate the kidney's processes. Carbonated water adds carbon dioxide to the body, which is a gas that the body is constantly trying to remove. Putting carbon dioxide in the body can complicate your bodily functions, since the only place that CO2 is used is in the respiratory process.
Differences
The carbon dioxide in carbonated water turns the water much more acidic than regular water. This impacts the kidney's job, because adding acid to the kidneys make the pH level of the body lower, which hurts the body's attempts to balance pH. Flat water is not acidic and therefore does not put any pressure on the kidneys.
Warning
Drinking only carbonated water can be very dangerous, as it can prevent kidneys from eliminating wastes. Drinking about eight, 8-oz. glasses of flat, regular water every day, is recommended for keeping your body working properly.
