I think I have a handle on how 02 (oxygen) is different from O3 (ozone). But what about this new drink from Clearly Canadian? It says it’s super oxygenated. So obviously it doesn’t have O3 in it, but is it H2O? It can’t be H2O2, because that’s hydrogen peroxide. How are they cramming in the extra oxygen?
A certain amount of O2 can be dissolved in water – that’s how fish breath. One assumes that “super-oxygenated” means that more than the usual amount is supposed to be present.
Adding to JWK’s post: They dissolve O[sub]2[/sub] in it just like they dissolve CO[sub]2[/sub] in other soft drinks.
So when you open the bottle, does it fizz, with a big rush of O2 escaping? Hope nobody’s lighting a cigarette at the same time!
At a given temperature and pressure, you can cram a lot more CO2 into water because the aqueous CO2 will be in equilibrium with carbonic acid and bicarbonate. So unless they bottle this stuff at much higher pressures than ordinary carbonated beverages, I wouldn’t expect a fizz of oxygen.
Welcome to the SDMB, and thank you for posting your comment.
Please include a link to the appropriate column if it’s on the straight dope web site.
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The Staff Report can be found on-line at this link:
Why is oxygen usually in the form O2? (25-Jan-2001)
Since the article is a Staff Report, not a Straight Dope column, this thread is leaving the «Comments on Cecil’s Columns» forum and going to visit my colleague C K Dexter Haven in the «Comments on Staff Reports» forum.
moderator, «Comments on Cecil’s Columns»
[edited to fix the link… I’v always wanted to do that-- Chronos]
[Edited by Chronos on 02-04-2001 at 12:42 PM]
Here’s some info from their site (bolding added):
I don’t know how much O[sub]2[/sub] is normally in water. I’d guess there is far less in CC than in drugstore H[sub]2[/sub]O[sub]2[/sub]. Otherwise, they’d be required by law to warn you about it. Also, the use of the phrase “up to” gives them lots of wiggle room. In other words, it’s a worthless gimmick.
Hm. I wonder if that much oxygen in the water would have an antibacterial effect?
I don’t think it would, unless it was O[sub]3[/sub]…especially not in that small of a concentration.
I was thinking more of the mention of ten times the concentration of O[sub]2[/sub] in the water.
Given 2H[sub]2[/sub]O + O[sub]2[/sub] <—> 2 H[sub]2[/sub]O
I would think water with that much extra O[sub]2[/sub] would contain a certain amount of hydrogen peroxide.
But you’re probably right, it’s probably too small to have much effect (although hydrogen peroxide is often used to safely sterilize water).
Winkster, you messed up your link. The article about talking drums is interesting but not in the least relevant to the discussion at hand.
Arnold, the last time you messed up a link, it was also to the “talking drums” column. Are we to suppose that that’s the link in the template version of that post you have saved? Perhaps you should change it to just “http://www.straightdope.com”? That way, when you forgot to change it, it’d be a little less embarassing, perhaps.
Yeah, you don’t want me to call you Mr. Winky again.
I can see it being a fairly easy mistake to forget whether you’d remembered to change the post number in a thread link.
Maybe his template should be url=CHANGETHISHERE for a reminder.
from an article about “Clearly Canadian”-type drinks in the NY Times:
http://www.nytimes.com/2001/03/24/nyregion/24WATE.html
“Putting oxygenated water into the stomach could result in an expensive burp,” said Howard G. Knuttgen, a lecturer in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Harvard University and the editor in chief of The Georgia Tech newsletter.
Mr. Knuttgen and other skeptics point out that no scientific studies have been published in reputable journals to support the use of oxygenated water for health or athletic benefits. In a detailed explanation sent by e-mail, Mr. Knuttgen said that the idea of “preloading blood in the intestines with oxygen before the blood goes to the lungs makes no physiological sense.”
“Athletes are continually searching for ways to enhance performance and gain a competitive edge,” he added. “Therefore, they are extremely vulnerable to fads and fictions.”
So what’s wrong with the talking drums column? I love it so much that I promote it every chance I get!
All right, I don’t know how I missed this the first time around, but your suggestions are good. I’ll be changing that template now so that it’s more obvious that I need to change the URL too.