

Mineral Waters 



HENRY A. MATTILL 



ROCHESTEK, N. Y. 



On no subject in medical literature probably has there appeared so 

 much worthless writing as on that of mineral waters. Our own country 

 is not guiltless but by far the largest mass of advertising under the guise 

 of science has appeared in Europe particularly in Germany, France and 

 Austria. While there may be virtue in many of the "drinking cures" 

 the careful dieting and well ordered living which are a part of the 

 "cure" are in themselves of great therapeutic value, and the ingestion 

 of water without any mineral has very definite effects on metabolism, 

 effects which indeed may outweigh any others attendant upon the pres- 

 ence of a small amount of mineral salts. While the combined action of 

 mineral substances as they are found in natural mineral waters is un- 

 doubtedly different from that of the individual substances, it is not, to be 

 supposed that the action would be different if the natural mineral water 

 were exactly reproduced. In considering the relation of mineral water 

 to metabolism only such investigations as have been made with natural 

 mineral waters themselves will in general be reviewed, since the metab- 

 olism of mineral matter is considered elsewhere. Until the laws govern- 

 ing mineral metabolism are more clearly understood than they are to-day 

 the therapeutic value of mineral water administration must remain in the 

 realm of the empirical. 



A clear cut classification of mineral waters is not easily made since 

 a water may contain several ingredients ; according to their predominating 

 characteristics, they may be divided into the following classes : saline, alka- 

 line (including carbonated), sulphate or bitter water, sulphur, iron or 

 chalybeate, arsenic and radioactive waters. 1 



1 From a geochemical standpoint the fundamental character of a mineral water is 

 best expressed in terms of the "properties of reaction" as suggested by Palmer. Pri- 

 mary salinity is caused by strong acid salts of the alkalies (as NaCl, K 2 SO 4 , etc.); 

 secondary salinity by strong acid salts of the alkaline earths (as CaS0 4 , MgCl 2 , etc.) ; 

 primary alkalinity is caused by weak acid salts of the alkalies (as NaHCO 3 KHS, etc.) ; 

 secondary alkalinity by weak acid salts of the alkaline earths (aa CaHCO 3 ) 2 , etc.) and 

 tertiary alkalinity *by colloidal oxids of iron and aluminum and free weak acids, as 

 Si0 2 and C0 2 . These "properties of reaction" can easily be calculated from a water 

 analysis in which the values are given in terms of the ionic substance and the quality 

 or character of the water though not its actual content of minerals, is then expressed. 



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