Interview with Elisabeth Muhr: water is valuable and precious

Ms. Muhr, water, we all know that, is the most important element on earth. Not only because we ourselves consist largely of water, but also because we would not be able to survive without a constant supply of water. And yet we pretend that we can have the resource easily and everywhere. What do you see as the reason for this misjudgment?

Yes, it's amazing, and I often think about it. Everyone is convinced that water is VALUE-ABLE, but it should still be free in the best quality and available everywhere. That's actually a contradiction. If something is of high value, it should be treated that way. And something of high value is associated with a higher price.

In my experience, the misjudgment comes from the common opinion that "our" water - here I mean every region, every village or every city - is much better than elsewhere and water flows happily, constantly and almost free of charge from the kitchen tap. It is almost as if this is already a fundamental right.

However, the reality is sadly different. Chemical pollution caused by environmental influences, industry, agriculture or settlements makes the available water undrinkable and therefore it has to be treated heavily. The difficulty of how to supply households with huge amounts of potable water is immense. At some point, this whole system has to change.

For about two decades, there have been the most astonishing developments in the non-scientific field. For example, ionized water, levitized water or water in which gemstones are placed should have a particularly positive effect on our health. What do you say about such assessments?

As a scientist, you are more oriented towards the provable and facts and I also belong to this group. With all the manifold treatments of drinking water, there are those where the difference can be measured, but also those in which one believes in a placebo.

Ionization is a chemical process in which substances are dissolved in water with the help of electrolytic plates, and this is measurable. Whether it contributes to better health remains to be seen. For example, you can believe in water harvested under a full moon or not, scientifically the effect is not measurable. Importantly though, in both cases, however, the already existing toxins remain in the water.

Even if you are apart from the parascientific ideas regarding water, waters always come on the market that literally promise you the blue of the sky. In the field of industrial water generation and bottling, are there no guidelines or laws that establish regulations on what a healthy and pure drinking water is?

There are no limits to the imagination of marketing water, and magic words such as ionization, reverse osmosis, coverage of personal mineral consumption, etc. should inspire customers. But actually, municipalities or companies are trying to transform the bad basic material into still legally compliant drinking water through a variety of chemical and physical treatments.

According to the German Drinking Water Ordinance, drinking water should be "colorless, clear, cool as well as odorless and taste perfectly”. In 2023, the last regulation was published, but the limit values of the ingredients are still too high and unfortunately one lags behind the latest medical findings by years. For example, German drinking water can still contain 200 mg/l sodium, although this value should be zero.

You yourself or Your family went in search of an unadulterated, untreated and unfiltered water many years ago. What was the trigger for this worldwide search? The hope for bubbling profits could not have been, because firstly, you have enough of it, and secondly, you operate the whole thing more as a philanthropic project.

The trigger for our family project in 1999 was my husband, who participated in a four-day seminar on longevity. It became clear that inflammation in the body, caused by the consumption of too much sugar, complicates and shortens life. We decided from that moment on, mainly to drink water instead of fruit juices, but then to look for the "best" water for the human body, which we could not find among those that could be reached for us. The rest is history.

To date, in addition to the optimal water standard developed by us, there is nothing, except for timeless regulations that still allow pollutants in too large quantities; there is also no comparison table for the best or healthiest water. Due to concealment, the quality of drinking water or commercially bottled water is correspondingly poor.

Of course, we want to make profits with our company, but for me personally, a shake-up to wake up and think is rather in the foreground. One should assume that the health of citizens comes first for a government, but I somehow doubt it.

After six years of searching, you found what you were looking for and found unadulterated water, not e.g. in the Himalayas, but in the Dachstein region. What emotions did this trigger in you?

American and Canadian geologists led us back to our homeland. The emotion was primarily proud, of course, because my husband and I are Austrians and we can carry the reputation of the beautiful Hallstatt-Dachstein region into the world beyond the undisputed best water.

What criteria are used to characterize the healthiest water in the world?

The biggest difference to all other waters is that Hallstein is completely untreated and untouched: the water comes to the surface from a depth of 215 meters in its own pressure in an artesian well and runs directly into the bottle.

This does not exist anywhere, because other waters mainly lack quality. Here are just a few features: Hallstein has a naturally alkaline pH of 8.3 and one contains an almost maximum value of dissolved oxygen, 10.8 mg/l. Hallstein contains no microplastics, bacteria or PFAS at all, almost zero values of sodium or TOC (Total Organic Carbon). It also has the perfect ratio of calcium to magnesium, 2:1, so that the body can also absorb both minerals.

Was there or is there also resistance to your claim to the "best water in the world?"

No, we have never had resistance to our claim to sell the best water. Quite the opposite, actually. Since the results of a study by the association "Sources of Life" under Dr. Kirsten Deutschländer on the effects of various drinking waters in the body, we have scientifically based evidence that Hallstein raises the antioxidant potential by around 14.5% and reduces free radicals by 7%. So the general health and resistance is significantly improved.

Now we were asked again if we could make Hallstein available again for further studies, as the scientists themselves were amazed at the results.

Unfortunately, your discovery does not solve the water needs of the world, because your source can provide too little. What possibilities do you see to ensure the supply of non-pathogenic water for humans and animals, especially in the problem regions of the world? And how does the Muhr family help with this?

Of course, we are aware that we offer extremely limited water with the highest quality and therefore cannot supply the entire world. The task of the laws and also the task of each individual should be a greater awareness and knowledge about water quality; not only about the quality we get, but also about the quality that comes out of our households.

If we improve our own supply and quality standards, we reduce the tons of chemicals or the huge amounts of plastic that enter the world water cycle. Maybe you also think about the fact that massive quantities of drinking water don’t have to be produced for lawn irrigation, car washing, toilet flushing or shower, if we currently do not even drink 1% of the total production. We as the Muhr family can contribute to this by enlightening our little mosaic piece.