Living Smart

III SCIENCE & STEM EDUCATION 094 095 A scientist would understand s u c h h e a l t h b e n e f i t s had nothing whatsoever to do with the pH level in the body. Young was later charged with practicing medicine without a l i c en s e and de f r aud i ng cancer patients. Alkaline water machines also follow from this line of pseudoscience quackery. S o l d f o r HK $ 3 0 , 0 0 0 t o HK$50 , 000 pe r un i t , t hese are filter units fitted with an alkalizing core commonly filled with lime (calcium hydroxide), a dirt cheap mineral that is sparingly soluble in water, and produce a form of lime water with pH levels of 11 to 12. Water at such pH levels are highly alkaline and considered u n s a f e f o r d r i n k i n g , b u t alkaline-water advocates would shamelessly sell their units to you with complete disregard for the necessity of maintaining gastric acidity, the pH regulatory functions of our kidneys and lungs and the highly controlled homeostasis maintained in our bodies. Another example concerns false claims made by anti- vaccine and alternative medicine promoters and how they have managed to deceive so many that led to the recent resurgence of some highly alarming infectious diseases. The lesson to be learned by the general public is to be vigilant of pseudoscience information spreading on social media sites. It can sometimes be hard to discern fake news from true science for those without a science background. Do some research on the internet for any suspicious topic by adding to the search term keywords such as “fake science” or “pseudoscience” to weigh its antithesis. If the claim is faulty, it is likely that someone would have debunked it somewhere using credible sources of information. Published on April 17, 2019