Water
and Human Health
Water and Human Health by
Dr. George Grant,
www.academyofwellness.com
"The Most Powerful Healing Substance Known To Man" The human
body is primarily composed of water. Water is not only
beneficial but also vital to life--only oxygen is more important
to human survival. Water plays an enormous role in how well our
body functions. Simply put, the more fresh water we drink, the
healthier we become. Knowing all this, it never ceases to amaze
me when I hear people saying they "forget" to drink water. Would
these people need a reminder to breathe? Water increases not
only the quality but also the length of our lives! Don't believe
me? Let's take a closer look.
Water helps to:
Relieve/Prevent: lower back pain, Chronic
Fatigue Syndrome, headaches, migraines, asthma, allergies,
colitis, rheumatoid arthritis, depression, hypertension,
cholesterol, hangovers, neck pain, muscle pain, joint pain,
bloating, constipation, ulcers, low energy levels, stomach pain,
confusion and disorientation.
Maintain: muscle tone, weight loss, clear and
healthy skin.
Regulate: body temperature, remove toxins and
wastes, cushion and lubricate joints, decrease risk of kidney
stones, protect tissues, organs and the spinal cord from shock
and damage.
Assist In: the digestion & absorption of food,
and in transporting oxygen and nutrients to the cells.
There's no substitute for water!
Beverages that simply contain water aren't good enough. juice,
soda, tea, coffee etc. counter the positive effects of water;
some, in fact, may also be unhealthy. For example, drinks
containing caffeine stimulate your adrenal gland and dehydrate
and rob your body of important vitamins and minerals. Beverages
containing lots of sugars stimulate the pancreas, boosting your
insulin levels and taking your body out of its natural fat
burning state. Sodas are a quadruple whammy. Colas, in
particular, contain caffeine, sugar, sodium and acid that could
eat through a dime. Have you ever tried the household remedy to
a calcium and lime rusted toilet? Just let a bottle of soda sit
in the toilet for a bit and presto -- a sparkling toilet! I'm
not saying that you should completely eliminate these drinks
from your diet. However, you may want to replace them with water
whenever possible and at least keep them at a low to moderate
level.
Water and Weight Loss
Drinking water may be the most important piece to the weight
loss puzzle. Water contains no calories, fat, or cholesterol and
is low in sodium. It is nature's appetite suppressant, and it
helps the body to metabolize fat. Current research shows that
low water intakes yield an increase in fat deposits. Conversely,
a high water intake reduces the amount fat deposits. Without
enough water, the kidneys cannot function properly. As a result,
some of their workload is pushed off onto the liver, in turn
preventing the liver from operating at peak levels.
How does all this tie into weight loss? Because metabolizing fat
is a primary function of the liver, and because the liver can't
function at peak levels when taking on the added workload from
the kidneys, less body fat is metabolized and more is stored.
This leads to either weight gain or reaching a plateau of weight
loss. When dieting, we restrict the calories we take in, to some
degree. By doing so, we lessen the total amount of water
available to our bodies since about 30% of the average person's
water intake comes from the food they eat. This gives us even
more reason to raise our water intake.
Water and Water Retention
The best way to beat bloating is to give your body what it
needs. Lots and lots of water! I'm always amazed to hear people
say that they would rather not drink a lot of water because it
"bloats" them or it makes them "retain water." In fact, the
opposite is true. These people are retaining water because
they're not drinking enough water! I'd be willing to bet that
these people got their information from the "local gym expert,"
or maybe they hired a "Personal Trainer" whose qualifications
include a take-home certification test, a chemically enhanced
physique, and the valuable experience they received playing high
school football.
People, I beg of you, pay no mind to what I call "Gym Science."
It will hinder your progress and possibly injure you along the
way! If you need advice, seek a qualified professional. (In a
future article, I'll discuss what makes a qualified
professional.) Now, back to the scientific facts. The human body
functions in a "Primal Survival Mode" and it responds
accordingly to anything it perceives as a possible threat to its
survival. If you deprive your body of ample amounts of water,
you are threatening its survival. In response, your body kicks
into its "Primal Survival Mode" and holds onto every drop of
water it possibly can for future needs and purposes. This water
is often stored in extra-cellular spaces and appears as bloated
hands, legs and feet.
If you're currently using or thinking of using diuretics to
decrease water retention, think again. With diuretics, the
damage is two-fold. Not only is the "Primal Survival Mode"
activated, where your body hoards as much water as it can, but
you are also draining your body of valuable vitamins and
minerals! Check with your health care provider & Nutritionist
before you change medication! If you have long-term water
retention issues, you may be ingesting too much sodium (salt).
Our bodies can only tolerate so much sodium. Thus, the more
sodium you take in, the more water your body will retain to
dilute the sodium concentrations. By simply cutting down on your
sodium intake and drinking plenty of water, you'll notice
considerably less bloating. The water will carry the excess
sodium along for the ride as it flows through the kidneys.
Water and Metabolism
Water, also known as the body's solvent, regulates all bodily
functions including the activities of circulating and
dissolving. Every enzymatic and chemical reaction of the body
occurs in the presence of water. Water also transports hormones,
nutrients, oxygen and antibodies through the blood stream and
lymphatic system. In addition, our bodies' proteins and enzymes
are more efficient in solutions of lower viscosity (i.e.,
diluted), thus making drinking water a must.
Water and Digestion
Digestion of solid foods has to happen in the presence of large
amounts of water so that proper digestion occurs. Water and
muscle tone Desired muscle tone can be maintained through
adequate water intake. Water not only helps the muscle achieve a
better contraction, but it also prevents the sagging of skin
that sometimes follows weight loss. Finally, water maintains
clear, young and healthy skin.
Water and Waste
During weight loss, the body has much more waste to expel in the
form of metabolized fat. Since water helps digestion and rids
the body of waste, it only makes sense that more water is
better.
Water and Constipation
When the body doesn't get enough water, it takes what it needs
from internal sources. The colon is a primary internal source.
When this happens, constipation usually follows. Normal function
commonly returns along with proper hydration.
Water and Body Temperature
Water helps us maintain our body temperature through
perspiration. Perspiration dissipates excess heat and cools our
bodies. Without water, this delicate balancing act of the body
is disrupted.
Water and Asthma
Histamine is a major factor in regulating the way we use and
distribute water. It also helps control the body's defense
mechanism. Asthmatics' histamine levels increase with
dehydration, mobilizing their body's defense mechanism to close
down their airways. Knowing this, we can draw the conclusion
that asthma could be relieved through increased water intake.
Water and the Kidneys
Our kidneys remove wastes like uric acid, urea, and lactic acid
to name a few--all of which are dissolved in water. When there
aren't adequate amounts of water, these wastes aren't removed
effectively and kidney damage may result.
Water and Joints
Cartilage tissues between the vertebrae of the spine and at the
end of long bones retain a lot of water. Cartilage needs water
for the purpose of lubricating the body's joints during
movement. When the cartilage is well hydrated, the two opposing
surfaces glide freely and minimize damage to the joint caused by
friction. Conversely, dehydrated cartilage increases friction
forces to the joints, resulting in joint deterioration and pain.
Water and Back Pain
Minimizing back pain can be as simple as hydrating your body!
The water stored in your spinal disc core supports approximately
75% of the upper body's weight. Your spine is dependent upon the
hydraulic properties of water.
Water and Muscles
Muscles are primarily composed of water. Therefore, it's only
logical to drink lots of water if you want to have more muscle
mass. Furthermore, water removes wastes from and transports
nutrients to the muscle cells, decreasing recovery time. Water
also ensures that a proper muscle contraction can be achieved so
that the working muscle is properly exhausted. Finally,
bodybuilders tend to ingest a lot of calories, supplements and
proteins, really taxing their kidneys in the process. Water
takes some of the strain off the kidneys.
Water and the Brain
85% of brain tissue is water. The brain is about 1/50th of the
body's total weight and it uses about 1/20th of the body's blood
supply. Dehydration causes energy generation in the brain to
decrease. In fact, studies have linked depression and chronic
fatigue syndrome with dehydration.
Water and Migraines/Headaches
Dehydration is a major factor in causing headaches and
migraines. In times of "heat stress" migraines are often signs
of dehydration. To further complicate the matter, dehydration
brings on stress and stress brings on dehydration.
Water and Pregnancy
Morning sickness is common in the first trimester of pregnancy.
One reason for morning sickness is dehydration. It's a signal
being sent by the fetus and the mother's body to the mother.
What's the message? We need more water! When the mother isn't
drinking enough water, she's dehydrating the baby and herself.
This a result of the mother being the provider of water to the
fetus during the intrauterine stage of cell expansion.
Water and Skin
Without water, it becomes dry and cracked. It is also the main
conduit for releasing water from the body. Proper hydration is
key to keeping your skin looking smooth, healthy and young.
Water and Liver
Metabolizes fat. But if the body's not getting enough water, it
has to perform some of the kidney's functions, which means it's
not metabolizing as much fat as it should.
Water and Blood
It thickens when the body's lacking water, which makes it
difficult for the heart to pump and distribute blood to the rest
of the body. Plus, capillaries shut down creating obstacles for
nutrients circulating to vital organs.
Don't obey your thirst!
The bodies "Thirst Reflex" is the last signal of excessive
dehydration. By the time you become thirsty, the damage has
already been done. Don't wait until you're thirsty! Constantly
drink throughout the day! How much water should I drink? The
non-active individual needs 1/2 oz. per pound of bodyweight, per
day. For the average American who weighs 160 lbs. that comes to
ten 8oz. glasses per day. This is just an average; you'll need
to adjust these numbers to your activity level, environment,
bodyweight, and diet.
Facts
about Water
- 75% of people are dehydrated.
- 2.5 liters of water is lost each day through normal bodily
functions.
- Symptoms of the body's deterioration begin to appear when
the body loses 5% of its total water volume.
- Even MILD dehydration will slow down one's metabolism as
much as 3%
- Lack of water is the #1 trigger of daytime fatigue.
- Preliminary research indicates that 8-10 glasses of water a
day could significantly ease back and joint pain for up to 80%
of suffers.
- A mere 2% drop in body water can trigger fuzzy short-term
memory, trouble with basic math, and difficulty focusing on the
computer screen or a printed page.
- Drinking 5 glasses of water daily decreases the risk of
colon cancer by 45%, plus it can slash the risk of breast cancer
by 79%, and one is 50% less likely to develop bladder cancer.
- Our energy level is impacted largely by our consumption of
water. It has been medically proven that just a 5% drop in body
fluids will cause a 25 to 30% loss of energy in most people, a
15% drop causes death! It is also estimated that more than 2/3
of all people do not drink enough water and suffer some degree
of dehydration. The result being a large part of our population
operating at only 70 to 75% of their capacity, or less.
Unfortunately most people turn to stimulants like caffeine and
sugar to boost their energy level rather than drinking more
water, which is what our body needs to produce natural energy.
Caffeine, alcohol and sugar are all strong diuretics and
actually cause your body to lose water, resulting in a further
loss of natural energy production and eventually can lead to a
dependency on artificial energy.
- A study done by the Medical College of Wisconsin and Harvard
University concluded that drinking chlorinated water over long
periods of time increases the chances of contracting rectal
cancer by 38 percent and contracting bladder cancer by 21
percent. In addition, among those who drank chlorinated water,
the researchers found a higher incidence of cancer of the
esophagus, rectum, breast, and larynx, as well as Hodgkin's
disease.
- 2 cups of water and a 20 minute break will overcome most
common headache pain.
- A child consumes 3 times as much water per pound of body
weight than an adult does, so they get a bigger dose of the
chemicals in our water, and they're developing bodies are simply
much more sensitive.
- By taking in enough water, your body starts dropping weight
possibly 4 or 5 pounds in the first week because it optimizes
your bodily functions, allowing the body to run more efficiently
and start burning stored body fat for energy.
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