The Liquid of Life

I have a system.

Each and every morning after rolling out of bed, the VERY first thing I do before doing anything else is walk straight into the kitchen, pour myself a big glass of water, and chug it down to its very last drop. Next I pour another and repeat. It’s not even 7:00am yet and I already have 2 glasses of this life-promoting bevvy surging through my body.

Why do I do this? Because after a night of snoozing your body NEEDS water. It’s the time of the day when you are most dehydrated. Unfortunately for most people, the first liquid that passes their lips is a cup of coffee. And ironically, coffee just dehydrates you more! Coffee much like other caffeinated beverages (such as tea and pop) and alcohol act as diuretics by increasing water loss in the body.

I know when I don’t drink enough water in a day I feel the effects.

Common symptoms of even mild dehydration include: headaches, dry skin and constipation, to name a few.

The body is made up of 75% water.

It is involved in practically every bodily function: elimination of wastes, circulation, digestion, and absorption of vital nutrients, vitamins and minerals.

How much water do you need?

Requirements vary between individuals but determining factors include: body size, diet, activity level and the climate in which you live. Situations where the body experiences an excess loss of fluid (i.e. fever, diarrhea) also increases a person’s water requirements.

A general  rule of thumb is to divide your body weight (in pounds) by 2. This is the approximate number of ounces of water you require daily. You can go one step further by dividing the total ounces by 8 to get the total # of glasses/cups.

Example: (150 pound women) –>  150/2 = 75 oz/8 oz = 9.38

So she would require approximately 9 cups of water per day, or in other words, 9 x 8 oz glasses per day. (Note: 8 oz = 1 cup)

* Remember: this is just a general equation and other factors can play a role as well*

Tips for Water Intake

1) Drink at different intervals during the day and try to drink 2 glasses upon rising before you eat breakfast.

2) Try not to drink liquid with meals. Take small sips between bites if need be. Water can reduce digestion and assimilation of food because it dilutes digestive juices. Ideally it’s good to drink water a ½ hour before eating and a ½ hour after eating to best support digestion.

3) For every cup of caffeinated beverage or alcohol  – drink an additional 2 cups of water.

4) Make sure you are drinking pure, clean water from the best source possible.

5) Add some fresh lemon to your agua to stimulate digestion and promote detoxification. Plus it adds a little “somethin somethin” to the taste.

An informative book on the subject is “Your Body’s Many Cries for Water” by F. Batmanghelidj, M.D.  Dr. B explains how chronic dehydration is the root cause of numerous degenerative diseases.

“You’re not sick; you’re thirsty. Don’t treat thirst with medication.”
Dr. F. Batmanghelidj 

Check out www.watercure.com for more information.