Water is chemically the simplest, yet most invaluable nutrient in the body. You can survive without food temporarily, maybe even up to as much as 8 weeks in some cases, but only 2-5 days on average without water. This is of course contingent on the temperature and your health status. Roughly 70% of the human body is made up of water, with the blood being around 85%, and the brain up to 90%, making water indispensable!
Adequate hydration is so vital that your body will make it extremely difficult to lose those extra pounds if your cells are dehydrated, which is the case for many people. Fat cells store the majority of toxic acidic waste in an attempt to protect the organs. In order for it to release the fat, the body wants to make sure there is adequate water present to flush the acidic toxic waste from the system. Detoxification and weight loss becomes a much more attainable task when cells are properly hydrated!
Water has countless roles in the body and it is needed for every bodily function:
- Euhydration, or adequate water flow in the body, is crucial for maintaining the optimal pH of the body’s fluids and tissues, acting to dilute and flush excessive acids.
- Since everyone is susceptible to toxic overload, water is essential for releasing excess acidity that can wreak havoc on the body systems. It helps flush excessive acids out of the cellular and extra-cellular environment, controlling inflammation, keeping cells in their preferred alkaline state—an absolute essential for maintaining homeostasis.
- Water is also necessary for the transportation of nutrients and oxygen to all the cells of the body, as well as for the utilization of water soluble vitamins.
- Water aids in digestion which is essential for healthy bowel movements, thus a healthy colon. Drinking adequate water alone can relieve constipation in many cases.
- It allows the kidneys to efficiently remove toxins, sparing unnecessary stress on the liver.
- As mentioned earlier, when aiming for fat reduction, the body needs to be properly hydrated so as to remove the waste materials from fat breakdown.
- Water is crucial for cellular energy production, all cell function, temperature control, lubrication of joints, mental sharpness, physical performance and endurance, and consequently for controlling inflammation and optimal pH balance!
- When your cells are properly hydrated, pathogenic viruses and bacteria cannot easily gain a foothold. Water is more than 70% oxygen, and we know how oxygen feeds the aerobic energy producing mitochondria, ramping up cellular metabolism, thus deterring viral and bacterial proliferation that leads to sickness!
- Conversely, dehydration, or loss of essential water and electrolytes in the body, has devastating effects on the body’s functionality.
- Fluid loss of even 2% starts to impair temperature regulation and reduces aerobic performance.
- Higher levels of dehydration impair concentration, alertness, memory, visual and motor skills, mood, muscular strength and aerobic capacity. Dehydration also interrupts thermoregulatory and cardiovascular responses, as well as pH balance of course, increasing body temperature, inflammation, acidity, blood flow to the skin and muscle cramps.
- Severe dehydration can be life-threatening. Heat illness can cause exhaustion, fatigue, temperature changes in the body, lightheadedness, nausea, stomach cramps, palpitations, hyperventilation and vomiting. Exertional heat stroke can cause confusion, amnesia, sensory motor deficits, visual disturbances, disorientation, headaches, inability to walk, dizziness, seizures, delirium, coma, and even death.
With all that bring said, being properly hydrated is a no brainer. It is always wise to be mindful of all your body needs, but as you have learned hydration needs to be on top of the list. Keep in mind, drinking plain water is not the only way or the best way to stay hydrated. Regularly consuming foods with high water content like organic fresh raw fruits and vegetables is a great way to keep your cells quenched! Cucumbers, for example, can produce hydration levels twice that of water due to its 96% water content and highly alkaline mineral composition.
Lemon and coconut water are other amazing options. The high concentrate of alkaline forming minerals in these foods and beverages can make the water much more available to the cells than just consuming water alone. On the contrary, low sodium intake, or consuming too many foods that are too high in sodium (especially iodized table salt), as well as sugar, alcohol, caffeine and other diuretics, rob the body of nutrients, speed up the dehydration process, and elevate blood pressure.
Pay close attention to your internal fluid balance in order to prevent dehydration. Consume ½-1 oz. of water per lb. of lean body mass, including the water content from fruits, vegetables, smoothies, juicing, herbal teas, etc.
Consume additional mineral rich liquids on hot days, as well as before, during and after recreational activities, like intense bouts at the gym, as well as during a weight loss or detoxification program to flush excess fats and acidic toxic waste.
What is the best drinking water?
Since quality water is one of the most advantageous forms of re-hydration, it is imperative not only to drink adequate amounts, but also the highest quality available. There are a couple of healthy choices:
- Spring water from a natural spring is the best choice findaspring.com/
- Water from a high-quality water filtration system is the next best choice, and more obtainable.
Keep in mind that it is far safer to consume water either bottled in glass or from a high-quality water filter stored in a glass container! Drinking plastic bottled water should be a last resort. Not only because of the Bisphenol A (BPA) and phthalates that have been linked to hormone imbalances, reproductive complications, and a variety of cancers and additional toxic accumulation, but also because of the negative impact the plastic has on the once upon a time pristine environment. BPA free plastic although seemingly a better option is often replaced with other toxic chemicals for a similar purpose so avoiding ALL plastic is the best choice.
Per the Ocean Conservatory, plastic bottles and plastic bags are the most prevailing form of pollution found on beaches and in our oceans. Unbelievably, every square mile of the ocean has over 46,000 scraps of plastic floating in it!
In fact, a whopping ten percent of the plastic manufactured worldwide is found on the ocean floor where the greater part of it will never degrade, negatively impacting ecosystems. Aquatic life, birds, and certain land animals can engulf plastic debris and even become tangled in them, causing them to suffocate or starve to death when they become immobilized and can’t eat.
I thought most people recycled these days? I guess not, because eighty percent of these water bottles congest our landfills. For every 10 bottles we drink, only two end up being recycled!
On top of the pollution, we waste a totally unnecessary 17 million barrels of oil each year just to manufacture all of those water bottles which is enough oil to keep a million cars running for a whole year. That’s not including the energy used to pump, process, transport, and refrigerate the bottled water which equates to 50 million barrels of oil every year!