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Monday, April 12, 2010

Water: Your Most Important Nutrient!

No other nutrient makes more of an impact on health than water.

Life as we know it cannot exist without water. Every biochemical reaction in our cells depends on water. Water is needed to maintain cell structures, enable protein production, and enables all our enzymes to function.It facilitates the flow of nutrients into cells and allows waste to flow out. Every available space in and between cells in the body is aqueous.

The human body is made up of about 70 to 75 percent water. It requires water for proper digestion, transport of nutrients, nutrient metabolism, and elimination of toxins.The brain itself is made up of about 85 percent water, which it requires for proper cognitive function and memory. The body also uses water to maintain cardiac output, heart rate and blood pressure.

Most people are aware of the dangers of dehydration produced from diarrhea, vomiting, excessive sweating, diabetes, burns or prolonged lack of fluid intake. Severe dehydration can lead to mental confusion, weakness and possible organ failure. However, many are not aware that they may be suffering from chronic mild dehydration.According to estimates using data from Nationwide Food Consumption Survey, nutritionists determined that chronic mild dehydration affects a significant portion of the U.S. population unknowingly.

As a matter of fact, you may be mildly dehydrated right at this very moment.

We lose water regularly as we breathe, when we sweat, and when we urinate or have a bowel movement.When you feel thirsty, you are generally already at 1 or 2 percent mild dehydration. Even 1 or 2 percent loss of water can impair physiology and performance, so it’s important to ensure regular water intake.

Long-term Hazards of Not Drinking Enough Water

Think of the last time you might have had a headache, felt unexplainably tired, or had no appetite for no apparent reason. At the same time, you might have also felt light headed, had flushed skin, or had dry mouth and eyes. Did you notice your urine was a little darker or had a strong odor? All of these are early signs of mild or moderate dehydration.

You may become mildly or moderately dehydrated simply because of you are not drinking enough water, from lack of thirst or not liking the flavor of your water. Mild dehydration can also result from exercise or heat, which produce sweating, or chronic consumption of caffeinated or alcoholic beverages such as tea, coffee, wine or beer, which can act as diuretics and influence hormones that dehydrate body tissues and the brain.

When the signs of mild dehydration occur, many people ignore them. They often overlook the role of water for optimal health. The body may go on suffering—suffering for what can simply be solved by a tall glass of plain water. Chronic mild dehydration can have long-term consequences,many of which are not yet entirely understood. What is known is that because water is vital for all cells and organs to function properly, the lack of water may lead to increased susceptibility to cellular damage that can eventually lead to chronic health problems and organ failure.

How to Hydrate for Health

Without a doubt, one of the most important long-term habits that health-conscious people should adopt is making sure they are drinking sufficient water daily. An increasing number of clinicians and health-conscious people have found that three simple steps can help increase a person’s intake of healthy water to support cellular, digestive, mental, and cardiovascular health.

Step 1: Purify your water

You should only provide your cells with fresh, pure water. Water from the tap of many cities is adequately treated, but may still contain pollutants that are undesirable—not the kind of water you want if you’re interested in long-term health.

There are multiple methods of purification, but the most often used process is reverse osmosis filtration, which can remove up to 99 percent of impurities. Distillation, on the other hand, can remove virtually all impurities. Whichever method of filtration you choose, the result will make profound effects on your health long term.

Step 2: Treat water with IsaWATER™ Alkalized Concentrate

Most of us don’t realize that the water we drink, even bottled or purified, may be acidic and contain impurities that may produce free radicals.The water is usually not appealing to the taste buds and certainly not the best water for your health. Water flavor also influences how much water one drinks daily. If you don’t like the water, you won’t drink it.

With a quality product such as IsaWATER™ Alkalized Concentrate, you can easily turn purified drinking water into one that supports long-term health. The alkaline concentrate contains a stabilized high-negative Oxidation-Reduction Potential (ORP) that refreshes the flavor of your water and energizes it with electrons to neutralize free radicals.

Step 3: Drink a total eight 8 oz. glasses of purified water daily, one first thing in the morning,and seven more throughout the day.

There is possibly no other more important health habit than dutifully drinking eight glasses of purified water daily. By doing so, you are properly hydrating your body so it may function optimally and supporting regular elimination of toxins.

You should drink the first glass first thing in the morning. It has an immediate cleansing effect in cells, improves digestive function (needed for breakfast) and helps you avoid symptoms associated with mild dehydration. While you sleep, your body continues working. Upon first waking, most people are already mildly or moderately dehydrated (recall that even 1 or 2percent loss can lead to impaired physiology).

Then, drinking seven glasses of water throughout the day can help make sure you stay adequately hydrated. However, this is not a “one size fits all” guideline. For a truer approach, consider drinking at least half your body weight in ounces daily. Also, consider that exercise or the heat of summer days can potentially increase your need for water.When playing sports or exercising,be sure to drink water every 20 minutes.

Your Health Can Depend on Your Water Intake

The true health implications of inadequate water intake are not all clear. While this critical nutrient is available free or at low cost to most of the population, it does not have any major sources of research funding. It will likely take years of research before more is known about the total effects of chronic mild dehydration. However, it is clear that drinking the right kind and amount of water is truly one of the keys to good health.

For long-term health, make sure you always have drinkable, purified, alkalized high negative ORP water available. There is little risk from maximizing the benefits of this profoundly important nutrient, as it affects every biochemical function and the body as a whole. Your future health will depend on your water intake today. Make sure it’s the best water and that you’re drinking plenty of it.



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