Bring On the Water!

By Bera Dordoni, N.D.

Ok, so this scruffy-looking dog named Lackawater walks into the corner bar barking “WATER! Give me water!”

“Would that be Perrier or plain mineral water?” asked the bartender?

“Water! Just plain water. No additives, no subtractions, just plain water. I’m thirsty. Parched! I need water!” Lackawater barked.

“Well, what about a coke? Or some other soda? We don’t sell ‘just plain water’ here.”

“Are you kidding me? I’m dehydrated. I don’t need to become more dehydrated by drinking a soda! Don’t you know that chronic water shortage in our bodies causes most diseases?” rasped Lackawater.

“Well, doggone it, buddy, if you’ve gotta have water, act like a dog and go drink outta the toilet,” the bartender responded.

With that, Lackawater growled and trotted off to the bathroom, knowing he could at least get a drink of something that would actually hydrate him.

Dehydration is Seriously Dangerous

Lackawater was right – when you need hydration, you need water. And the bartender, well, his job was to sell something.

Now that summer is just around the corner and things are really heating up out here, it’s important to address our need for water and consider drinking a lot more of this hydrating ‘drink’ rather than sugary or diet sodas, coffee and tea, since these all dehydrate the body.

So What?

The attitude “So what, I like my sodas and I hate water” will harm you more than you think. Dehydration is such a serious issue that you could avoid numerous health problems just by drinking 8 glasses of water a day – 8 ounces each. That’s just 64 ounces of water that can be the cheapest medicine available.

Dehydration is so common these days due to the consumption of processed foods and drinks that, according to F. Batmanghelidj, M.D., often “you are not sick, you are thirsty” when you don’t feel well. Rather than ask your doctor for something to ease pain, or your digestive issues, mental fuzziness, or general lack of energy, guzzle down a glass of water.

Dr. Batmanghelidj also says in Your Body’s Many Cries for Water that if you are suffering from spinal disc compression, you are probably dehydrated. If you have chronic skin disease – eczema, acne, psoriasis, cracked, dry, loose skin, you are dehydrated. Lotions and creams you apply won’t rehydrate your skin cells. True hydration is an inside-out job. Give your skin a few weeks’ worth of hydration and the skin cells start to thicken.

The CDC reports that the ninth leading cause of death in the US is chronic kidney disease. Also due to dehydration. No medication can possibly ‘cure’ such a condition, but in the long run, water can. If one continues slowly to increase hydration every day and decrease intake of processed drinks and foods, kidney disease can eventually resolve itself.

Colon disease is known as the #3 type of cancer in the US, usually because the colon becomes layered in sludge after years of consuming junk foods and drinks. Eliminating the habits leading to the illness, replacing them with fresh, live, organic foods, and simply consuming a minimum of 64 ounces of fresh, clean water daily can help dislodge the sludge and revitalize the colon, resulting in a strengthening of the colon’s mucosal cells, muscle cells and peristalsis.

Is It True?

Claims have been made that:

1. 75% of Americans are chronically dehydrated.
2. Even mild dehydration can slow down your metabolism as much as 3%.
3. The body’s thirst mechanism, due to the consumption of sodas and other sugary drinks, has become so weakened that it is often mistaken for hunger, which leads to obesity when acted upon with junk foods.
4. Lack of water can bring on allergies and asthma – signals that there is a water shortage in the body.
5. Number one trigger of daytime fatigue? Lack of water.
6. 100% of the dieters in a University of Washington study had their midnight hunger pangs shut down by drinking 8 ounces of water.
7. 80% of back and joint pain sufferers in a research study reported significant reduction in pain with the consumption of 8-10 glasses of water daily.
8. Dehydration brings on short-term memory fuzziness, difficulty with basic math and trouble focusing on a printed page or a computer screen.
9. Many cancer risks are decreased with the increase in water consumption. Water is necessary to flush toxins out of the body, and when enough water isn’t supplied, the cells retain what is available, which might hold in the toxins.
10. A migraine headache can be alleviated almost immediately if you suck down 20 ounces of water at the onset. Adding lemon will provide even more relief.

Rehydrating a Dehydrated Body

If it is true that 75% of us are dehydrated today, and it simply takes drinking water to take care of the problem, why can’t we all just drink 8 glasses of water and be immediately rehydrated? Hmmm, if you think about what happens to a desiccated desert arroyo when there’s a heavy storm, what do you get? Yeah, flash flood. The water is unable to penetrate the long-parched surface immediately any more easily than our cells can absorb water that way. Our result? Same as the desert’s flash flood – rush to the nearest bathroom and pee … again … and again… and again. Rehydration of cells takes place slowly.

So what do you do if you really want to rehydrate? Don’t gripe, just start drinking. A little bit at a time. The first week might be a bit difficult. You might forget to drink since your body isn’t used to being thirsty. Your cells aren’t used to so much water. You’ll have to pee a lot. Don’t stop, though; keep drinking as much as you can, as often as you can, every day. At first you might feel bloated because your cells are resisting the water. Keep this up for at least two weeks, and something surprising will happen. Even though you might be drinking more water than you’ve ever consumed before, you just may feel thirsty and experience dry mouth. Why? This phenomenon confirms that your body has been profoundly dehydrated for years. Now that the body is sensing that there is a continued water supply available, your water conservation systems can start relaxing as your cells begin absorbing the water they’ve been denied for so long. And the healing can begin. As long as you keep drinking your water.

But I Hate Plain Water!

You’re not alone. Many people dislike the taste of plain water. And if it’s tap water, not only can it taste lousy, but it can also be dangerous today with everything from fluoride to dangerous chemicals and drugs, to toxic disinfection byproducts and heavy metals to parasites. A good water filter today is often more of a necessity than a luxury. A water filtering system can also make the water refreshingly tasty while removing harmful pathogens in the process. And it is far more cost-effective than buying bottled water.

Attention Moms: Help Keep Your Kids Healthy – Avoid Sodas & Make the Water Appealing

If you still don’t like your water plain, try some variation to see what will help you to consume the most water per day:

1. Add a slice of organic cucumber with the squeeze of a lemon and you’ve got a delicious and wonderfully refreshing, hydrating drink.
2. Drop some fresh blueberries and a small chunk of ginger root into your water for a refreshing kick with a bit of sweetness.
3. Ginger root with a dash of lemon – yum.
4. My favorite version of water is a lemonade of sorts – made with fresh organic lemons, just enough maple syrup for sweetness and a pinch of cayenne pepper. The synergistic action of the cayenne pepper helps the water penetrate the cells and assists the body in flushing out toxins. It’s also referred to as the ‘master cleanse’ drink.

Not All Water is the Same

Water has different pH values, depending on its source. The best water for our consumption is alkaline water, to combat the processed acidic food and drink that we consume. Adding a few drops of raw coconut vinegar or apple cider vinegar can help alkalize your water – tastes good, too.

Something important to consider when you feel like a glass of iced water is to hold off on the ice. In his book Silent Clots, James Privatera, M.D. claims that adding ice to your water can cause the blood cells to clot, leading to stroke or other clotting disorders. Best to cool the water with ice if necessary, then remove it before consuming. Room temperature water or even warm water penetrates the cells more easily and safely and assists in the hydration process.

I Have a Choice

Like Lackawater said, sodas dehydrate; water hydrates. If presented with a choice between a soda and toilet water, my hope is that the toilet bowl is clean.
Okay, so this time, Lackawater’s twin, Fullawater, goes into the corner bar carrying a water bottle in his backpack.

“Not you, again, Lackawater,” groaned the bartender.

“Nah, I’m his brother, Fullawater,” replied the dog. “I constantly have to remind him to drink his water, but he forgets, gets dehydrated, and then he gets really foggy-brained, poor guy.”

“So whaddaya want from me? My job is to get you something from the bar – a coke, sprite, or if you’ve got i.d. and you’re over 21, I can get you a beer to quench your thirst.”

“But all those things just dehydrate you.”

“What is this bit about ‘dehydration’ you and your brother keep talking about?” asked the bartender. “All the drinks I have to offer are there to quench your thirst. Doesn’t that hydrate you? And why am I talking to a dog?”

“Don’t you go online? Everybody’s seen the info about coke and its properties,” responded Fullawater. “Here, I brought a copy of it with me to give you today.”

The bartender took the paper and read:

Coca Cola Properties

1. The highway patrol in many states in the USA carries two gallons of coke in the truck to remove blood from the highway after a car accident.

2. To carry Coca-Cola syrup (the concentrate) the commercial truck must use the Hazardous Material place cards reserved for highly corrosive materials.
3. You can put a T-bone steak in a bowl of Coke and it will be gone in two days.

4. The citric acid in coke removes stains from porcelain and china. Pour a can of coke into your toilet bowl, let it sit for an hour, and flush clean.

5. To remove rust spots from chrome car bumpers: rub the bumper with a rumpled-up piece of aluminum foil dipped in coke.

6. To clean corrosion from car battery terminals: pour a can of coke over the terminals to bubble away the corrosion.

7. Loosen a rusted bold by applying a cloth soaked in coke to the rusted bolt for several minutes.

8. To remove grease from clothes, empty a can of coke into a load of greasy clothes, add detergent, and run through a regular cycle. The coke helps loosen grease stains.

9. The active ingredient in Coke is phosphoric acid. Its pH is 2.8. It will dissolve a nail in about 4 days.

10. Phosphoric acid leaches calcium from bones and is a major contributor to the rising increase in osteoporosis.

11. The distributors of Coke have been using it to clean the engines of their trucks for about 20 years.

“Okay, I’ve read it, now get outta here before someone sees me talking to you and I lose business.”

With that, Fullawater took a swig of his water and pranced out of the bar.

Dogs use intuition. How smart. We humans, manipulated by advertising, ignore bodily requests and reach for something harmful like a soft drink or a juice that is high in simplified sugars.

Last month we talked a bit about hydrating with water, especially since summer is here and we’re experiencing such a severe drought. We didn’t really go into depth as to all of the reasons water is so important for our bodies, and why it can make such a huge difference in the way we feel.

Water and Body Composition
The human body: more than two-thirds water. Yup… keeping it hydrated is absolutely essential to create new blood and bone cells daily. In order to keep them healthy and continually producing more healthy cells, good hydration is required, since the blood is more than eighty percent (80%) water and our bones are more than fifty percent (50%) water.

Then there’s the brain. It’s 85% water. Duh… no wonder we suffer from headaches, dullness, irritability, fatigue and lack of concentration when not essentially hydrated.

Without constantly ingesting enough water, our bodies quickly build up toxins. By increasing water intake we can help flush out these toxins through our intestines, kidneys and lymphatic system.

Without enough water we can easily become constipated and develop digestive disorders. Instead of running for an OTC digestive aid or stool softener, drink more water. It will add bulk to the stools and fluid to the colon, helping prevent constipation.

Skin elasticity comes from the inside out, and relies on water, not lotions and creams.

Supplements like glucosamine and chondroitin can help with painful joint conditions, but even more helpful and beneficial is lubricating the joints with water, since it can not only help keep the joints cushioned, but maintaining good water levels can help protect against wear and tear of the joints.

Humans can survive for months without food, but without water we can’t live more than a few days at most. Now that we’ve hit the hottest months of the year, we’re losing more water each day through urine and sweat, so it’s imperative to replenish this vital fluid.

If your urine is a deep, dark yellow, drink more water. If you are taking vitamin B2 (riboflavin), your urine will most likely be bright yellow; otherwise it ought to be light yellow if you’re drinking enough water.

Although you might want to quench your thirst with something more flavorful than water, by drinking something with caffeine (coffee and sodas) you are actually consuming a diuretic, which drains fluid from the body and dehydrates you further.

Sports drinks aren’t much better because most contain about two-thirds as much high fructose corn syrup or sugar as sodas, as well as artificial flavors and food coloring, none of which is good for your health or hydration. They also tend to contain high amounts of sodium chloride (processed salt), which purpose is supposed to be replenishment of the electrolytes you lose when you sweat. The concept is fine, but using processed salt without balanced minerals isn’t nearly as good as simply adding a pinch of natural, unprocessed sea salt to your water containing 84 different minerals and trace minerals required by the body for optimal functioning.

Too Much Water Can Be Dangerous!
If you decide to start a serious regimen to hydrate yourself, do it wisely. Moderation is always the key. Don’t drink gallons of water thinking you’re doing something beneficial. At this point you might be dropping your sodium levels dangerously low; if they become too low you can cause hyponatremia, which is a condition where the cells start swelling with too much fluid. Most of our body’s cells can handle this, but not the brain cells, which is where most symptoms occur. The body does not hydrate quickly; it hydrates slowly over a period of time. Read about rehydrating a dehydrated body in http://gallupjourney.com/2014/06/words-of-wellness-june-2014/.

Making it Palatable

Let’s face it – most of us like to drink something that tastes good to make it go down easily. As I mentioned last month, there are many ways one can alter the flavor, simply with the addition of something you enjoy eating that can release its own flavor into the water. I alter mine daily by adding either raspberries, lemon, lime, ginger root, a mint leaf, cucumber slices, or whatever is available at the moment.

The closest thirst-quenching drink that compares to pure water is coconut water. Considered so pure that it is used in many tropical regions for patients with severe diarrhea to replace fluid loss from the gastrointestinal tract, it has even been used in intravenous therapy due to its purity. Rich in natural sugars and amino acids, but low in sodium and chlorides, it is a much better alternative that can hydrate the body as opposed to sodas that dehydrate our cells. However, it isn’t recommended as a complete replacement for water.

I’m often asked what type of water I recommend drinking. I don’t recommend tap water because of the contaminants contained therein. I also don’t recommend water bottled in plastic, because too many chemicals and hormones are leached from the plastic into the water, and you drink ‘em down. Filtered water that removes impurities is your best bet. Having a home filtration system at the kitchen sink is helpful. When contaminants are removed, as long as minerals are left intact, the water usually tastes very good.

The Bottom Line … Are You Sick or Are You Thirsty?
A man goes to the doctor and tells him that he hasn’t been feeling well. The doctor examines him, leaves the room and comes back with three different bottles of pills. The doctor says, “Take the big pill with a big glass of water when you get up. Take the little pink pill with a big glass of water after lunch. Then just before going to bed, take the red pill with another big glass of water.”

Startled to be put on so much medication, the man stammers, “My goodness, Doc, exactly what is my problem?”

Doc says, “You’re not drinking enough water.”

Are you? Make every day great. Hydrate!

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Dr. Bera “The Wellness Whisperer” Dordoni, N.D.

Specializing in immune system rehabilitation, restoration, and maintenance through nutritional counseling, life-style coaching, and the laws of attraction. To purchase I Have a Choice?!, schedule a private consultation, or learn more about her next workshop, wellness retreat, or natural-health class, visit www.bastis.org or call 505-783-9001.