Fancy a drink?

We forget pretty quickly just how important it is to stay properly hydrated. And it’s not rocket science; I’m not suggesting you should and start to monitor your fluid intake really, really carefully. Just drink a glass of water whenever you feel a bit thirsty, or at least a few times a day, that’s all! Couldn’t get any simpler than that!

The human body is about 75% water, believe it or not. Blood is even more, about 90% water. If you’re dehydrated, your blood will thicken and your blood pressure will rise, due to the resistance caused by the increased viscosity of your blood. Dehydration can also lead to a rise in blood cholesterol, which, together with high blood pressure, can make coronary heart disease more likely, according to the American Heart Association.

Healthy blood, and a smoothly flowing blood circulation help to keep your heart strong and healthy. You want a healthy heart, right? Course you do, and the simplest way to do your heart a huge favour is to drink more water.

What are you thinking??

Do you think being dehydrated won’t affect your thinking processes? Think again! The brain is also at least 75% water, probably much higher (around 85-90% is my guess), since it’s really squishy! Once there’s a shortage of water in your system your brain functions will be affected, make no mistake. You may not notice it, but then again maybe that’s because you’re not thinking straight, y’know …  ‘cos you’re dehydrated!

And don’t fall into the trap of thinking that fruit juice and cans of cola, or even tea and coffee, will keep the body hydrated just as well as drinking pure water.

Sorry, but that’s just plain wrong!

These drinks often contain a lot of sugar and salt. Why’s that a problem? Well, your body knows when it has enough of those things and tries to ditch any excess at the first opportunity.

So they’ll get flushed away, along with … guess what … yep, a generous helping of water! That’s right, the very thing you wanted, and thought you were taking onboard, goes straight down the toilet. 🙁

 

A most essential nutrient

Basically, water is just about the most vital nutrient there is. You need it for practically every function and process in the body.

>> you can’t digest food properly if you don’t have enough water in your system
>> your joints won’t work as smoothly, in fact they can stiffen up pretty painfully
>> your enzymes won’t be performing their work properly, resulting in fatigue
>> changes in the electrolyte balance in your body can result in muscle cramping
>> dehydration can cause food cravings, specially for sweet things
>> headaches … your brain is in a fluid sac (which acts like a shock absorber), and if that fluid is depleted the        brain is less well protected – result: headaches!
>> your skin … well, the effects on your skin are pretty obvious

Water helps keep you young looking!

In fact, one of the most striking effects of dehydration can be premature ageing.

>> your skin can lose elasticity
>> it can become more wrinkled
>> your organs don’t work as well as they should
>> your joints get stiff
>> you tend to gain weight (because the body can’t easily de-toxify and stores the toxins in fat cells)
and the list goes on and on …

And you thought it was a bore to have to drink a few glasses of water a day!

You only have to consider two facts:

1 – Drinking a few glasses of pure water a day is one of the best (and one of the simplest) ways of improving your general health, and …

2 –  We are incredibly lucky to have pure, clean water literally on tap. Millions of people across the world don’t have that privilege. Don’t waste it!

Still not convinced?

Oh, hold on, you’re still not keen on drinking pure water? Huh? After all that?

Okay, here’s a few handy tips:

• Keep a water bottle handy (in your bag, on your desk, by the bed, wherever). If it’s there, easily to hand, you’re more likely to make use of it.
• Sip it! You don’t have to take huge gulps of water, it’ll have the same effect if you just sip it from time to time. And sipping water during meals will help with your digestion too. It’ll also help you to eat more slowly and consciously, which has got to be a good thing!
• Break the habit of drinking chilled or icy drinks! It’s better for you to drink it as it comes out of the tap, room temperature. That won’t cause the arteries surrounding your stomach to contract, which will impede proper digestion.
• Add a dash of fruit juice to a glass of water to give it a nice taste. Fruit juice itself, as I said earlier, isn’t a great choice as regards hydration, but a dash of it in a glass of water is fine.

Okay, now we’ve got that sorted out, go and treat yourself to a nice glass of water!