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Hydration, Energy and Wellbeing

Written by: John Toomey

Article Overview: Do you ever get an attack of the "yawns" at 10:30am or 2:00pm, or find yourself feeling drowsy whilst driving? Or perhaps you feel a hunger attack during the afternoon that is not really explainable. Could water be the reason?

Hydration, Energy and Wellbeing

Hydration and Health © 2002 John Toomey B.Ed. Phys.Ed.


Regular water consumption is essential for good health and wellbeing. Most Australians do not drink anywhere near enough water.
Lethargy and Tiredness
Your Blood Circulates round your body each day dropping water off at the sweat glands, in the kidney and in the lungs. It releases at least 1.5 litres in the average person who does not exercise.

It collects new water supplies from the bowel. Not many people realise that the body stores its water in the bowel.

If there is no water in the bowel, the water volume in the blood drops thus potentially making the blood a little thicker and reducing the effectiveness of circulation.

The brain doesn't get all the nutrients or oxygen it requires as quickly as it needs them, so a few things happen.

 You may begin to yawn in an attempt to get more oxygen.
 You may start to crave sweet foods in an attempt to increase blood sugars.
 Sleepiness may overtake you as your brain struggles to satisfy its own oxygen demands.
 The Pituitary Gland releases a hormone called Anti Diuretic Hormone (ADH).

The ADH causes the body to store fluid, a reflex action to create a fluid reservoir in case the water shortage becomes even more critical.

If water intake is low and there is none in the bowel, the contents of the bowel become very dry and compacted, resulting in constipation.

To cure all these, drink a litre of water per 25 kilograms of bodyweight per day. This figure is based on a range of research and is now considered a generalised recommendation by the Naturopathic community. If you are exercising, drink more. Once you start drinking this volume of water, the ADH should shut down within a few days. You may find yourself running to the toilet constantly for up to three or four weeks while the body dumps all the stored fluid and normalises its water balance. Sometimes, drinking a lot of water when your body is used to being partially dehydrated, is like pouring water into a dry pot plant. To remedy this, mix about one quarter of your glass with organic apple juice. This will slow it down as it goes through your system.

“But shouldn’t I feel thirsty?” you may well ask. Not really, especially if you are constantly wetting your mouth with liquids that dehydrate you like soft drinks, tea and coffee.

It will take up to six weeks for a chronically dehydrated body to re-hydrate itself. Therefore, you must be patient. Try drinking 50% of your daily water requirement for the first week, then raise it by 10% per week, over five weeks.

Often, during these first few weeks, You may be tempted to stop drinking because you feel like the water is `just going through you' and you get sick of going to the Toilet. You have to hang in there because it will balance out.

In my own clinical experience, I have had female patients lose up to 5 kilo in the first week by increasing their water intake. You will feel more energetic; a reduction in appetite and you may even notice clearer skin.

It is a very good idea to purchase a water filter. See your local health food retailer for advice. If you don’t use one, you are one!
Diseases and Hydration
The following notes on degenerative diseases and their relationship with dehydration are summaries taken from the book, “Your Body’s many Cries for Water” authored by Dr. F. Batmanghelidj M.D. In his book, Dr. Batmanghelidj discusses his view that Medicine made a mistake when it failed to recognise that the human body is 70% water. By focusing on the 30%, perhaps a grave miscalculation has been made.

The remedy for your medical problems may be as close as your faucet! There is one major problem:

People won't drink that much due to the inconvenience of frequent urination . . . a small price to pay for better health. If your urine is not a very pale yellow, or even clear, you are not getting enough water (does not apply to those taking B-complex vitamins as these turn the urine bright yellow).

When I speak of water I do NOT refer to coffee, sodas or tea. Distilled is best but tap water will work just fine for most people. Some places have water that has an odor and is not at all that tasty. Put a jug in the fridge for a few days and it will taste better. Prior to drinking, shake it vigorously for a while. This will oxygenate it.

Cure # 1: Dump the Tums and cure heartburn.
Heartburn may be a signal of water shortage in the upper part of the gastrointestinal tract. It is a major thirst signal of the human body. The use of antacids or tablet medications in the treatment of this pain does not correct dehydration, and the body continues to suffer as a result of its water shortage.

Tragedy: Not recognizing heartburn as a sign of dehydration and treating it with antacids and pill medications will, in time, produce inflammation of the stomach and duodenum, hiatal hernia, ulceration, and eventually cancers in the gastrointestinal tract, including the liver and pancreas.

Cure # 2: Water may prevent and cure arthritis.
Rheumatoid Joint Pain - Arthritis - may be a signal of water shortage in the painful joint. It can affect the young as well as the old. The use of pain-killers does not cure the problem, but exposes the person to further damage from pain medications. Intake of water and small amounts of salt will cure this problem.

Cure # 3: Back pain.
Low Back Pain and Ankylosing Arthritis of the Spine may be signs of water shortage in the spinal column and discs - the spinal cushions that support the weight of the body. These conditions should be treated with increased water intake - not a commercial treatment, but a very effective one.

Tragedy: Not recognizing arthritis and low back pain as signs of dehydration in the joint cavities and treating them with pain-killers, manipulation, acupuncture, and eventually surgery will, in time, produce osteoarthritis when the cartilage cells in the joints have eventually all died. It will produce deformity of the spine. It will produce crippling deformities of the limbs. Pain medications have their own life-threatening complications.

Cure # 4: Angina.
Heart Pain - Angina - can be a sign of water shortage in the heart/lung axis. It should be treated with increased water intake until the patient is free of pain and independent of medications. Medical supervision is prudent. However, increased water intake may be your cure for angina.

Cure # 5: Migraines.
Migraine Headache may be a sign that the brain and the eyes need water. Migraine may be prevented by keeping dehydration from establishing in the body, and may be totally cleared up by treating for the condition of dehydration. This particular type of dehydration might eventually cause inflammation of the back of the eye and possibly loss of eyesight.

Cure #6: Colitis.
Colitis Pain is a signal of water shortage in the large gut. It is associated with constipation because the large intestine constricts to squeeze too much water from the excrements - thus the lack of water lubrication.

Tragedy: Not recognizing colitis pain as a sign of dehydration will cause persistent constipation, which can result in fecal impacting, verticulitis, hemorrhoids, polyps, and appreciably increase the possibility of developing cancers of the colon and rectum.

Cure # 7: Asthma.
Asthma, which also affects 12,000,000 children and kills several thousand of them every year, is a complication of dehydration in the body. It is caused by the drought management programs of the body. Free passage of air is obstructed so that water does not leave the body in the form of vapor - the winter steam. Increased water intake will prevent asthma attacks. Asthmatics need also to take more salt to break the mucus plugs in the lungs, which obstruct the free flow of air in and out of the air sacs.

Tragedy: Not recognizing asthma as the indicator of dehydration in growing children not only will sentence many thousands of children to die every year, but will permit irreversible genetic damage to establish in the remaining asthmatic children.

Cure # 8: High blood pressure.
Hypertension is a state of adaptation of the body to a generalized drought, when there is not enough water to fill all the blood vessels that diffuse water into vital cells. As part of the mechanism of reverse osmosis, when water from the serum is filtered and injected into important cells through minute holes in their membranes, extra pressure is needed for the "injection process." Just as we inject I.V. "water" in hospitals, so the body injects water into tens of trillions of cells all at the same time. Water and some salt intake will bring blood pressure back to normal!

Tragedy: Not recognizing hypertension as one of the major indicators of dehydration in the human body, and treating it with diuretics that further dehydrate the body will, in time, cause blockage by cholesterol of the heart arteries and the arteries that go to the brain. It will cause heart attacks and small or massive strokes that paralyze. It will eventually cause kidney diseases. It will cause brain damage and neurological disorders, such as Alzheimer's disease.

Cure # 9: Adult-onset diabetes.
Adult-Onset Diabetes is another adaptive state to severe dehydration of the human body. To have adequate water in circulation and for the brain's priority water needs, the release of insulin is inhibited to prevent insulin from pushing water into all body cells. In diabetes only some cells get survival rations of water. Water and some salt will reverse adult-onset diabetes in its early stages. Tragedy: Not recognizing adult-onset diabetes as a complication of dehydration may, in time, cause massive damage to the blood vessels all over the body. It may cause eventual loss of the toes, feet and legs from gangrene. It may cause eye damage, even blindness.

Cure # 10: Blood cholesterol.
A High Cholesterol level is an indicator of early drought management by the body. Cholesterol is a clay-like material that is poured in the gaps of some cell membranes to safeguard them from losing their vital water content to the osmotically more powerful blood circulating in their vicinity. Cholesterol, apart from being used to manufacture nerve cell membranes and hormones, is also used as a "shield" against water taxation of other vital cells that would normally exchange water through their cell membranes.

Cure # 11: Depression, Loss of libido, Chronic fatigue syndrome, Lupus, Multiple sclerosis, Muscular dystrophy.
These conditions may be caused by prolonged chronic dehydration. If so, they will clear up once the body becomes well and regularly hydrated. In these conditions, exercising one's muscles should be part of the treatment program.

University of Washington:
A University of Washington study demonstrated that one glass of water shut down midnight hunger pangs for almost 100% of participating dieters.

Preliminary research indicates that 8-10 glasses of water a day could significantly ease back and joint pain for up to 80% of sufferers.

A mere 2% drop in body water can trigger fuzzy short-term memory, trouble with basic math and difficulty focusing on the computer screen or on a printed page.

Drinking 5 glasses of water daily decreases the risk of colon cancer by 45%, plus it can slash the risk of breast cancer by 79%. One is also 50% less likely to develop bladder cancer.
Some Clinical Research
“Kidney Stones: Urinary Calculus” David L. Hoffmann B.Sc. (Hons), M.N.I.M.H

Those suffering kidney stones should Avoid dehydration especially after exercise, but even during routine days, by the ingestion of copious amounts of fluid. Drink at least 1 litre of water per 25 kg of bodyweight per day. Drink enough to ensure that twenty-four hour urine output is never less than 2 to 3 litres. Ideally, the patient should be drinking enough to cause routine awakening at night to urinate. "Although there is no controlled clinical study that examines the effectiveness of an increase in fluid intake, data strongly suggest that hydration is effective in preventing stone formation. While strict guidelines are not available, a doubling of the urinary output or a 24-hour urinary output of greater than 2 liters is generally recommended to reduce new stone formation. In actual practice, however, the beneficial effects of hydration may be seen with much less increase in urinary volume."

Prevention and Treatment of Kidney Stones NIH Consens Statement Online 1988 Mar 28-30;7(1):1-23.

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Article Tags: blood sugars, bodyweight, diuretic hormone, fluid reservoir, health and wellbeing, hormone adh, john toomey, lot of water, phys ed, pituitary gland, reflex action, sleepiness, sweat glands, sweet foods, volume of water, water balance, water consumption, water intake, water shortage, water volume



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