Drink More Water

By on March 9, 2009 in Food & Nutrition, Healthy Living

Eliminate the Unhealthy

Your body needs adequate water to form blood, lymph fluid, and bodily secretions, to name a few. Water also helps prevent inflammation—research now shows that inflammation is a precursor to many chronic illnesses. Water helps substances flow in and out of cells by ensuring the correct pressure between the cell and the fluid it is bathed in. It moistens the surfaces of the lungs to allow proper oxygen intake and carbon dioxide expulsion. It helps to eliminate toxins and helps remove wastes from your body. Water en­sures the proper conductivity of electrical messages between brain and nerve cells. That’s right, your brain and nervous system communicate via electrical messages. If you think of how lakes or rivers conduct electricity when lightning strikes, you’ll have a good idea of water’s essential nature in conducting electricity in your body. Water is also required for countless chemical processes in your body, along with regulating your body temperature. Without adequate water, many of your body’s processes simply will not work properly.
 
Here are some of the most common symp­toms, signs, and lifestyle factors that may indicate insufficient water consumption:

  • Alcohol consumption—2 or more glasses per day

  • Chapped lips

  • Coffee or tea consumption—3 or more cups per day

  • Constipation (fewer than 3 bowel movements daily)

  • Dry mouth, eyes, or nasal membranes

  • Dry skin

  • Frequent urinary tract infections

  • Hemorrhoids

  • Small amounts of urine or urinating fewer than 6 times daily

  • Kidney stones

  • Tendency to be shocked by static electricity

  • Water consumption (fewer than 8 cups of water daily)

Keep in mind that many of the symptoms noted as possible nutri­ent or water deficiency signs can also be signs of illness. You should always consult your physician to rule out any serious disease. How­ever, it is my hypothesis that nutritional, water, or enzyme deficien­cies are at the root of or a contributing factor to almost every illness, including genetic ones!
 
If you’re not already drinking 8 to 10 cups of pure water daily, now is the time to start. As you learned earlier, your cells, tissues, and organs need water to perform their countless functions. Building life force requires adequate water. Here are some tips for boosting your water intake:

  • On the road? Take a stainless steel water bottle.

  • At a desk all day? Just keep a bottle or pitcher of water there too so you’ll remember to drink up.

  • Need more reminders? No problem—set a timer on your computer, watch, or PDA to “go off” every hour to remind you to drink another cup of water.

  • If you’re drinking coffee or tea, now is the time to cut back to one cup of organic coffee or tea a day. And don’t forget to add 2 more cups of water to replace fluids lost for each caffeinated beverage.  

Planning to drink more water? Post your health intent and find community support and content to help you achieve it!

Michelle Schoffro Cook, DNM, DAc, CNC, is a six-time and best-selling book author whose works include:  The Life Force Diet, The Ultimate pH Solution, and The 4-Week Ultimate Body Detox Plan.  She is a doctor of natural medicine, holistic nutritionist, and holistic life coach®.  Visit:  www.TheLifeForceDiet.com to learn more.
 

 

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About Michelle Schoffro Cook

Michelle Schoffro Cook, MSc, PhD, DNM, RNCP, ROHP is an international best-selling and six-time book author, whose works include: The Phytozyme Cure, The Life Force Diet, The Ultimate pH Solution, The 4-Week Ultimate Body Detox Plan, The Brain Wash, and Healing Injuries the Natural Way. Michelle is a Doctor of Traditional Natural Medicine, Registered Nutritional Consulting Practitioner, Registered Orthomolecular Health Practitioner, Holistic Life Coach, Biofeedback Therapist, and Bioenergetic Medicine Practitioner. She has made , over 1000 media appearances, including:  Woman's World, First for Women, Vegetarian Times, Robert Kennedy's Oxygen: Fitness for Women, HELLO! Canada, Glow, YOU: The Owner's Manual Radio Show, The Gary Null Show, Huffington Post, Yahoo! Shine, Gaiam Life, and many others. She is a regular columnist for Intent.com and Care2.com and the publisher of www.WorldsHealthiestDiet.com. Visit www.DrMichelleCook.com to learn more about her work.
View all posts by Michelle Schoffro Cook →

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11 Responses to Drink More Water

  1. G. Stuart MacLeod March 9, 2009 at 8:46 am #

    Nobody has be able to cite where the 8-10 glasses a day recommendation comes from. This seems to be an urban legend. Do both a 120 pound person and 220 pound person need the same amount of water? Do you know where this 8-10 glasses a day figure comes from?

  2. yumi March 9, 2009 at 10:09 am #

    Thanks for the reminder, Michelle. I started making it a point to start the day with two cups of water, and keep drinking regularly throughout the day. I used to be such a camel about water, so this is a big change for me!

  3. faucets March 24, 2009 at 3:18 pm #

    We need to drink water I agree, but what about the water shortage America is headed too? I wrote on intent.com about a "critical water shortage" that could happen in 36 of the 50 states if we don't start thinking about water conservation now. What do you think the solution is?

    We never know the worth of water till the well is dry. Be glad when water pours out of your moen faucet each time you turn it on.

  4. floop12 April 14, 2009 at 11:44 am #

    Do you know anyone that has 3 bowel movements a day? That is called diarrhea Ms Cook. If you have 3 bowel movements a day, you better go to the doctor fast and get some paregoric or prescription kaopectate in you quick!

  5. jimbob April 14, 2009 at 11:56 am #

    floop 12 you are right on! If you poop 3(or more!) times a day THAT is the reason you are dehydrated! Either that or you are eating a burrito for every glass of water that you drink. Why do you think people in third world nations are dehydrated? Because they poop all day from a poor diet and from contaminated drinking water.

    And further down you list you mention hemmoroids as a symptom: I think these might be from the irritation casued by wiping your bum all day!

  6. jenningsmanor April 14, 2009 at 12:23 pm #

    Actually you should take your weight and divide it by 2. That is how many ounces you should drink each day (130lbs- 65 oz (8.1 cups of water per day)

    As for the poop situation- you should actually poop after every meal. Think about a baby- they go everytime they eat something. This is because their bodies are working efficiently. As we get older and eat food that is bad for us, things start to back up and slow down in your digestive track.

  7. asar un-nefer April 14, 2009 at 12:25 pm #

    The original FDA statement, about drinking 8 glasses of water a day, also stated that this was for the average person of a sedentary life style, and that most of the water should come from the food you eat. This way the water is digested, rather than have it dilute the digestive enzymes needed to assimilate the nutrition from our foods.

  8. asar un-nefer April 14, 2009 at 12:30 pm #

    The Poopin norm is that we should poop once per meal eaten. If you eat two meals a day, you poop twice a day, if you eat one, you poop once, and so on. It is important to know the difference between constipation, diarreah and normal stools. Also, one should check to see how long the food was in our digestive tract, and how well we chewed our food.

  9. asar un-nefer April 14, 2009 at 12:33 pm #

    Would you water a plant using that same formula? What if it is an indoor plant, or an out door plant, or a winter or summer plant, or a cactus and a rose? Would that formula apply to all regardless of the season?

  11. Jasmina August 4, 2009 at 9:10 pm #

    Hi haven't yet read this post, just saw this, fascinating, but as mostly vegetarian/small bit of meat, 3 is not unusual. I agree that "poopin norm" does seem to be one meal, one poop.

    Actually have experienced that the body occasionally to cleanse itself, and often in response to coffee, tea or fruit, and is not unhealthy, sweeps away stuff wanting to hang out.

    I shall have to read and get back, yes, drink water, so good for you.