We started to look at the Lifestyle Practices essential for a healthy lifestyle in a previous blog, and today we are going to look at lifestyle practice one which is drink at least 2 litres of water daily.
Drinking Water is essential for good health. Your body is composed of about 60% water. Water supports many of your bodily functions such as digestion, absorption, circulation, creation of saliva, transportation of nutrients, and maintenance of body temperature. So it should be pretty clear to you how important it is, so you must drink at least 2 litres of water daily. Think of water as a nutrient your body needs for good health and make sure you drink lots of it.
Water is in truth the most important nutrient. You can live only about three days without it, and it is involved in every metabolic reaction in your body. Yet most of us don’t drink enough. When we are properly hydrated our heart and blood vessels work much better, along with all of our other bodily functions—we think better, our strength and endurance are better, we feel better, we are healthier, and we will live longer.
Let me give you some of the processes carried out within the body that depend on water to take place:
- Water is needed in order to break down and digest food, carry nutrients in the bloodstream to where they are needed and to eliminate any waste by transporting waste products away from it. Food cannot be digested without water.
- Water helps digested food pass through the body quicker, preventing constipation and any toxins and waste material from sitting inside the body for too long and accumulating to dangerous levels.
- Drinking water replenishes bodily fluids lost through sweating, especially when playing sports and through passing urine.
Water aids circulation. - Water aids in the body’s temperature regulation. Drinking water helps to regulate the temperature of the body and body heat.
- Water is needed to keep the kidneys healthy and in working order and prevents urinary infections from occurring.
- Water can also be found in your joints as part of the body’s natural lubricant. Water keeps joints and eyes lubricated, and acts as a protective cushion for tissues and cells.
- It is the basis of all body fluids such as blood and saliva.
- Water keeps the skin hydrated, supple and looking healthy and glowing.
- Water is the main component of muscles and keeps them toned and firm.
- Water dilutes toxins and removes them from the body.
- Water is involved in all metabolic processes, it aids in the metabolism and elimination of fats. Without water, fat deposits in the body will increase.
- Drinking water will alleviate water retention and lessen swelling of hands and feet.
- The brain is comprised of a lot of water and therefore needs replenishment to keep it working well and to full capacity. Without water we may lose concentration and suffer headaches and tiredness.
- Water dilutes the calcium in our urine, which could crystallise to form kidney stones if the body did not receive enough fluids.
- Water serves as a solvent for vitamins, minerals and amino acids, glucose and many other small molecules.
The message is clear. Every day one of your biggest priorities must be to drink plenty of water.
Monitoring your water consumption is an essential part of good nutrition. Water makes up 45% to 70% of a person’s bodyweight and a person can survive only a few days without water, though it can go nearly a month without food. Drinking water and other fluids is absolutely vital to keep our body healthy and in good working order. Yet very few of you will be currently drinking water to the levels you need.
Daily losses are relatively high, even under normal/moderate temperature and activity. The body needs to replace its entire mass of water every 11 – 13 days. Water is lost largely through urination as well as by evaporation in breath and sweat. The kidneys normally very carefully regulate the balance of water retained in the body, but excessive losses can result from vomiting, diarrhea, vigorous exercise or high temperatures. It should be noted that even small losses of water (2-3 % of body weight) can seriously impair performance.
Early signs of dehydration are hunger, fatigue, headaches , dizziness and muscle cramps.
Not drinking enough of it has been linked to bone fractures, heart disease, lung conditions, kidney stones, colon cancer, urinary tract infections, constipation, cavities, compromised immune systems… I could go on for pages and pages.
Now I mean just water. Not with tea or coffee, not with squash or even whisky. Plain water from a tap or even a bottle (particularly if you have a purifier). If you wish, add a lemon wedge, lime wedge, orange wedge, or slices of cucumber to your glass of water for a nice flavor boost.
I promise you it’s good for you.
- You won’t gain any weight
- It quenches your thirst better than any other drink
- It cleans out (de-toxifies) your body
- It fills you and helps banish the food cravings you may be experiencing
- It helps the body to metabolise fat into energy
Carry a water bottle with you throughout the day and set mini goals for yourself (e.g. “drink two bottles before lunch” or “refill your bottle four times throughout the day”).
That’s it for today. Make sure the next thing you do is drink a glass of water.
I’m here to help you. Either comment if you have a question or go over to Facebook and like our page https://www.facebook.com/HealthyLifestylesLiving/ and feel free to comment their or fire me off a message. I’ll answer you within 24 hours.
This is Larry Lewis.
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