Why drinking water is important to maintain a healthy body

Drinking water to maintain good health

Drinking water is hugely important to our quality of health. Our bodies are made up of 70 – 80% water and it is therefore vitally important that we replenish the water we use through breathing, sweating and through going to the bathroom. Research shows that we should drink at least 2 to 2.5 litres of water a day – this is for the average adult and are the safe recommended guidelines, for children it is less. If it is hot or you are working out or being physical then more is required. If our bodies are taking in the correct amount of water then our kidneys are working correctly which means our livers are not having to bale them out! With the correct level of fluids in our bodies we can operate more efficiently and with less risk of illness, infection or diseases.

How to Drink More Water Every Day?

Keep track of your daily intake of water for the first few days, so you can establish whether you are drinking the correct recommended amount. It is important to see if you are drinking less or more and whether your hydration levels are correct. If more then it is an easy fix, if less then you have to condition yourself to drink more. Carry a water bottle with you during the day and make sure you always have a glass of water next to you, at home or at work. Try setting the alarm on your watch, computer or mobile phone to make sure you remember to drink. Try using a water filter at home or adding lemons or lime to your water – both taste better than tap water. If you prefer the taste of water when it is colder, try keeping it in the fridge.

Why You Need to Drink Water?

Our bodies are made up of a lot of water. Our blood, lungs, brain and most of our organs and muscles contain mainly water. So to regulate body temperature at the same time as transporting nutrients around the body, oxygen to our cells and removal of waste, we need water. Water also adds protection for our joints and organs – the more our bodies use, the more our bodies need to replace to remain healthy and protect against illness and disease.

How much water should a person drink per day?

Different experts, tell different stories, but in taking a safe average, our daily water intake should be around 2.5 litres of water per day for an adult increasing during hotter weather and periods of physical activity and for kids, 1.5 to 2 litres per day. Energy levels and powers of concentration will increase and improve significantly with increase water intake.

Differences in drinking water?

Safe drinking water comes in many forms – tap water (faucet) is just that, water from your tap. It will contain various man-made chemicals to preserve and cleanse including fluoride and chlorine. Of our bottled water, spring water is normally bottled at source, chemical free and contains many minerals which not only make the water taste better but are also good for our bodies. Distilled water is not normally known as drinking water but more for appliances. It has been stripped of all mineral goodness and is effectively pure hydrogen and oxygen (H2O). Again with purified water, it is not normally known as drinking water as all minerals and even smaller contaminants have been filtered out prior to bottling.

What is the best way to clean polluted water?

Our drinking water quality is of utmost importance to our bodies, filtration with man made or natural methods will clean polluted water from the environment and increase our drinking water quality. Reed beds are the environmental method – allowing solids to settle and microbes in the roots to deal with toxic water contamination in the same way that conventional treatment systems provide us with water treatment.

Signs of Dehydration?

The first signs of dehydration are our body’s urge to drink more along with decreased amount of urine which becomes very concentrated, dark and quite strong in smell. As our dehydration increases we experience a dry mouth, our eyes stop making tears, we may stoip sweating, our muscles start to cramp, we feel nauseous and may vomit and a prime sign is lightheadedness.

How do you prevent dehydration?

Simply – drink water! The body needs water to function and dehydration only occurs when our water intake is less than our body’s water loss. The symptoms of dehydration range from mild to life-threatening and so invariably, prevention is the important first step in treating dehydration. The young and elderly are especially susceptible to dehydration and so we need to recognise the signs when they occur – preferably heading it off by treating our bodies correctly.

Why is drinking water good for you?

For all of the reasons above (and more), drinking water is a must for maintain our body in top contition. It adds to your body’s nutrition, helps you lose weight, makes it easier to exercise and keeps your skin in good condition. Drinking water also helps with our digestions and helps to flush out toxins from the body at the same time reducing fluid retention. Drink water or pay the consequences.

Does drinking lots of water help you lose weight?

Yes, yes, yes!!!! Our livers have the unenviable task of breaking down fats in the body. Unfortunately, if our body is starved of water, our kidneys cannot function correctly and the liver needs to step in to help. Obviously if our liver is on a mission for the kidneys, it cannot do it’s job properly. I firmly believe that livers are male. They certainly can’t multi task! ;o)

Drinking Water Bottles – the good, the bad and the ugly!

If you want to retain a healthy lifestyle and look after your environment then you need to choose the right drinking water bottle carefully. Whether you’re looking at storing water in the fridge for consumption indoors or for outdoors use while hiking, cycling or exercising etc there are a huge amount of design options and types to choose from which even include some with built in and reusable filters. From the cheap single use bottles that you buy your bottled water in at the shops, to the very best aluminium and stainless steel reusable options, the choice is vast.

The plastic bottles made from PET that we buy our water in from shops are the worst for repeated use as they have been proven to leach dangerous chemicals including carcinogens into the water in addition to promoting bacteria.

Bottles made from thermoplastic polymers or polycarbonates are popular reusable bottles that are seen everywhere in schools, fitness clubs, gyms etc, but are also guilty of leaching cancer causing BPA. Some research points to increased amounts of BPA being released when the bottles are warmed as when feeding babies. Yes, polycarbonate is also used for baby bottles! Scary!!

At the top end of the scale we have aluminium and stainless steel bottles. Unfortunately, a good deal of the aluminium bottles have plastic liners which could still cause problems although the latest liners are made from ‘friendly resins’.

The best water bottles by far in our opinion are the stainless steel variety. This material is safe to drink from, does not leach anything into the liquid it stores and is pretty indestructable and so will last and last. Because these containers do not leach any chemical into your drink, the drink tastes better and a lot would say, stays cooler longer. A lot of the top bottles are available with accessories such as carry-cases or straps for securing the bottle to your belt or over your shoulder, especially useful for sport and outdoor use. Obviously with the more expensive water bottles you can also expect to receive a guarantee of quality which should be important to those who are serious about using their bottles over and over, promoting health through proper hydration.

There are a huge number of manufacturers to consider, offering a wide range of product including brand names like Nalgene, Sigg and Kleen Kanteen to name but a few, and so there is plenty of choice at all levels of price with color and style to suit everyone’s taste.

Having decided on a healthy and environmentally friendly, reusable water bottle, one of the most important things to remember is to keep it clean! Water kept in any vessel for any length of time that has been exposed to the air will promote some pretty nasty bacteria. Keep them clean. Buying a dishwater safe water bottle is the best bet as dishwashers tend to operate at very high temperatures and can effectively steralize your bottle.

Live a healthy life and choose the right type of drinking water bottle! They make a great eco-friendly and healthy gift too.

The things you need to know before renting or buying a water cooler…

What is a Water Cooler?

Simply put, water coolers (or watercoolers) dispense cool water. Generally they are available in bottle-less and bottled water cooler guises. The former is hooked up to your water supply while bottled water coolers require large bottles of water to operate.

Water coolers are quite often wall mounted and plumbed into the water supply with a refrigerator unit to cool the water and a connection to the waste water system to remove unused water. These ‘plumbed in water coolers’, ‘water fountains’ or ‘drinking fountains’ incorporate a small tank that holds chilled water so that it is instantly available – ‘on tap’ for the user. Water is released at the press of a button and delivered in a stream that arches up enabling the user to drink from the top of the fountain stream. These units usually dispense water directly with no filtering or purification.

More popular in countries where it is not safe or common to drink water straight from the tap are the free standing units delivering chilled or hot water from a large bottle of filtered, purified or natural spring water. The large bottles are placed spout down into the dispenser.

The bottles are inserted upside down into the dispenser with a probe puncturing the cap of the bottle allowing the water to flow into the cooler’s internal tank. A wide variety of coolers are available in various different sizes and vary from table to floor mounted units. Normally, the bottled water is delivered on a regularly basis with a simple agreement via a specialist supplier who collects the empties and replaces with full bottles.

A cup dispenser is usually mounted to the side of the unit for housing disposable plastic or paper cups and other useful accessories are normally available. Bottle sizes vary from dispenser to dispenser but usually go up to 5 gallon bottles in the US and 18.9 litres elsewhere. While most of these units incorporate a refrigeration unit to chill the water, they are not normally able to handle much waste, offering just a small reservoir to catch minor spills. When the water bottle is empty it is simply lifted off the top of the dispenser and replaced with a new bottle. The seal on the bottles automatically seals when removed to prevent leakage of any excess water still in the bottle.

Gravity fed systems such as these have an inbuilt mechanism to dispense water in a controlled manner. Some have a second dispenser that delivers either room temperature or hot water for making tea, coffee or other hot beverages. The hot water is stored in a similar reservoir to the chilled and is heated via a heating element. A safety valve is usually incorporated to save from burns or scalding from accidental spillage.

Table top and kitchen worktop units are also available utilising readily available five litre water bottles from supermarkets.

Do you need a commercial bottled water cooler for your office?

In a large number of countries having a watercooler in your office enables compliance with employment law. Because employers must provide employees with a supply of high quality drinking water in the office, renting or buying a water cooler is a cost-effective way of complying with the law. Five consumers, customers or employees or more and the water cooler will pay for itself over buying bottled water.

The well-being of your employees and the image of your business will improve with a water cooler. You could just drink the tap (faucet) water but it doesn’t always taste great and could contain all sorts of contaminants. Renting or buying a water cooler for the office offers your customers and employees natural, filtered or purified and better tasting chilled water. The built in hygienic filtering system will help destroy bacteria and purify the water.

Water coolers are a significant asset to the image of businesses and offer a convenient option for providing visitors with a glass of cool, great tasting, chilled and filtered water.

The main types of water cooler

There are a wide range of water coolers to choose from, those that are connected to the mains water supply and are equipped with a sophisticated filtering system to eliminate impurities and chlorine, and bottled water coolers that dispense natural spring or filtered water into the home and office. Bottled water coolers can be placed anywhere and are not dependent on plumbing with bottle sizes ranging from 5 to 20 litres in size. Both systems offer a range of cold, hot and even sparkling water.

A plumbed in water cooler is available to rent or buy and doesn’t have any supply or storage problems and enables you to enjoy water that is purified and softened by a filtration system. Maintenance and filter changes are carried out regularly within the monthly fixed cost which makes it ideal if you don’t want any additional work.

Bottled water coolers are more flexible and are held in high regard by employees because they provide natural spring water in the office – the closest thing to mineral water. Ideal for businesses wanting to locate their water coolers wherever they choose without the need for a nearby water supply – offices, reception, kitchen or even the bathroom.

These coolers are normally available without a fixed contract and you are able to order as much or as little water as you require but always remember to allow for more consumption during the hot summer months and less during the winter.

Your supplier will normally stay in regular contact to ensure that you have a regular and efficient supply before you run out.

Water coolers – your choice!

What sort of questions should you ask before making a decision?…

• How many people in your office will use the water cooler?

• Do you have the connection facilities for a mains water cooler?

• How much room do you have to store your bottled water?

• What is the price and energy rating of the unit.

• What type of water do you want in your office – purified, filtered, spring, mineral or other?

• What filters are used and is the water of a guaranteed quality?

• What additional information on quality and service is available?

Special attention should be given to the hygiene features of the water cooler contract. Have the water cooler on trial before you sign any agreement. Understand how your employees use the water cooler and if they feel it provides good quality water. Check that your water coolers uses activated carbon filters in addition to an anti-bacterial system like UV filtration.

Your water cooler supplier must be able to guarantee a regular, punctual shipping service and ensure that under the terms of the contract they are responsible for keeping the system clean and in good working order. Check with them on their response times. Although water coolers provide a great source of clean, pure drinking water, essential to our health, periodic cleaning of the water cooler is essential to ensure the health and safety of everyone who uses the cooler.

Some tips for keeping your cooler clean and healthy.

• Clean the cooler every time you change the bottle or every six weeks at least.

• Scrub the interior surface of the water cooler reservoir with a mild bleach solution and let stand for up to 5 minutes.

• Rinse the reservoir at least 4 times with clean water.

• Remove the drip tray, wash with a mild detergent and rinse thoroughly.

• Wash hands or use gloves before installing a new bottle of water.

• Wipe the top and neck of the bottle with a mild bleach solution.

• Check to make sure that the expiry date of the bottle is still current, remove cap and place on unit.

Follow these simple instructions and your water cooler will remain free of bacteria and provide years of healthy service. Under normal circumstances your supplier will carry out the above as part of their normal service. If they don’t offer, ask!  Most will provide the essential sanitation services.

Removal of contaminants from our water by filtering can be done in a variety of ways in our own homes but tends only to be used on cold water. It enables us to drink more water safely without having to turn to bottled water products and offers a cost effective and healthy alternative to the shop bought bottle. There are lots of top brand product out there such as Brita, Culligan and Pur – brands with good reputations for quality.

Jug, pitcher or carafe filters are great for small amounts of water and are extremely cost effective. The only drawbacks other than that they provide just small amounts of filtered water, are that they tend to be quite slow and the filters need replacement regularly because they get clogged with the contaminants that they are removing. Unless used regularly, they can also become home to bacteria growing within the filter element. Another cheap alternative to plumbed in systems is the tap (faucet) filter purifier, but again these can be very slow and won’t fit all applications.

Under sink filter units and reverse osmosis systems are great in that they are kept out of the way, but both can take valuable cupboard space. Both need special modifications to the plumbing system and while the reverse osmosis systems produce some of the purest water available, they are also very slow and create huge amounts of waste water – roughly 4 or 5 gallons for every gallon of purified and filtered water that they produce.

Whole house systems use long life cartridges and will require installation by a qualified plumber but offer a cost effective solution on a large scale. These systems can filter out a lot of contaminant and even chlorine, but struggle with some of the nastier bugs and chemicals.

Types of effective filtration

Carbon – charcoal medium carbon is a well used and cost effective solution to our water filtration needs. The filters absorb contaminants and impurities as water flows through the cartridge. The micron rating of these filters is important as anything at 1 micron or below will remove some of the worst contaminants such as Giardia and Cryptosporidium. Most of the carbon cartridge systems have a simple timer system to keep track on the age and viability of the filter. The do need changing quite often.

Ceramic filters utilize Diatomaceous earth which is a chalky rock made from years of compacted sediment which crumbles easily. It’s use in water filtration is widespread, not only in drinking water treatment but for filtering swimming pools, fish tanks and even wine and beer. The only drawback really is that they have a very slow flow rate.

Mixed media water filtration can provide great tasting water and is an extremely popular filter system removing not only toxins and contaminants such as chlorine from your water, but also treating hard water.

Water distillation is a highly effective method of producing exceptionally pure water. However, this water is stripped of all mineral content and is therefore considered inappropriate and harmful to our bodies in and significant amount or period of time. Reverse osmosis is similar to distillation in that it strips the filtered water of valuable minerals which can then cause an imbalance within our bodies.

UV and Infra Red systems are quite different to each other although sounding quite similar. UV sterilizes water by subjecting it to an ultra violet light which kills the bacteria, while Infra Red utilizes natural silicate minerals such as Tourmaline which can soften the water and negatively charge it which some claim enhances the body’s hydration.

Magnetic filtration basically rearranges the water’s ions, ionizing the minerals and creating softer, smaller molecules which again can help with the hydration of the body but the effects are normally short-lived. A water ionizer creates alkaline water which is great for our bodies.

Water softeners are used in hard water areas to rid our water of calcium and magnesium ions which causes blocked pipework and appliances and which stops our detergents from forming suds. These ions are replaced with sodium (salt) which reverses the hard water problem. This is why our dishwashers as extreme users of water, rely so heavily on salt.

Filters are popular not only in the home but by many companies who want to give their employees the best quality water to aid better health. It can be a confusing process to research and select the best and most effective filtration system for your needs but having done so, you will have a valuable asset for you and your family, and even you and your employees.

In 14 samples, scientists found coliforms, bacteria of soil and gut origin, which may indicate faecal contamination. Some of the bacteria types found suggested there had been cross contamination, with someone perhaps drinking directly from the tap or touching it with a saliva-tainted bottle.

Read the full story….BBC News Channel

High risk of heart disease in women, breast cancer, diabetes and reproductive and fertility issues are among the possible side effects of exposure to bisphenol A say the experts. An associate professor of epidemiology at Harvard University said that based on the study, bisphenol A should be removed from plastic bottles immediately and in fact many manufacturers have already begun producing BPA-free alternatives.

Pending federal legislation would ban it from food and beverage containers.

For the full story…. BostonHerald.com

Toxins including pesticides, herbicides, prescription drugs, lead and chlorine plus chloramine which is a mixture of ammonia and chlorine which stays in the water for longer and disinfects for longer but also leeches lead from the pipes are all present. 1 in 5 Americans already receive their supplies treated this way.

Activated carbon block filters seem to be the way to go.

To read the whole story…EzineArticles.com

It is estimated that between 60% and 80% of all cancers originate from the environment. However, we tend to overlook the benefits of drinking water that can help protect us from cancer – namely water that contains total dissolved solids (TDS), hardness, and pH. Drinking water with higher amounts of TDS and hardness results in lower heart disease and cancer mortality rates.

Of more than 700 brands of bottled water available in the US, around 80% are processed. Purchase only bottled natural spring or artesian well waters that come closest to the “healthy water” criteria, or install or use the best quality water filters for the same results.

To read the full story….Fit-Healthy-Well