“Pure water is the worlds first and foremost medicine.” - A Slovakian Proverb

Introduction:

Water is good for your mind, body and soul. Often overlooked it is vital to our everyday existence.

Over 70% of our body is made of water and our cells rely on water to work properly. For example your blood needs water as it carry's oxygen to all your cells. Your immunity systems needs water as it is contained in the lymph to fend off illness. Your temperature is maintained and stabilised by water, which is the main source of sweat, which cools the skin so it doesn't overheat. It is critical for your digestive system, without it the 'juices' needed to flush out the toxins and waste from our body will not be present

Water keeps us healthy and our bodies are happy

1. How Much Water should we drink?

 Six to eight glasses over the course of the day for adults. Its not about drinking it all in one go, which is what we so often think and see. Don't go overboard either, there is such a thing as drinking too much water, particularly over a short period of time, causing overhydration and could lead to hyponatremia. This is where the kidneys receive more water than they can manage and this then creates dangerously low sodium levels.

2. How water keeps us healthy

Water contains a host of vital vitamins, minerals and nutrients that the body loves and needs to function properly. Examples of minerals include, calcium (for our bones and teeth), magnesium (for our bones and cardiovascular health), potassium (helps our nerves to function, regulates the heart beat and muscle contraction), sodium (an essential electrolyte), copper (for the absorption of iron and antioxidants), selenium (supporting the immunity system) and fluoride (for the protection against tooth decay).

Dehydration is a big problem as it impacts on performance (both physically and mentally). As we get older joint pain can increase. Not drinking enough water can impact on this as it impacts our body's ability to absorb shock and will increase joint pain. If we are dehydrated then our blood thickens, increasing the pressure causing cardiovascular issues such as heart attack or stroke.

3. How water helps us lose weight

Water can help to suppress our appetite. We often think we are hungry but we are, in fact, dehydrated. Have a glass of water about 30 minutes before every meal. Reduce the drinking of dehydrating drinks such as coffee, tea, chocolate, and yes soft drinks including energy drinks.

4. Beauty inside and out

Skin is the body's largest organ and it needs plenty of water to support it. Drinking plenty of water can reduce skin from becoming, dry, tight and flaky. It can also prevent premature aging as it enhances skins elasticity and maintains moisture. It also improves complexion as it flushes out those toxins and increases blood flow to the skin, giving us that radiant glow!

5. Choices of water

There is tap water, bottled water, filtered water, purified water. So what is best. As long as it is pure clean water it doesn't really matter.

6. Which container is best?

The market is full of different containers for water. I do try to avoid water in plastic bottles first they, particularly poor quality ones, can contain toxins. We are, after all, trying to remove toxins from our body by drinking water. Secondly, they are not good for the environment. I have a glass water bottle and also a copper water bottle. The copper one does take a bit of getting use to it but the benefits of a copper water bottle as it releases ions into the water and copper is known to have antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, anti-carcinogenic and antioxidant properties. 

Water is great for our mind, body and soul. Increase your water intake and see the difference it makes.