Chronic dehydration plagues people everywhere, and it could be a significant contributor to many symptoms we associate with illness. In truth, when we believe we are sick, what we often are is merely thirsty. Roughly 75 percent of Americans are chronically dehydrated. They consume acidic, sugary soft drinks along with sugary flavored waters and imitation juice drinks, but these do not hydrate the body. In fact, acidic drinks combined with acidic animal protein-heavy American diets and medications, particularly antihistamines, only increase dehydration levels.
Dehydration and Aging
As we age, we tend to drink less water. This leads to a growing imbalance in the acid/alkaline levels in our body, ultimately resulting in a downward spiral. The hypothalamus center of the brain regulates how a person perceives thirst. For unknown reasons, older individuals often fail to recognize their thirst and resist increased water intake.
Lack of water – dehydration – results in thirst, fatigue, pain, weakness, and loss of appetite, eventually leading to a buildup of toxic acidity. It’s a lengthy, slow process of decline. As it worsens, it can cause headaches, a lack of concentration, loss of balance, irritability, and even delirium.
Acidity levels in the body contribute to low oxygen levels. To contract an infection, our internal environment must be acidic. That’s why some people develop colds and the flu more easily than others in the same environment. The medical establishment often confuses symptoms with disease. Disease arises and originates from an acidic and dehydrated environment.
Water as Detoxification
Water naturally detoxifies the body, flushing toxins out of our organs. It carries vital nutrients to our cells and helps provide a moist environment for our ears, nose, and throat.
Moreover, water lubricates joints. Cartilage consists of anywhere from 65 to 80 percent water. Drinking six to eight glasses a day is recommended by the University of Maryland Medical Center to ward off osteoarthritis.
Drinking water also suppresses appetite. Consuming two 8-ounce glasses of water before a meal typically results in an average decrease in calorie consumption of about 300 calories per day.
Water and Aging
Water plays a role in slowing down the aging process. While it’s not a mystical fountain of youth, aging hastens because of acidity, which eventually leads to death. Maintaining a proper pH level with water consumption aids all bodily functions.
Drinking water during meals can make your food taste better. Other beverages, especially sugary ones, can mask the true taste of food.
Water and Sea Salt
Robert Butts of the Water Cure asserts: “[Water] is a simple fix for 90 percent of all mental and health problems. Forget what disease label they put on your problem, just eliminate the simple cause. Quit caffeine, alcohol, and soda. Drink water and add sea salt to food.”
Why choose sea salt over standard table salt? The majority of commercial refined salt is harvested mechanically from brine, a concentrated solution of water and salt. Before the salt is mechanically evaporated, the brine is treated with chemicals that remove all the health-beneficial minerals, which are then resold to other industries.
Real sea salt consists of vital nutrients and minerals such as magnesium, calcium, sulfur, bromide, iodine, zinc, potassium, and iron. These mineral electrolytes are used within the body differently than processed sodium chloride. Sea salt does not cause swelling in the way sodium chloride does. Additionally, natural salts from plants are vital for reversing disease. A healthy salt balance is essential for proper hydration and the elimination of numerous health issues.
Alleviating Ailments with Water
A lack of water is the primary trigger of daytime fatigue, and research has found that drinking 8 to 10 glasses of water daily can significantly ease back and joint pain for up to 80 percent of sufferers.
Drinking 8 to 10 glasses of water per day can also reduce the risk of colon cancer, breast cancer, and bladder cancer. However, it would be best to avoid water containing chlorine and fluoride when possible by installing a water filter in your home, as only a reverse osmosis filtration system or a distillation system can successfully remove both chlorine and fluoride.
A simple daily regimen of drinking water for hydration and substituting table salt with sea salt can alleviate many illnesses and ailments. Keeping an eye on the color of your urine can be a helpful measure, ensuring it maintains the color of light straw. Drinking one glass of water with a small amount of sea salt mixed in each day can help combat stomach acid problems. If you care for an older adult and struggle to get them to drink enough water, try these tips:
- Use a closed-top container with a straw.
- Find a healthy drink that the elderly person enjoys. Taste is essential – if it doesn’t taste good, it most likely won’t be consumed. Provide real fruit juices, herbal teas, and broth in addition to water.
- Supply plenty of high-water-content foods such as soups, Jell-O, yogurt, cottage cheese, pudding, fruits, vegetables (including oranges, apples, grapes, berries, watermelon, carrots, and leafy greens), or fruit and/or vegetable smoothies.
