Water, Your Most Essential Nutrient

Talk about essential nutrients – there is no more an essential nutrient than water.

Your body depends on clean water to perform its daily functions, such as digestion, temperature and blood regulation, respiration, and detoxification. In particular, your body’s ability to flush out toxins and properly assimilate nutrients depends heavily on an abundant intake of clean, chemical free water. The more stress, toxins, and pollutants your body battles with each day, the more water it needs.

The quantity and quality of the water you use largely determines your body’s ability to shed excess fat and properly maintain your body’s largest organ, your skin. Quality water is needed to maintain skin’s elasticity and moisture barrier.

Your blood is 90 percent water and uses water to transport oxygen, nutrients, and antibodies throughout your body.

Read on to learn more about:

• Minerals and nutritional aspects of water
• Water resource and contamination issues
• Common daily source concerns – bottled water and related beverages
• Good water is alive – the metaphysics of water

Overview

As should be apparent, water is so important, and the quality variance of water depending on source so great, that you need to know why drinking sufficient “live” non-toxic water will help delay and prevent disease and you need to invest time and energy to assure you and your family a quality water supply. If you can afford it, whole house water purification systems are an excellent investment. Filtration devices at the tap and in the shower are a good start as drinking water is not the only important thing to consider – brushing your teeth and bathing and showering are significant as toxic water making contact with your skin and gums is a serious problem.

Unfortunately quality water is becoming a very scarce resource. It has been reported countries, including China, are already buying water by the ship load, even hauling giant balloons behind tankers full of water from, for example, the great lakes between Canada and the US, and replenishing aquafers in their countries with water from abroad.

• Read Why Municipal Water, and a lot of Bottled Water, is Contaminated and the Pollution Issues Caused by the Bottled Water Industry

Detailed Discussion

Many people think water is water. Nothing could be further from the truth. The quality and attributes of water vary greatly. It is important you know why and which water to choose.

1. Tap Water – Easy, quick, convenient. But how many pollutants lurk in your water? And what is your associated health risk? More on this in just a moment…
2. Bottled Water – Did you know that 40% of bottled water is actually TAP WATER? With or without added filtration – you’re paying through the nose for it. Worse, an independent test by the Environmental Working Group found arsenic, DPBs and 36 other harmful pollutants hiding in bottled water. Read more about this below…
3. Plastic bottles are a less than optimal idea too. They can contain the potentially hazardous chemical BPA. And the devastating environmental impact is staggering.
4. Distilled Water – Use with caution… Long-term use can invite health problems, because its minerals are evaporated out. So to try to maintain mineral balance, it sucks minerals out of your body.  What’s worse, the contaminants in the water are more concentrated in the finished distilled water. You can just imagine what that does to your health…
5. Alkaline Water – Although there is some controversy on this, most experts believe that this water should be used for short-term detoxification only (1-2 weeks max). The alkalinization process does not filter the water.
6. Vitamin Waters – Don’t be fooled… Vitamin waters may contain high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), artificial colors, additives, preservatives, and caffeine. Even worse… they generally use distilled water to produce these products – which is one of the worst forms of water to drink.

Nutritional Function and Value of Water

Water serves numerous important functions in the body: It is used as an important building material, as a solvent, as both a reaction medium and a reactant, as a medium for transporting both nutrients and waste, as a lubricant and shock absorber, and for the regulation of body temperature.¹ Water is both within and between all cells. As stated earlier, there is no more essential nutrient.

We all know that water covers 71% of the Earth and comprises more than half of body mass. In fact, for the average adult, about two-thirds of the body is composed of nothing more than simple water. But have you ever stopped to consider the implications of this?

Prophets of doom are already raising the alarm at what they believe is a looming crisis. The demands placed on an already strained fresh water supply by relentless exponential population growth appears to be leading to widespread and dire shortages of this most basic of human nutrients. This could happen in as little as a few decades. Of course, in some places, it’s already taking place.

• Read the details on Why Drinkable Water is Increasingly Scarce and Soon to be Very Expensive – “Blue Gold”

Diving deeper: The Metaphysics of Water – Science Confirms Healthy Water is Very Much Alive and Sensitive

Beginning in the early 1990s, Japanese writer Masaru Emoto delved into the metaphysical properties of water. Recognizing that all life is composed primarily of water, he wondered if there might be more to water than simple H₂O. The very notion is likely to elicit either scorn or amusement among traditional scientists. But, at the very least, Emoto’s work provides food for thought. In his series of best-selling books, which include the The Hidden Messages in Water, and The True Power of Water, (Beyond Words Publishing, 2003) Emoto presents evidence to suggest that water is capable of adopting specific vibrational states, and that these states reflect either positive, healing emotions and concepts, or negative or harmful thoughts and emotions. These vibrational states affect living organisms, he contends, and may be used to counteract specific emotional and medical problems. In True Power, for instance, he describes various patients who were cured of serious illnesses by consuming water that had been prepared to counteract those patients’ specific problems.

Sounds far-fetched, to be sure, and yet Emoto provides numerous photographs of water crystals to support his mind-bending premise. According to Emoto, water from the same source that has been exposed to words in any number of languages, such as English or Japanese, and then frozen, crystallized and photographed, reveals information about the nature of the words the water was exposed to.

Water labeled with the word “happiness” for instance, generated a beautiful, symmetrical crystal, similar to a pristine snowflake. The same water, exposed to the word “unhappiness” produced an incomplete, unattractive crystal.

Remarkably, Emoto exposed various vials of water to a variety of words and intentions, repeatedly, with similar results. He believes that water, like everything in the universe, vibrates. On the quantum level, we know this is true. Emoto proposes that water is capable of “imprinting” the thoughts or emotions that it is exposed to, altering its vibrational state. This change, he believes, can be harnessed to achieve wellness.

This implies that our thoughts and intentions have greater power than we may realize. Although this concept will be familiar to anyone familiar with the Laws of Attraction, it is radical, to say the least, to most conventional scientists.

Dale Kiefer, an OWC researcher, gave this compelling personal account of Emoto’s theory.

“I witnessed the process of Emoto in action. Seeking a suitable project for the 8th grade science fair, my son agreed to test Emoto’s premise by using labeled water to grow pea plants under controlled conditions. My son grew peas from seed, watering each set of eight plants with water that had been labeled with the words “love” or “hate”. A third jug of water remained unlabeled and served as a control. The experiment involved growing these seedlings under identical circumstances and periodically measuring their progress objectively. All variables, including light, temperature and amount of water provided, remained equal for each set of seedlings. Remarkably, the seedlings that received “love” water grew faster and achieved greater ultimate height than the seedlings watered with either control water or the “hate” water. My son received second place honors for his efforts.”

Watch this video of microscopic water images changing depending upon environmental energy – the water structure becomes beautiful crystals when “happy.” This science proves water is not only alive but reacts to its environment.

Emoto notes that the Greek philosopher, Thales, wrote: “Water is the first principle of all things.”   In his own writings, he has given us a new way of thinking about the importance of water, and its implications for health and well being. “Water presents us with a wonderful means to live our lives well and to maintain a healthy mind and body.”¹³

How much water do you need – Eight glasses a day?

It’s been repeated so many times it sounds like a sacred pronouncement from the Bible (perhaps one of the Ten Commandments?): Over and over again we have been admonished to drink eight to ten (8-ounce) glasses of water per day for optimal health and hydration. And only water counts, we are usually reminded (in faintly scolding terms).

The problem is, this is not particularly accurate information, although most people are likely dehydrated to some degree and this can cause a loss of energy and a slower metabolism as well as a host of other problems. It is far wiser to drink more water than you need.

This persistent myth evidently took root in popular culture as a result of a theory proposed in a book published in the mid-1970s.2 In reality, there has never been a scientifically-validated one-size-fits-all recommendation regarding the “correct” amount of daily water intake for adults. This oft-repeated dogma ignores certain facts regarding adequate hydration.  It is a good rule of thumb, but you may require more or less depending on many factors.

Your Bodies Regulation and Use of Water

We have evolved elegant and remarkably sensitive mechanisms to achieve water balance. A complex feedback loop involving the pituitary gland, specialized hormones and the kidneys operates to monitor plasma osmolality, which provides information regarding the amount of water in the blood at any given time. When the concentration of dissolved solutes rises too much, indicating too little water, the pituitary secretes antidiuretic hormone, which signals the kidneys to conserve more water.

Another, less important hormone, atrial natriuretic hormone, is secreted when too much water is present, signaling the kidneys to flush more water in the urine. Of course, water balance is also regulated through thirst, which obviously signals the need to consume more water. These mechanisms are so precise that the loss of a mere 1% of body water is corrected within 24 hours1 A secondary feedback loop, involving regulation of electrolytes — ions such as sodium and potassium — is also involved. Suffice it to say that the body takes no chances when it comes to the more or less unconscious regulation of water balance. These mechanisms may not work as efficiently in infants and the elderly, so these groups are at slightly greater risk of dehydration.

Do Coffee and Tea Help Meet Your Water Needs?

You’ve undoubtedly been told, repeatedly, that coffee, tea or soft drinks don’t count towards your daily hydration goal. This, at least, is one “fact” that deserves to be retired. Read this further information to find out why.

Conclusion:

As we confront growing water shortages, declining water quality and burgeoning global populations, we’d do well to remember the metaphysical and biological significance of water for life on this planet.

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References:

1)         Jéquier E, Constant F. Water as an essential nutrient: the physiological basis of hydration. Eur J Clin Nutr. 2010 Feb;64(2):115-23. Epub 2009 Sep 2.

2)         Stare, FJ, and McWilliams M. Nutrition for Good Health. Fullerton, CA: Plycon, 1974, p. 175

3)         Sharp RL. Role of whole foods in promoting hydration after exercise in humans. J Am Coll Nutr. 2007 Oct;26(5 Suppl):592S-596S.

4)         Grandjean AC, Reimers KJ, et al. The effect of caffeinated, non-caffeinated, caloric and non-caloric beverages on hydration. J Am Coll Nutr. 2000 Oct;19(5):591-600.

5)         Maughan RJ, Griffin J. Caffeine ingestion and fluid balance: a review. J Hum Nutr Diet. 2003 Dec;16(6):411-20.

6)         Grandjean AC, Reimers KJ, et al. The effect on hydration of two diets, one with and one without plain water. J Am Coll Nutr. 2003 Apr;22(2):165-73.

7)         Eskelinen MH, Kivipelto M. Caffeine as a protective factor in dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. J Alzheimers Dis. 2010;20 Suppl 1:S167-74.

8)         Tamakoshi A, Lin Y, et al. Effect of coffee consumption on all-cause and total cancer mortality: findings from the JACC study. Eur J Epidemiol. 2011 Feb 6. [Epub ahead of print]

9)         Lin WY, Xaiver Pi-Sunyer F, et al. Coffee consumption is inversely associated with type 2 diabetes in Chinese. Eur J Clin Invest. 2011 Jan 12. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2362.2010.02455.x. [Epub ahead of print]

10)       Loopstra-Masters RC, Liese AD, et al. Associations between the intake of caffeinated and decaffeinated coffee and measures of insulin sensitivity and beta cell function. Diabetologia. 2011 Feb;54(2):320-8. Epub 2010 Nov 3.

11)       Chacko SM, Thambi PT, et al. Beneficial effects of green tea: a literature review. Chin Med. 2010 Apr 6;5:13.

12)       Thielecke F, Boschmann M. The potential role of green tea catechins in the prevention of the metabolic syndrome – a review. Phytochemistry. 2009 Jan;70(1):11-24. Epub 2009 Jan 13

13)       Emoto, M. The True Power of Water. Hillsboro, OR: Beyond Words Publishing, 2005; p. 20.

14) Web resources references: mercola.com, Wikipedia.com

15) OWC researchers assisting Dale Kiefer, Tom Cifelli and some comments on hydration issues by Dr. Sandra Olic. Read our water research page.

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