Health And Hope

Would you like a drink?

Medical experts generally state that we do not drink enough each day. This is why we are more prone to urine infections, kidney stones, headaches, poor complexions, constipation, joint aches and pains, or lethargy. When we see flowers wilting, we put more water in the vase. We replace its lost fluids.
“When you are wilting, be like a flower and drink!” It helps. But what to drink?

These break down into various categories -

• There are the drinks that alter mood: these include tea, coffee, cola drinks, chocolate, alcohol.   These are not neutral ‘fluid replacement’ drinks. They act in some way on some part of our physical system. We often take them from habit or social custom or because of the effect they have on us.  Sometimes however, we have been drinking them for so long that we do not even notice any effect at all. Until we stop having them!  Persevere!

• Others are really food drinks:  malted milk drinks, drinking chocolate, soups in cups.  This means they are for digestion rather than absorption.  They contain proteins and sugars and fats.  Fruit juices are also very concentrated.  They are best not drunk in large quantities as they make the kidneys work hard.  It is sometimes medically recommended that they should be diluted with plain or sparkling water, 50%-50%.

• Another category includes the more artificial drinks, like fizzy pop, glucose drinks. Even orange squash contains reconstituted orange, sugars, preservatives, chemical Vitamin C, and colourings. These are a long way down the processing line, from a natural orange.

To refresh the body in all its parts and build a healthy environment for new cells to grow, fluid loss is best replaced with a neutral fluid. We all know this as water. Our bodies are made up of 7/8 fluid. Our blood is made up largely of fluid and it has to be kept at the right consistency. It has to circulate right into the tiny capillaries at the very end if its journey. In a period of 24 hours we can lose about 3 big jugs of our fluids. At night while we are quietly sleeping, this is lost through our sweat, or what we are breathing out through our lungs. All this lost fluid has to be replaced. Some comes from our food, but it is mostly through what we drink.
The best drink of all is simple, plain fluid—water.

When should we drink? This is important. Here is a good daily schedule.
1. It is good to have a pint glass of warm water as soon as we wake up—if with the juice of half a lemon so much the better, to wake up the liver. If you have it in a flask by the bed you will be sure and have some ready.
2. Leave 20 minutes then, before you have your breakfast. If you drink just before a meal it dilutes the stomach acids needed to digest your food, and if you drink with your meal then the bolus of food that is in the stomach is continually broken up and it has to re-form and then get back to an even temperature before digestion can properly take place.
3. The rule is ‘Drink between meals - eat not between meals’. If you feel like a snack or late supper, have a drink of water or a herb tea. These are only plain hot water with a flavour.
4. During the day aim to drink between 3-4 pints or 2 litres of water. Sip it all through the day. If you fill a bottle then you can see what you have drunk. You will know if you are having the right amounts as your urine will always be pale during the day.

Water and Viruses. Should you feel you are coming down with a cold or ‘flu, then drink a glass of water every ten minutes through one hour. That will be seven glasses in total. It often works very successfully in warding off a cold. Act immediately though at the first sign, and always watch the clock. Do not go beyond this, or you will upset the electrolyte balance in your body.

Be of good cheer! Body repairs begin in the very first 24 hours of any changes you make. That is truly exciting! Start with water, and you will have immediate benefits.

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