Please welcome guest blogger for this week, Katie Wilson, who writes about the colleges for registered nurses. She welcomes your feedback at KatieWilson06 at gmail.com.
When accounting for all the different things you need to stay healthy, don’t forget to include this simple, yet commonly overlooked requirement for optimal health.
Did you know that scientists report that just a 2% reduction in body water due to dehydration can cause fuzzy memory, increased difficulty with basic math, and problems focusing on print on your computer screen? Having problems reading this blog? Well, even if you aren’t, chances are you could use a glass of good, clean water.
According to some researchers, almost 75% of Americans drink less water than they should on a daily basis. While disease and illness have many contributing factors and symptoms, most doctors agree that dehydration will do nothing but make those symptoms worse. Most of us are simply too busy to remember to drink enough pure water on a daily basis, but science tells us that we need to make it a priority. Consider these facts:
- In an estimated 1/3 of all Americans, the first major sign of dehydration, thirst, is so barely noticeable that it is commonly mistaken for hunger. Many people don’t know that thirst is a signal that dehydration has already taken place! Doctors and experts recommend drinking water before you get thirsty to ensure your body remains in optimal health.
- Consistently drinking five glasses of water each day reduces your risk of colon cancer by an estimated 45% and breast cancer by 79%! Why? Because our bodies are 70% water, and the body requires this special fluid in order to remove toxins and free radicals that can otherwise build up and cause disease.
- The effects of mild dehydration can slow down the body’s metabolism and reduce the effectiveness of workouts. The body needs fuel to exercise, but it also needs water, and lots of it, to make sure it can process and use that fuel. So if losing weight and getting in better shape are important to you, drink extra water and maximize your effort.
While it is no secret that water is essential to human existence, most of us take the fact that our bodies need it for granted. Chances are that you are at least mildly dehydrated while reading this sentence right now!
So whether you want to help your body stay in its best possible shape, help heal disease in your system, or recover from a difficult challenge, one of the most important foundations for a healthy system must not be overlooked. Drink at least eight glasses of water to make sure you aren’t slowing yourself down before you can even build some recovery momentum.
Nothing works better than pure water.
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