Dehydration – there are better ways to see the stars!
Dehydration is one of the most overlooked and basic causes of disease. Being the universal solvent for biochemistry, a lack of cellular water cannot be medicated for or modified other than by providing mineralised water of the appropriate quality and in the appropriate quantities.
We can live for a few months without food but will last only about 10 days without water. Next to the air we breathe water is the most important element. Every life-giving and healing process that happens inside our body happens with water. And this is why at Core Naturopathics one of our key baseline tests is to measure and assess your hydration levels. Without addressing hydration levels any other attempt at medical intervention is sheer folly and with likely little benefit (if not being directly counterproductive or outright toxic).
Drinking enough water is crucial and when we don’t drink enough, the first sign is a darkening of your urine. The colour of urine in a dehydrated person will be dark yellow to orange. The more hydrated we are the lighter the colour of our urine. Any dark colour at all in the urine could indicate a water deficiency.
Another indication of dehydration is seen in the vital signs, with an increase of the pulse rate between 10% and 15%. The body tries to maintain cardiac output (the amount of blood that is pumped by the heart to the body); but if the amount of fluid in the intravascular space is decreased, the body has to increase the heart rate, which causes blood vessels to constrict to maintain blood pressure. Other common symptoms of dehydration may include nausea, fatigue, headaches, dry mouth and reduced mental acuity.
Symptoms of moderate to severe dehydration include:
- Low blood pressure
- Severe muscle contractions in the arms, legs, stomach, and back
- A bloated stomach
- Heart failure
- Sunken fontanelle– soft spot on a head
- Sunken dry eyes, with few or no tears
- Skin losing its firmness and becoming wrinkled
- Lack of elasticity of the skin (when a bit of skin lifted up stays folded and takes a long time to go back to its normal position)
- Rapid and deep breathing, faster than normal
- Fast, weak pulse
Mild dehydration will slow down one’s metabolism as much as 3%. One glass of water shut down midnight hunger pangs for almost 100% of the dieters studied in a University of Washington study. Lack of water is the #1 trigger of daytime fatigue. Preliminary research indicates that 8-10 glasses of water a day could significantly ease back and joint pain for up to 80% of sufferers. Drinking five glasses of water daily decreases the risk of colon cancer by 45% and the risk of bladder cancer by 50%. (Dr Mark Sircus MD)
When for any reason the body cannot deliver the necessary nutrients to the cells and carry away metabolic wastes, we set up the conditions for disease. Dehydration leads to damage from deterioration, because the transporting of nutrients and wastes is diminished and even cut off at strategic points in the body. One of the first protocols for a patient in the emergency room is an intravenous saline solution. Emergency room doctors are well aware that dehydration, second only to oxygen deprivation, can end life fast!
Protoplasm, the basic material of living cells, is made of fats, carbohydrates, proteins, salts, and similar elements combined with water. Water acts as a solvent, transporting, combining, and chemically breaking down these substances. A cell exchanges elements with the rest of the body by electrolysis, and in a normal case, minerals and microelements pass through the cell membrane to the nucleus by electro-osmosis. The body needs electrolytes (minerals like sodium, potassium, magnesium, chloride, and bicarbonate) for its basic functions. Many of you reading this will have been introduced to and likely benefitting from taking Magnease™ drops and/or bicarb soda.
Our cells are made of water and they live in a water solution. Our blood is mostly water and serves to dissolve, process, and transport nutrients and eliminate waste materials. When dehydrated the blood becomes thick and saturated and is unable to flow freely. The excess of toxins must then be stored within the interstitial space surrounding the cells, pending elimination for life to continue, and over time this space begins to resemble a toxic waste site – an acidic medium. Since the cells cannot have the proper oxygenation and nutrition they begin to change in form and function in order to survive. With passing time if not rectified the end result is chronic disease in its myriad forms including cancer, heart disease, diabetes, dementia, autoimmune disease etc, etc.
Rectified with water? It’s the essential place to start; and yes, it may well be ‘high time’ to consider that Spring detox!
Please call one of our team on 1300 855 008 for more details or any questions you may have.
At your service,