Water is life. Fluids other than pure water don’t act the same as water in your body, and they don’t meet your needs for hydration like water does. Most people are slightly dehydrated from relying on other fluids besides water for their fluid intake. Coffee, tea, and sodas even dehydrate your body.
Dehydration commonly causes fatigue, constipation, headaches, indigestion, muscle and joint aches and pains, asthma, allergies, high blood pressure, depression, diabetes, strokes, high cholesterol, tinnitus, vertigo, hearing loss, glaucoma, cataracts, and many other symptoms and diseases.
Water quality, progressing from the ideal to the acceptable, is spring/well water when from an uncontaminated source, ceramic/carbon block combination, distilled, pressed carbon-block filter, reverse-osmosis filter, and granular activated-charcoal filter. I have used carbon block gravity filtration for many years. Boroux makes my current filter.
Drink a lot of water! In fact, whenever you are thirsty or hungry, reach for water first to see if that satisfies you. Carbonated water with essences of natural flavoring (i.e., lemon, lime, orange, etc.) is fine and functions in your body like plain water. Juices, teas, etc., are fine, but should only be considered as an addition to your water requirements.
Drink as many ounces of water every day as are equal to half your body weight in pounds (e.g., body weight 150 lbs. = 75 ounces water a day). Use more water in hot weather and with heavy exercise. When you’re actually drinking enough water, your urine will be essentially clear.
When taking B vitamins, you can expect your urine to be alternately clear and not clear.
It is normal for Vitamin B2 (riboflavin) to turn your urine a very bright yellow, and at other times of the day, it will be clear.
You can check your hydration on your lab work. Another way to make sure you’re hydrated is the Skin Turgor Test. Pinch the skin on the back of your hand between your thumb and index finger, pull it away from your hand, and let go. Your skin should instantly snap back. If there is any lag, you’re dehydrated. If you’re testing dehydrated despite drinking a lot of water, you need to use more natural sea salt (Celtic salt is my favorite form). Note that impaired adrenal function will result in loss of salts from the body through excessive urination.
Many digestive problems, joint and muscle aches and pains, problems with fatigue – even your complexion – will clear up with the use of more water, especially when you get rid of the sodas, milk, coffee, etc. as sources of fluids at the same time.
It’s okay to drink some water with meals, because digestive enzymes are hydrolytic. That’s a fancy way of saying they’re activated by water. So drinking a little water with meals is good (4-8 ounces, depending on the size of the meal). The bulk of the water you drink throughout the day, however, is best taken between meals.
