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ALL ABOUT WATER
Topics you will find:
Why Your Body Needs Water Over 50 percent of an adult's body is water; that figure goes as high as 75 percent in an infant. Blood is 80 percent water and even muscles are 70 percent water. The waterway flows through your body, delivers nutrients to cells and carries away waste. Water acts as your body's cooling system, moving heat to the skin surface where it evaporates away in sweat and breath. Water lubricates joints, softens skin, and makes muscles work more smoothly. If your body is temporarily short of water - a condition called "dehydration" - every organ in your body is affected. Infants need around 1-1/2 ounces of water per pound per day. So, each day a 20-pound baby needs around 30 ounces of fluids, usually in the form of milk. Breastfed babies don't need any extra water, but a small amount of water is necessary for formula-fed infants. In fact, some pediatricians feel that offering excessive water to infants under one year of age may actually be nutritionally unwise because excess water may fill up baby and replace needed calories. Adults need half as much water as infants - between 1/2 to 3/4 ounces of water per pound per day, depending on the amount of exercise, heat loss, illness, etc. A 120-pound woman should drink at least eight 8-ounce glasses of fluid per day. You need to drink more water if: You're exercising. Pre-hydrate yourself by drinking at least two glasses (16 ounces) of water an hour or so before you work out. As you work up a sweat, take frequent sips of water, as dehydration makes muscles tire more easily. After exercising, top off with two more glasses of water to rehydrate yourself. You're sick. Bodies lose a lot of water with illnesses that cause fever, vomiting, or diarrhea. Becoming dehydrated makes you feel doubly sick. You're pregnant. Blood volume increases by 40 percent during pregnancy, and extra fluids are also needed for the ongoing manufacturing of amniotic fluid. Water also helps maintain overall well-being during pregnancy. Drinking lots of water helps move along and dilute the body's waste products, lessening problems with constipation and reducing the risk of urinary tract infections. Pregnant women need to drink at least eight 8-ounce glasses of fluid a day to keep body and baby well-hydrated. If you don't like to drink that much plain water, yet are worried about the weight gain from extra juice, flavor your water with just a teaspoon of frozen juice concentrate. Space this fluid intake evenly throughout the day, consuming larger, more frequent drinks along with smaller, more frequent meals. The swelling of ankles, feet, and hands during pregnancy are not signals to cut back on water. Some of this is the normal swelling that occurs with pregnancy, or it may be a sign that your body is retaining too much salt, in which case drinking more water will actually help decrease the swelling. You're breastfeeding. Enjoy an extra glass of water before each nursing. Milk is the baby's water source, as well as his source of nutrition. You're hot. During hot weather or while working in the hot sun, bodies perspire more. Drink several glasses of water before going outside and drink more water afterward. You're thirsty. Obviously, you should drink water when you're thirsty. Thirst means your body already has a water shortage. Best to drink enough water so you don't get thirsty. If thirsty, quench your thirst and then drink two more glasses of water. This is especially important for senior citizens, since the thirst signal declines with age. Water, the original health drink, is underrated and overshadowed by commercial substitutes. Consider these health uses of plain water. Drown the cold. You've heard the expression "Starve a fever, feed a cold!" This bit of medical folklore is only half true. It's best to "drown" the fever and the cold with water. Fever makes you perspire and lose water, which not only dehydrates your body, but dehydrates your brain, causing you to think and feel even worse from dehydration. During a cold, the mucus membranes of your nose and breathing passages lose water and dry out. Drinking water keeps these mucus membranes moist, which allows the inflamed lining of your nose and breathing passages to heal more quickly. Dehydration also thickens the mucus, making it difficult for the tiny hair filaments in your nose (called cilia) to oscillate back and forth and move the mucus and the germs along. As a result, the mucus plugs collect in the nose, sinuses, and airways and serve as a culture-medium for bacteria. Keeping the mucus and the membranes moist and water-logged keeps mucus plugs from forming and even getting stuck in the lower airways where they are difficult to cough up. In fact, among pediatricians, water has often been dubbed the "best and most readily-available cough syrup." Drink to go. Not drinking enough fluids is also a subtle contributor to problems with constipation, especially in the very young and very old. The colon is your body's fluid regulator. If you're not drinking enough, your colon robs water from the waste material and gives it to the body, causing the stools to be water-deprived, or hard. People eating high-fiber diets actually increase their risk of constipation if they don't drink extra water along with fiber-rich foods, since fiber needs water to do its intestinal sweeping job. More fluids in your diet put more fluids in your bowels, lessening constipation. Drink to think. Water even contributes to healthier brains. The brain is a water-loving organ. If it doesn't get enough, it doesn't work right. Dehydration can impair concentration, which is most apparent following sweaty exercise or doing brain work in hot weather. So, drink to help you think. Don't rely on thirst to judge if your body is adequately hydrated. Waiting until you're thirsty to take a drink of water is waiting too long. If you're drinking around 1 ounce of fluid per pound per day (around 1/2 ounce of just water), plus an additional two or three glasses during times of increased water need, chances are you're drinking enough. (This amount includes all fluid sources: soups, fruits, milk, etc.) Also, your kidneys can give you a clue. Notice the color of your urine. If your body is low on water, your kidneys try to conserve it by concentrating the urine. If you have enough, or even too much water in your body, the kidneys excrete more water in the urine. If your urine is almost colorless or slightly yellow, you are probably drinking enough liquids. If your urine is darker than usual, like apple juice, drink more water. Over a lifetime you will put more water into your body than any other kind of food or drink. So, paying attention to the water you drink is at least as important, if not more so, than inspecting the food that you eat. The Safe Drinking Water Act, passed in 1974 and amended in 1986 and again in 1996 with more rigorous standards, required the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to set maximum allowable levels of contaminants in municipal water supplies and to periodically monitor compliance with these standards. Under these laws, the EPA issued minimum contaminant levels (MCLs) for 83 contaminants (for example, pesticides, radioactive materials, chemicals and bacteria). As part of the law, the EPA must continually update its monitoring to include more contaminants. The law also makes the EPA responsible for setting up criteria for safe purification procedures and for monitoring water purification in the United States. Sounds like the government has taken tapwater in tow, and the water drinker can imbibe without worry. Not exactly! Even though U.S. water is touted to be the safest in the world and water-borne disease is uncommon in the U.S., there are still concerns about contaminants in the public water supply. Here are some of the reasons:
CONTAMINANTS OF CONCERN Chlorine. While chlorine (a chemical also found in household bleach) is a disinfectant that kills germs, it may also pose health hazards. Chlorine reacts with the leftover organic waste products in water to form a possible carcinogen, trihalomethane, which may increase the risk of bladder and rectal cancers. Chlorine vapors can be inhaled through shower steam (so ventilate your shower well) and even absorbed through the skin during showering with chlorinated water. (You can eliminate this risk by placing an inexpensive, replaceable, activated-charcoal carbon filter in the shower head and by using a chlorine-free ozone filtration system in your pool or spa.) There is also the possibility that chlorine used to kill germs in water, might upset the balance between harmful and useful bacteria in the human intestines, perhaps even killing the weaker bacteria and allowing the stronger, and sometimes more harmful ones, to multiply unchecked. While chlorination of the water supply has eliminated public health problems, such as water-borne outbreaks of cholera and hepatitis, the question about the overall safety of chlorination is still unanswered. Agricultural chemicals. Pesticides which seeps into water from old pipes and plumbing solder. Lead plumbing materials were not banned until 1986, so many homes and municipal water systems still have pipes held together with lead solder. Radioactive water. Another concern is the seepage of radioactive material into ground and surface water. This problem is of particular concern if you live near old radioactive dumping sites or downstream from them. Theoretically, these potential toxins are monitored by EPA testing. WATERED DOWN SAFETY
In a rich and technologically advanced country like the United States, parents should not have to worry about the purity of the water that flows from the tap. Yet, the fact is that many municipalities do not deliver the pure water they promise. If consumers were more aware of the problems, perhaps there would be more pressure on the government to improve the water supply. Here's how to find out whether or not you're drinking safe water. 1. Check out the source. Call your local water utility officials and inquire about the source and safety of your water. Don't know who to call? Look for a phone number on your water bill or, call your local government offices for more information. Here are the questions to ask:
If you don't get a favorable response or are unclear about the test results, contact your local health department for clarification or call the EPA Safe Water Hotline at (800) 426-4791 or e-mail hotline-sdwa@epamail.epa.gov and ask for information about EPA standards (also see their web site, http://www.epa.gov/OGWDW/index.html). The Safe Drinking Water Act requires periodic updating of EPA monitoring standards, but there has been no update since October of 1996. When calling the EPA, ask for a complimentary copy of the booklet: WATER ON TAP: A Consumer's Guide to the Nation's Drinking Water. The EPA has delegated the task of monitoring the safety of drinking water to each state's government. While states must at least comply with the EPA's standards, some states may set higher standards. Check with your state government offices to find out more about your state's regulations. The EPA does not monitor drinking water unless they receive a complaint. Test the waters. If your water comes from your own well or if you're unsatisfied with your community's water-testing, do it yourself. Be sure you use a state and EPA-certified testing laboratory. You can obtain a list of EPA and state-certified water testing laboratories by calling the EPA hotline: 1- 800-426-4791. Costs of testing range between $25 and $100, depending on how extensively you want your water examined. Some tap water may be high enough in sodium to be of concern to people who are on a low-sodium diet for medical reasons. If you consume a lot of tap water, and your doctor has put you on a low-sodium diet, have your water tested for sodium content. 2. Filter your water. If you're uneasy about drinking the water coming out of your tap, there are many steps you can take to improve the water quality. Some families choose to buy bottled water for drinking and cooking; others purchase some kind of filtration system. With filters, like so many other commodities, you get what you pay for. The more chemicals and contaminants you want removed from your water, the more expensive the filter is likely to be. Regardless of the type of filter you have, it won't purify all the water in the house. Most families attach the filter to the kitchen tap. But what about the bathroom taps and the glass of water your children drink before going to bed? Also, consider the many public water fountains (parks, schools, movie theaters) that your child drinks from while away from home. For this reason, it would be better if municipal water were made purer at its source. But if you consider food and water as medicine, pure water, even at the price of a filtration system, is still one of the least expensive pills you can swallow. Remember, too, that it's not enough to just filter your water and forget about it. Be sure you change filters frequently and according to the manufacturer's instructions. If you are investing in an expensive water-purification system, before you sign on the dotted line, arrange for before-and-after tests of the water. Tell the filter company that you expect to have your money refunded if your filtered, tested water contains more contaminants than the manufacturer claims. You may have to pay for the testing, but it may save you from paying for a high-priced but less effective system. Here are the most common types of filters, what they remove, and what they don't: Carafe filters. Like coffee pot filters, a carafe filter fits on top of a water pitcher and filters the water as you pour it through. Faucet filter. These filters are also called point-of-use carbon filters. The water passes through a carbon bed that absorbs the contaminants. These filters are designed to fit directly onto your faucet or on a hose attached to the faucet, or they are connected directly to the cold-water line under the sink. You can install the faucet and hose-types yourself; the under- the-sink-type may require a plumber. This type can also fit on shower heads. Whole house activated carbon filters. This system attaches to your central water supply line and has the advantage of filtering the water that comes through all the taps. Reverse osmosis purification system. This large tank-system attaches to the cold-water pipe under your sink and flushes the water through carbon filters and a membrane that separates out most of the contaminants. Be aware that the system wastes several gallons of water for every one gallon it purifies. Check the model for how much water it wastes.
Distill it. In some ways, a distillation system provides the purest water, and in other ways it doesn't. In this type of system, the water is boiled and the vapor collected, with most of the contaminants and bacteria left behind. The problem with this system is that there are still gases, such as chlorine and some pesticides, in the remaining water. Nevertheless, steamed, distilled water is about the purest you can get. Some home distillation systems can remove 98 percent of the contaminants, which leaves you with water that is more pure than with filters. Run it. Run your water for a full minute in the morning before taking a drink from the tap. "First draw" water in the morning is likely to contain more lead from sitting in the pipes overnight. Cool it. Drink water only from the cold tap. Lead more easily leaches from the pipes or faucet into hot water. Boil it. Boiling water allows the chlorine to escape, which could improve the taste of some heavily-chlorinated waters. (Note, however, that taste is not an accurate indicator of the purity or safety of drinking water.) Buy bottled water. Many families choose to buy bottled water for drinking and cooking. Bottled water must be stored in a cool, dark place, such as in the pantry. Once it is opened, it must be recapped and refrigerated. WHAT ABOUT WATER SOFTENERS? To get the most health, enjoyment, and safety out of your water, here are some additional family water tips: 1. Drink water-rich foods. Don't like to drink plain water? No problem. Many foods, such as juice, soups, fruits, vegetables, and milk are 80 to 90 percent water. While it's healthier to get in the habit of drinking a lot of plain water (and model this wet taste for your children), if you absolutely must have some sweet-tasting water, try: water-logged fruits, such as, you guessed it, watermelon, juice popsicles, fruit-rich smoothies, and plain water flavored with juice. 2. Watch out for water robbers. Shun caffeine-containing coffee, teas, and colas, along with alcoholic beverages, as these have a diuretic effect, causing your body to eliminate more water. This precaution is especially important if your hydration is already marginal, such as while you are exercising or if you are sick. Sugared drinks can also rob you of water, since sugar may lessen the absorption of water from the intestines. Drinking large amounts of juices that are high in sorbitol (such as prune and pear juice) or even overdosing on apple juice can produce diarrhea-like stools and increase water loss from the intestines. 3. Find fluid companions. Get in the habit of taking along a bottle of water when you ride your bike, drive in the car, and especially when you go on outings with active, thirsty toddlers. When water is close at hand in your purse, diaper bag, or front seat, you're likely to drink more of it. Keep a glass of water or water bottle on the nightstand next to your bed and imbibe as soon as you get up. 4. Provide plane water. While traveling in airplanes, you may notice that your nose and mouth become dry and your breathing harder. Next you notice you are feeling tired and thinking less clearly. What is happening is that you are getting dehydrated. The dry cabin air has only around seven percent humidity, which dries out your breathing passages and sucks water out of your body as it tries to moisturize them. As a frequent flier, I fill up with at least two glasses of plain water or juice around 1/2 hour before boarding the plane. I tote along some bottled water in my carry-on bag and bring a squirt bottle of saltwater (available over-the-counter at pharmacies as saline nasal spray, but you can make your own) so that I can spritz a few drops in my nose every hour. I order double fluid drinks, such as water and juice, and periodically order a cup of hot water to treat my dried-out nose with a little steam bath. Avoid alcoholic or caffeinated drinks while flying since as diuretics they contribute to dehydration. Sure, water-logging your body during plane travel stimulates frequent treks to the bathroom, but even these trips down the aisle are good for your body. 5. Watch out for water diets. Beware of crash diets and - their often unhealthy -- claims that you can lose a lot of weight fast. Especially suspicious are the "high-something" diets, such as high carb, high protein, high grapefruit, etc., which tend to not only be nutritionally unbalanced, but can be downright dangerous. These diets often cause you to lose a lot of water. Yes, you may weigh less, but it's usually temporary. You don't lose fat, which is your real goal. Essentially what happens is you urinate out the weight rather than burn off the fat, and soon your body decides it wants that water back. 6. Try waterless meals. It's best not to consume too much fluid with meals. The body normally produces its own fluids to help digest food, beginning with saliva in the mouth and digestive juices in the stomach and small intestine. Drinking too much fluid with a meal can dilute these natural digestive juices, contributing to indigestion. Better to drink most of your fluids between meals. An exception to this is alcoholic beverages, such as wine, which are best consumed with food, since the food in the stomach and intestines slows the absorption of alcohol, minimizing blood sugar swings and reducing the risk of intoxication. If you like water with meals, it's best to drink a little room-temperature water, since ice water slows digestion. 7. Try water a bit before breakfast. Beginning your day with several glasses of water rehydrates you after the night and helps your body begin the day in better biochemical balance.
8. Love that lemon-ade. If your tapwater takes on a chlorine taste, adding a squirt of lemon juice to each glass of water can make it more palatable. 9. Forget fizzy water. Carbonated water does nothing more for your body than make you belch. In fact, the gas from carbonation makes you feel fuller sooner, so you drink less. If you enjoy the fizz, add a little seltzer to plain water. 10. Try water for weight loss. Can you drink more and weigh less? Yes, thanks to a biological quirk that is friendly to fat reducers. Your body is a natural water heater. When you drink water, which is nearly always a lower temperature than your body, the body expends energy (and therefore calories) to bring the water up to its own temperature. So you're not only drinking a non-caloric beverage, you're burning calories! That's a darn good drinking deal. Your body can burn around 100 calories a day using energy to heat a gallon of cool water that you drink. That translates into nearly a pound of fat loss in a month. Beware of any weight loss programs that advise drinking less water. Water contributes to health by helping the kidneys flush toxins out of the body. When the kidneys are working optimally, other organs of the body, especially the liver, are more in balance. Teach your children to acquire a taste for water, the most vital drink of all! Water is essential to good nutrition! Since our bodies are more than 50 percent water, we need to continually replenish our fluids. Hidden sources of water include milk or fruit juice, soups and stews, fruits, and vegetables. Have cool water readily-available for your child throughout the day. Keeping it in a pitcher in the refrigerator makes it seem more special, as does an attractive cup or glass and maybe some ice cubes or a twist of lemon peel. Don't forget to offer water often during the day, especially in warmer temperatures. If a child is well hydrated, he or she is more likely to have a good appetite. There are several factors to consider when deciding whether commercially bottled or your own tap water is best for your family. When you look at the labels on the various bottles of water in the grocery store, here are the terms you are likely to see and what they mean:
Now, which one do you choose? Consider the source. This is one of the main facts you want to know - where does the water come from? Does the bottle contain that pure-as-snow, fresh mountain spring water that the bottle pictures seem to portray? Or, is it simply municipal water that has been ultra-filtered or purified? If the bottle doesn't list a source, the stuff inside may be little better than what comes from the tap. If you're not sure, don't be afraid to call the 800-number listed on the bottle and ask. Members of the International Bottled Water Association (IBWA) must list the source of the water (e.g., spring). If the bottler doesn't list the source, the contents are probably municipal water. Consider the tester. Bottled water is regulated by the FDA because it's considered a food, and the FDA should require that the label identify the source of the water, not what's in it. Tapwater, on the other hand, is regulated by the EPA and state governments. Would you rather have your individual state or local government test your water or the FDA? The International Bottled Water Association includes 85 percent of bottled water processors, and the organization claims to have a stricter code than EPA regulations. Members must submit to an annual, unannounced inspection by an independent, third-party tester. So, at least in theory, bottled water seems to have a slight safety edge over tap. Practically speaking, the bottled water industry is primarily self-regulated. One thing you can be certain of in nearly all bottled waters: the water is chlorine-free. Bottled, distilled water is the cleanest water you can buy. For general information about bottled water, call the International Bottled Water Association (800-WATER-11) Should you be lugging a bottle of commercial sports drink to your child's soccer game? What drinks provide the best nutrition for optimal performance? The answers to these questions depend upon how long and how strenuous the exercise is. If you or your child exercise moderately for less than an hour, plain water is the best source of fluids. Water is absorbed more rapidly than any other liquid, but once you begin adding stuff to water, the absorption slows. Drink ahead. Drink a few glasses of water before a game. During the game, drink enough to quench thirst, and after the game drink enough water to quench thirst and then drink at least two more glasses, since thirst is not a reliable indicator of adequate hydration. For high endurance exercise lasting longer than 90 minutes, you will probably need a carbo-lyte-hydration drink (i.e., one containing sugar, salts, and water). During strenuous exercise, lasting more than one hour, sports drinks help prevent dehydration, a major cause of muscle fatigue. The main nutritional elements in a commercial or homemade sports drink are water, carbohydrates, and electrolytes (sodium and potassium). Try these carbo-hydration tips to enhance performance, and therefore enjoyment, of sports.
A useful reference for eating and drinking wisely during exercise is: Nancy Clark's Sports Nutrition Guidebook, Human Kinetics Publishing, 1996. Your family deserves pure water swimming. If there are health concerns about showering in chlorinated water (from either inhaling chlorine vapor or from chlorine being absorbed through the skin), what about being immersed for hours in a heavily-chlorinated public pool or inhaling the steam as you sit meditatively in a chlorinated spa, or even a heated pool? There is a better way. European pool filtration technology is way ahead of American, since in Europe many pools are indoors and the concentration of chlorine gases in the "pool room" can be nauseatingly uncomfortable. (Take a deep breath next time you walk into the hotel indoor pool). To solve this problem, Europeans invented an ozone filtration system in which the water is zapped with bacteria-killing ozone as it goes through the filter and then the ozone self- destructs as the water re-enters the pool. This is the system that we have installed on our pool and spa, and it is probably the healthiest $500 we have ever spent. Actually, by the time you factor in the savings of having a chemical-free pool and the lower maintenance cost, it's probably the most cost- effective way to filter your pool water, too. |
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