Hey guys-

I get questions all the time about water and along with my friend Jackie Taylor - http://www.outstandinglives.com - have studied the water issue at length. 

My wife forward this to me earlier today.  Based on my knowledge, I though this would be a good thing to share here in MTM Land.

WATER

1. 75% of Americans are chronically dehydrated.

2. In 37% of Americans, the thirst mechanism is so weak that it is often mistaken for hunger.

3. Even MILD dehydration will slow down one’s metabolism as much as 3%.

4. One glass of water will shut down midnight hunger pangs for almost 100% of the dieters studied in a University of Washington study.

5. Lack of water, the #1 trigger of daytime fatigue.

6. Preliminary research indicates that 8-10 glasses of water a day could significantly ease back and joint pain for up to 80% of sufferers.

7. A mere 2% drop in body water can trigger fuzzyshort-term memory, trouble with basic math, and difficulty focusing on the computer screen or on a
printed page.

8. Drinking 5 glasses of water d aily decreases the risk of colon cancer by 45%, plus it can slash the risk of breast cancer by 79%, and one is 50% less
likely to develop bladder cancer.

And now for the properties of COKE:

1. In many states (in the USA) the highway patrol carries two gallons of coke in the truck to remove blood from the highway after a car accident.

2. You can put a T-bone steak in a bowl of coke it will be gone in two days.

3. To clean a toilet: Pour a can of Coca-Cola in to the toilet bowl and let the “real thing” sit for one hour, then flush clean. The citric acid in Coke removes stains from vitreous china.

4. To remove rust spots from chrome car bumpers: Rub the bumper with a rumpled-up piece of Reynolds Wrap aluminum foil dipped in Coca-Cola.

5. To clean corrosion from car battery terminals: Pour a can of Coca- Cola over the terminals to bubble away the corrosion.

6. To loosen a rusted bolt: Applying a cloth soaked in Coca-Cola to the rusted bolt for several minutes.

7. To bake a moist ham: Empty a can of Coca-Cola into the baking pan, wrap the ham in aluminum foil, and bake. Thirty minutes before the ham is finished,remove the foil, allowing the drippings to mix with the Coke for a sumptuous brown gravy.

8. To remove grease from clothes: Empty a can of coke into a load of greasy clothes, add detergent, and run through a regular cycle. The Coca-Cola will help loosen grease stains.

9. It will also clean road haze f rom your windshield.

For Your Info:

1. The active ingredient in Coke is phosphoric acid.  Its pH is 2.8. It will dissolve a nail in about 4days.  Phosphoric acid also leaches calcium from bones and is a major contributor to the rising increase in osteoporosis.

2. To carry Coca-Cola syrup (the concentrate) the commercial truck must use the Hazardous material place cards reserved for Highly corrosive materials.

3. The distributors of Coke have been using it to clean the engines of their trucks for about 20 years!

*shudder*

I’m so glad that I don’t drink pop anymore! Water, Water, Water, little bit of coffee once in awhile and then more Water!!!

Hi Scott,

Though I definitely agree with you about the Coke thing (though, oddly, a lot of that “household clearner” stuff doesn’t apply to Pepsi), I’m not so sure about the water.  The small amount of research I’ve done seems to indicate that people don’t need anywhere near the recommended 8 glasses of water a day.  Furthermore, much of the water we *do* consume comes through other types of liquids (juices, milk, tea, etc.) and through food.

I find it hard to believe that 75% of americans are chronically dehydrated.  That dehydration must be very week for its signal to be mistaken for hunger.  I know that when I’m out in the summer and I get dehydrated, my body tells me to drink, and there’s no mistaking it for hunger pangs.  The message comes through loud and clear.

For #5 ("lack of water, the #1 trigger of daytime fatigue"), I would think the biggest triggers of daytime fatigue would be either chronic sleep deprivation (which is rampant in North America) or caffein lows (ie: the lows that come a few hours after drinking coffee, when the caffein wears off).

I offer the following websites, which I discovered in my research, and will allow others to make their own decisions:
http://www.coca.com.au/newsletter/2004/jun0411a.htm
http://www.musc.edu/catalyst/archive/2002/co10-11eight.htm
http://ajpregu.physiology.org/cgi/content/full/283/5/R993#SEC4

Julie

Totally disagree with you Julie *hugs*

I don’t have time to write a long detailed response right now. However....the following is some of the same things Scott posted but I wanted to keep the reference intact as intended:

Lack of Water is the #1 Trigger of Daytime Fatigue

by Sandi K.

Water - We all know that water is important, but I’ve
never seen it written down like this before.

75% of Americans are chronically dehydrated. (Likely
applies to half world population.)

In 37% of Americans, the thirst mechanism is so weak
that it is often mistaken for hunger.

Even MILD dehydration will slow down one’s metabolism
as much as 3%.

One glass of water shuts down midnight hunger pangs
for almost 100% of the dieters studied in a U-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.

A mere 2% drop in body water can trigger fuzzy short-
term memory, trouble with basic math, and difficulty
focusing on the computer screen or on a printed page.

Drinking 5 glasses of water daily decreases the risk
of breast cancer by 79%, and one is 50% less likely to
develop bladder cancer.

The Women’s World article also draws upon research from
the University of Utah, Connecticut, cardiologist Stephen
T. Sinatra, M.D., author of Optimum Health, the
University of Washington, Baylor College of Medicine, and
others.  The cancer statistics are from Seattle’s Fred
Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and British researchers.

And ....

‘Must drink more water, must drink…’ We all know that the wet stuff is essential for life - but did you know it can help you lose weight?
Water keeps us cool, lubricates our joints and flushes toxins from our bodies, but admit it, how many of us really drink the recommended two litres a day? For those of us who do struggle to drink enough, the great news is that water actually can help you in the battle against the bulge.

Now for the science bit
Your metabolism is the bio-mechanical process that breaks food down and turns it into energy. In a nutshell, it consumes calories. Since metabolism is your best ally in the frontline against weight, you want it to be working at full speed. Water is the fuel that drives metabolism’s chemical reactions. So, if you’re not drinking enough, you won’t burn as many calories as you can. Simple.

Running on empty?
If you’re not drinking enough water - at least 2 litres a day - here’s how your body is being affected:

Your weight loss will slow right down. This is because about 2.5 litres of water is naturally lost through daily bodily functions such as going to the loo and sweating. If you don’t replenish this water you’ll soon become dehydrated, and your metabolism will be among the first to shut down. So, if you’re dieting and you can’t seem to shift the weight, perhaps it’s because you aren’t drinking enough water.

Your digestion will suffer. Water is essential for digestion and elimination. Poor digestion means you won’t be absorbing the goodness from your food. Your body in turn will send up signals (read: cravings) for food that has minerals your body lacks.

You’ll feel ‘fake’ hunger. When dehydrated, your body sends out the same signals that prompt you to eat and you may end up answering that response with food. Water will not only curb those hunger pangs, but it will fill you up. Fitness trainer Bob Greene recommends drinking a tall glass of water half an hour before a meal to fill the void and prevent overeating (For more information, check out Get With the Program, Getting Real About Your Weight, Health and Emotional Well-Being by Bob Greene, Simon and Schuster, £15)

You won’t get the full benefit of exercise. Your metabolism increases with exercise, and as we mentioned earlier, water is essential to maximise your metabolism. Drink plenty of water before, during and after your workout.
Mine’s a pint (or five)?
How much H2O should you drink? The British Dietetic Association suggests adults drink 2.5 litres (that’s a little over five pints) of fluids a day, which can include fruit juices, squash and weak tea and coffee. This amount is recommended for maintaining your daily fluid requirements. If your aim is to lose weight, add another 750ml to that and you’ll aid your metabolism and help create new muscle weight.

You know you’re drinking enough water if your urine is clear and odourless (not including your first urination of the morning).

But sorry, even though it’s technically fluid, alcohol can’t be included in your daily intake. That’s because booze is dehydrating - so if you are going to have a tipple or two, drink one glass of water for every glass of alcohol.

Drinking loads of water will not make you retain water, but dehydration will. If your body feels worried that it’s not getting enough water, it will hold on to what it has.

Water does make you pee and you will notice more trips to the loo, but you can lessen the effects by drinking throughout the day rather than chugging a couple of glasses in one go. If you drink more than one or two glasses in one sitting, your body will want to get rid of it and you won’t reap the benefits.

Although some dieticians disagree on this, sparkling water, weak tea or weak coffee can count toward your daily fluid intake. But because they have a diuretic effect, try to limit the amount. Consider drinking herbal tea instead. If you are going to have an espresso, add an extra serving of water to your daily intake.

It’s as easy as one, two, three…

Keep water by your workstation. Instead of munching on a biscuit or crisps, take a sip from your water bottle.

If the thought of consuming that much water makes you queasy, be strategic. Drink when you are most thirsty: when you wake up, when you have your meals, during your workouts. Carry a bottle of water with you and you’ll be more likely to sip your way to your daily amount.

Make your water taste better by buying a water jug with a filter. You can also make your own flavoured water by cutting up a lemon, apple or cucumber and adding to the water. Or mix with a tiny splash of squash or juice. Try making herbal iced tea by pouring boiling water over four tea bags, letting it steep for 10 minutes and diluting to taste with cold water.
And there’s more
Although we diet for health reasons, it’s often the fact that we’ll look better that keeps us motivated. Drinking plenty of water will give you that dewy, fresh-faced look by plumping the cells in your skin so lines are less visible. Water flushes impurities away and reduces blemishes. And, according to the American Holistic Association, water has a very high concentration of negative ions, which can bring about a feeling of well-being.

Sitting by a lake or ocean can add to your sense of peace; a benefit for emotional eaters. Swimming is great exercise and the fact that you are immersed in water means you’ll also get the emotional benefit of those negative ions. So what are you waiting for? Jump in now, and before you know it, your weight loss will be going swimmingly.

And…

(can you tell this is a hot topic for me?!?! lol)

“Your Body’s Many Cries for Water”

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0962994235/sr=1-1/qid=1138832778/ref=pd_bbs_1/104-8335856-1607901?_encoding=UTF8

and

“Water: For Health, for Healing, for Life: You’re Not Sick, You’re Thirsty!”

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0446690740/sr=1-2/qid=1138832778/ref=pd_bbs_2/104-8335856-1607901?_encoding=UTF8

*whew* I’m done for now.

I think we all have seen Mythbusters too many times (or spent too much time on Snopes)

I haven’t tried it with a T-bone or a nail - but at work we have had a penny in a Coke for over six months now - it hasn’t decompsed any but it is certainly cleaner than when it started.  I wonder if the statistics for the steak are also if it is in straight phosphoric acid (like the nail).

But separate and apart from that - I think we can all agree water is good and Coke is bad

I think I’ve given up soft drinks completely - I didn’t make a conscious effort to - I just realized I haven’t had any for over a month so I’m going to stick with it.

Green tea on the other hand I’ve become completely addicted to - Scott must own stock in Arizona teas - if not you should!

Wow Carrie - I think we’ve just seen your passionate side… and it’s kind of cute. 

And Chris… boy do I wish I owned stock in Arzona Tea - maybe they would give me a discount on all this Green Tea I drink.

Well, this water discussion is great and really demonstrates the point that I spend most of my time thinking about.

With all the infomation and confusion that overloads us everyday you can really see how folks get in trouble
with their weight.  The overload almost incapacitates folks. 

I’m always on the lookout for a “Transformational Translation"… or, a way of saying things that will get
a desired result for folks.  You’ve certainly have heard me do that on my podcasts.

So… I’ve got a challenge for you guys. It’s you’re turn to translate.

Water has been around since we’ve been around.  We all agree - drinking is required for life and can
improve life in so many ways. 

If you only had 30 seconds to explain all this crazy stuff about water to someone and why it’s important… only 30 seconds… what would you say?

How would you connect with them?  How would you drive them?  How would you convince them?

In only 30 seconds.

Oh yeah… after that 30 seconds, your outcome must result in that person being “transformed” emotionally and wanting to drink more
water for a healthier life and LOVING you for leading them the right direction.

This is your chance to save the world so go for it.

Here’s my little M2M minute example. People, feel free to modify it and write it better. Maybe we’ll have it coming down our RSS feed soon..

Did you know that your body and a Mercedes Benz have a few things in common?

You just bought a new Mercedes, and can’t wait to get it driving down the road. You go out on a nice drive, just you for 2 hours when all of a sudden, your car stops on the side of the road. You get out, pop the hood and can’t locate the problem. Maybe a flown fuze, maybe a bad engine? We’ll if you would have looked when you left your house, you would have known that you were low on gas, and now you’ve run out. The nice thing about a car is that it displays when your out of fuel, but your body doesn’t do it in the same way. Think of new Mercedes as your body, and the car’s gas like water .When you use your body, you use your own form of fuel, water. The more you use your body, the more water you’ll need to run at peak performance. If your not drinking enough water, you’ll feel tired and hungry along with a dry mouth. Being dehydrated will slow down your metabolism, taking all that effort you take into exercising and dieting, and giving you slower results. They recommend 2.5 litters a day, but don’t worry, it doesn’t have to be as hard as you think. Just fill up a water bottle, or glass of water with you where ever you go. Take sips and drinks from it while your working or working out. When you find yourself running low, fill it up. Take that water with you all day, and you should start to see better results in a day or two. yeah, you’ll pee a bit more, but the more you pee now, the more you’ll pee later....

I’m going to take Julie’s side in this one from the empirical point of view: a lot of information gets put out there and gets taken as fact without the science to back it up. So it’s always good to question information, confirm that it is correct. It is also common for the media to present as fact the results from a single study. Usually several independent studies have to produce the same results for researchers to really take them seriously.

But from the other point of view, humans are built out of water. Not soda or juice or coffee or tea. Water is best. The others have their place - I definitely need my caffeine each day. But nothing can replace water.

Scott, one thing that you might find a place for in this minute or another is that somewhere I heard that a study (hopefully with other independent studies to coorborate results) found that people drinking calorie drinks (soda, juice) don’t register those calories toward fullness. You eat food, your body registers those calories and adjusts your consumption accordingly. You drink soda and your body doesn’t notice - you still eat the same as if you were drinking water. So you take in more calories, thus gain more weight (or lose less).

Also, it seems that water is a necessary component of fat burning. Check out this link:

http://www.unisanet.unisa.edu.au/08366/h&p2fat;.htm#beta_oxid

It’s been a long time since biochem, but I think the diagram for beta-oxidation of fat shows an H2O molecule coming in to help break up the fat molecule. 

A little inside baseball for those like me that love to geek out over this stuff, but basically you can sum it up with “You can’t burn fat without water.”

Later gators…

oy - I find it interesting that one needs see scientific data to confirm or deny a basic yet simple human need. The media can’t hype this one up and there have been plenty of studies out there…

“Water Needs:
Next on the list of important nutrients is water. Good hydration is just as essential for strength training as it is for endurance training. Your body requires at least eight 8-ounce cups of caffeine-free, nonalcoholic fluids every day. You need to drink even more to replace fluids that are lost during exercise.

Make sure you go into your workouts well hydrated by drinking 2 cups of fluid 2 hours before exercise. During exercise, drink 4 to 8 ounces every 15 to 20 minutes. After exercise, replace any further fluid losses with 16 ounces of fluids.

Another approach is to weigh yourself before and after exercise: Any weight lost is fluid. Replace every pound lost with at least 16 ounces of fluid. “
http://www.physsportsmed.com/issues/1997/08aug/muscle.htm

Mayo Clinic: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/water/NU00283

And for the geeks See Minimum Drinking Water Requirement
http://www.pacinst.org/reports/basic_water_needs/basic_water_needs.pdf

Great topic!

Hi guys,

Not trusting my own knowledge of biology and science (being a humanities major), I wrote to a friend of mine who’s currently in med school to get his opinion on this topic.  Here’s what he sent me:

*****

You’re in luck… we did that just last week.

It’s true that most people don’t drink as much water as they ought to and this actually does have some minor health issues for some people. That said, there’s no real minimum recommended intake beyond “enough so that you don’t get dizzy, forget who you are, faint, and die.” 2L is a good, healthy amount to drink, but you don’t need anywhere near that much… two or three glasses would be a more accurate low value, and it doesn’t have to be pure water (coffee, juice, tea, etc… probably not soda).

As I understand it, the myth that we should drink more comes from people who have no business being given a typewriter reading that we have the *capacity* to process that much, and quite a lot more, and also reading that people lose tremendous amounts of water each day. Such is the miracle of the human body, though, that if you don’t drink enough, you just excrete less, and unless you do strenous exercise in the hot sun, most people don’t get harmed by it.

Since that sort of got away from me, a quick summation: “if you drink when you’re thirsty, you’re probably drinking enough.”

*****

So that’s his viewpoint, which I suppose is somewhere in between my former opinion and Carrie’s.  Obviously, I’m not going to argue that if you’re exercising, you need more water.  But when I exercise (I can’t speak for anyone else), my body sends me the “I am thirsty” signal and I drink lots of water.  If I’m just being sedentary, I need less water.

Scott, I’ll think about the MTM minute, unless you already put it out.  My internet connection just came up after 12 hours of downtime, so I’m behind on updating my podcasts.

TTFN,
Julie

Julie - 02 February 2006 09:30 AM

Since that sort of got away from me, a quick summation: “if you drink when you’re thirsty, you’re probably drinking enough.”

However, I still believe most people confuse thrist with hunger but that has all been addressed above.

Well - that sums it all up if someone came to this thread and wondered about water - lol.

Different opinions makes the world go ‘round otherwise if we all agreed it would get kinda boring

Hey guys -

I thought I would let this one sit overnight and see where we landed.

Julie, your med school friend makes a great point - and frankly one that surprised me for
a soon to be “motivator of last resort”.

Imagine - listening to your body, paying attention to how you feel and how you perform and
deciding how much water to drink based on that?  It couldn’t be that simple.

The point of almost every podcast I do is to pay attention to what’s going on with your
body no matter what anybody says.  Use your brains.  Our bodies are incredible machines and very capable
of letting us know when we’re doing the right thing - if we just pay attention.

For millions of years we’ve done just fine without the help of all of this information and I suppose
we’ll continue.

From my point of view, the confusion folks have and the need to complicate is so overwhelming it is almost funny.
Ask anybody who has lost weight and shaped up and you’ll find that the process was actually simple once
they got all the excess info out of the way.

While much of what we’ve read here is true - and some not - there is no doubt about the power
and need for water in our lives. 

There is also a spiritual side to water that has been recognized civilizations since the beginnning
of time points to it’s power. 

You can also determine your bodies water needs via Applied Kinesiology Muscle Testing - something
I’ve done in past seminars and will do in the future. It’s really cool.

We need water - so I drink water.  How much?  As much as I need to feel good.  If I’m not feeling
good, I reduce the “known” bad items in my diet - processed foods, chemicals, and drinks that include them
and focus on good, clean food and water.  That always works.  I’ve never met anybody who didn’t feel
better after making sure they were drinking lots of water during the day - never.

I actually have a few really credible sources in this area who are also personal friends.  You can bet that
I’ll be looking into this one much more. 

And with that - down the hatch with 24 oz of pure, clean, great tasting water room temp water in once big gulp - the way I started every day.
I think of it as priming the pump. Throughout the way I’ll have lots of other drinks, but whevever possible, I’ll grab another
bottle of water and down it.  Tonight at class.  16 oz before a workout.  I’ll sip 16 during class.  And within 30 minutes after, I’ll have another 16 oz.
If it’s too much - I won’t be able to drink it.  Finally, one more glass befor bed.

THought I would add my thoughts on this subject
When I was a kid we were only allowed to have lemonade etc on special occasions and My Mum would only by one bottle of cordial a week.
When that ran out and if I ever said “Im thirsty” she would say

“Well theres plenty of water in the tap”

It really annoyed me!

But now, I am so grateful for that because I couldnt drink Coke (and other sugary fizzy drinks) if I was in the desert!
I can only drink water when Im thirsty now and I drink it by the bottle (large size)

Mum always knows best!

Louis - 10 February 2006 06:31 AM

But now, I am so grateful for that because I couldnt drink Coke (and other sugary fizzy drinks) if I was in the desert!

I suppose I’m just lucky in that I never liked any sort of soft drink beacuse of the carbonation: it makes me sneeze.  So I never started drinking soft drinks, and thus don’t need to stop.

It is occasionally frustrating, however, to read some diet books / websites where, as a first step, they tell you that if you drink one less soft drink per day, you’ll loose X many calories.  I won’t!  There’s no such thing as food with negative calories!  What’s step #2?!? *grin*

Julie