Dehydration

Dried leaves
I have talked about drinking water before and find myself amazed at times that people just don't feel that it is important enough to make it a part of their daily natural health program. The body cannot function at any sort of healthy level without water, although it does a magical job of compensating. Dehydration plays a significant role in most major diseases. Most people associate dehydration with being sick (nausea and vomiting), but in fact so many people are walking around dehydrated simply because they have lost the habit of drinking water. Children usually instinctively drink (hopefully water) but lose some of it in school, although that is changing these days. The amazing thing is as the body gets chronically dehydrated it looses its ability to absorb water. The reason is simple. As the cells get stressed the walls become rigid and are unable to absorb water, release toxins, or produce energy. This causes the cells to get further dehydrated and the cycle begins again. In effect, dehydration causes further dehydration.

Here are some interesting facts.
- Even mild dehydration will slow down ones metabolism by as much as 3%.
- By the time you are thirsty you are already at the early stages of dehydration and have probably lost 1% of your fluid.
- A 2% drop in water level can cause short term fuzzy thinking (hum, how about that those afternoon slumps; try drinking water instead of reaching for that cup of coffee or candy bar)

So what are the symptoms of dehydration? Dry mouth is the first stage. The symptoms then progress to (in order of severity of the dehydration) anxiety, reduced appetite, reduced energy, nausea, dizziness, emotional instability and fatigue, loss of coordination, and loss of coherence in speech.

Another system that is affected by dehydration is the lymphatic system. Many people with swollen ankles and other signs of lymphatic congestion are dehydrated. Simply hydrating those people with edema in their legs will often times resolve the inflammation, at least to some extent.

Rock in water
Ways to hydrate the body:
- Drink small amounts of water often.
- Interestingly enough, pears are a super hydrating fruit, so eating a pear or drinking some "watered down" pear juice in a time of acute dehydration (like after exertion in the heat) is a wonderful and tasty way to get into balance.
- Another hydrating drink is coconut water combined with a twist of lime.

Some supplements for balance:
- ReHydration - helps the body to absorb and use water more effectively (call us for more details)
- SpectraMin - an ionized trace mineral supplement used to balance electrolytes, pH, and more.
- EFA’s - help the cell membranes remain flexible
Since dehydration causes such a stress on the system, using adaptogenic herbs such as eleuthero root, astragalus, or ashwagandha to counter that stress may be helpful.

And finally, for a refreshing drink to hydrate the body, combine the following ingredients in a blender and enjoy!
10 drops ReHydration
10 drops SpectraMin
1/4 tsp. Alka-C (optional)
1/2 cup organic pear juice
1 1/2 cups spring water
1/2 cup ice


Please contact me if I can be of any service to you. Be well!

Love,
Sierra

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