Water, water everywhere

Follow me on Twitter  @RobShmerling Water bottles are everywhere. It’s a relatively recent development. Whether at work, working out, watching a movie, or just about anything else, it’s as if there’s been an epidemic of dehydration that can only be warded off by constant access to water. It seems strange to me; almost no one did this a decade or two ago. Were people in the past less healthy or did they feel less well because they drank when they were thirsty or with meals, rather than throughout the day? Water is important Clearly, water is a necessity. Without it, a person can only survive a few days. Water serves a number of vital functions, including: keeping organs and tissues healthy (since every cell requires water) helping deliver oxygen and nutrients throughout the body “flushing” the kidneys and bladder which help keep them healthy maintaining a healthy digestion keeping the blood pressure and heart rate in an ideal range helping keep body temperature normal. Given that the human body relies so heavily on water, it should not be surprising that our bodies have evolved to conserve and regulate it. We have intricate systems that connect the brain, the kidneys, and other parts of the body to keep our fluid status as close to ideal as possible. For example, when fluid levels are low, the hypothalamus (in the center of the brain) sends out a signal to the nearby pituitary gland telling it to release a hormone (called ADH) that will make the kidneys hold on to...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Health Healthy Eating Source Type: blogs