Summer is just about behind us, but we are still told to
drink, and drink again; preferably water. However, in some
places, (North East England, is one such place, I am told)
summer comes for about two weeks a year. Moreover, most
places of work and many homes now have air conditioning,
which may cool the rooms but dries out the body (and vice
versa for central heating, which also dries out the body)!
Although there is less danger of dehydration, people still
have to drink even in temperate climates, albeit in smaller
amounts than in a tropical country.
The Torah is compared to fresh water (literally, living
water). We cannot exist without the Torah, nor can we stay
alive without water. The human body is composed of many
components, and between 60% and 70% of its composition is
water. Why is the regular intake of water so essential to our
very existence?
Firstly, the human body cannot store water, yet it needs a
constant supply for a number of functions. There is a common
fallacy that we only need fluids at times when we are
physically active, or when it is hot. On the contrary, we use
water all the time. When we exhale, the breath is saturated
with water. Our skin exudes water constantly, even if we do
not feel that we are perspiring. Water is also eliminated by
the kidneys and by the digestive system, together with all
the waste material in the body. All the systems function more
efficiently when they are 'lubricated' with enough fluids.
Much of the food we ingest contains water, even if we are not
aware of it. For example, a slice of fresh bread is composed
mainly of flour and about 40% water. A portion of meat,
surprisingly, may contain up to 50% water after it is cooked.
Soup is an obvious source of liquid, as is fruit. In fact
about 40% of the fluids we need are supplied by our daily
food and by our metabolism, that is, the burning up and
dispersal of the food we eat.
Many parents declare that their children will not touch plain
water. That is a fact, if they give their little babies syrup
as a drink in the bottle in between feeds, almost from birth.
Babies are not stupid, and take their cue from Mother.
Perhaps, she too, is not very partial to plain H2O.
Older children however, will agree that water quenches thirst
better than a sweet drink. More and more families are cutting
down on sweet drinks nowadays, and drink water during the
week. Sweet drinks are for Shabbos, Yomtov and maybe parties.
These families are likely to have smaller grocery bills and
healthier teeth!
Additionally, many of the sweet drinks contain food coloring
and additives. If your children adamantly refuse to drink
water, at least sweeten it with natural juices or sugar-free
concentrates. Diet drinks are likely to contain Aspartame,
which is not to be taken in large amounts, and definitely not
by children. For adults who might not want to gain weight, it
would be well to remember that fruit juices add many calories
to the daily diet, as they contain natural sugar. Once again,
water is the ideal drink! Women in particular are inclined to
forget to drink. I find it a good idea to fill a large bottle
with water every morning, which I leave on the counter in the
kitchen, together with a big glass, so that I am bound to see
it every time I go to the sink. It has become habitual to
drink two glasses full before each meal, and also several
times during the day, regardless of whether I feel thirsty or
not. The bottle is always empty at the end of the day.
'They' say that the skin ages, i.e. it becomes wrinkled more
quickly, when it does not get enough water from within.
Whether the skin looks younger is a debatable point, but one
certainly feels more fit when one drinks water regularly.
Extremes are never a good thing. Someone on a long hike under
a blazing sun, might drink copious amounts of water on that
particular day; he will not do any damage to his system.
However, the kidneys cannot cope with 30 cups of water a day
on a regular basis. So how much water should we be
drinking?
As mentioned, we get about 40% of our needs through food.
Thus, we have to supplement the remainder with about 1 to 2
liters a day, depending on the circumstances. A nursing
mother for instance, needs a little extra, as does an
athlete, or anyone involved in strenuous sports who perspires
profusely. Furthermore, it is not a good idea to drink too
much at one go; the intake needs to be spread throughout the
day. Some people have to limit their fluid intake, because of
some medical condition, but this short article is not
addressed to them.
There is a wide range in the quality of drinking water,
depending on where you live. There are still millions of
people, in some areas of the world, who do not have access to
clean tap water. There are millions of other people who do
have access to purified tap water, with its essential
minerals, but who do not trust its purity, and buy bottled
water.
Hard water contains large quantities of calcium carbonate and
magnesium (and ruins electrical appliances), while soft water
has smaller amounts of minerals. Bottled mineral water varies
from country to country and even from district to district as
to the amount of minerals it holds. Interestingly, the body
seems to absorb the calcium in water more easily than it
absorbs the calcium in cheese or milk.
It is never too late to change one's eating and drinking
habits. Let it become one of the standard rules in your home
that water is not only for washing. In today's world,
children are permitted, even encouraged, to bring small
bottles to school. From now on, fill the bottles with water.
In most cases the children will drink during the day,
especially if everyone else does. Some children like very
cold water, in which case you can half fill the bottle at
night and put it in the freezer, then fill it to the top in
the morning before sending the child off to school. The water
will be deliciously cool for most of the day.
One final point: if you drink two cups of water every hour
before a fast day, even if you are not in the least thirsty,
the fast seems to pass much more easily, even though the body
cannot store water for any length of time.
