One must drink enough pure water on a daily basis for good health. However, many people forego water and concentrate on other fluids which have additional ingredients. These cannot be compared to water when it comes to health benefits. (McLennan, 2000)
Take the example of young kids, who mostly prefer sweet drinks such artificial juice and sodas. Likewise, teens go for energy drinks and sports drinks in lieu of water. (Simpson, & Mazzeo, 2017)
A recent Havard study found out that over half of the children in America are dehydrated. This has many negative implications on their health and academic performance. (McLenan, 2000)
Another study showed that a quarter of American children do not drink water daily. Boys were found to be 75% more likely to be dehydrated than the girls. (Valtin, 2002)
65 % of the human body is made up of water. This water helps in a number of biochemical reactions and physiological processes. These include: metabolism, blood circulation, waste removal, body temperature regulation and detoxification. (Valtin, 2002)
Feeling thirsty is the first signal your body sends once it loses about 2% of its total water content. Therefore, thirst is one good indicator of what amount of water you need to drink to ensure the daily needs are met. (McLenan, 2000)
It is however important to note that by the time you feel thirsty, the body is in its formative stages of dehydration. Therefore, it is good not to ignore that initial feeling of thirst. (Simpson, & Mazzeo 2017)
This thirst mechanism cannot be depended on by young children. The mechanism is normally underdeveloped and thus can can easily plunge the young ones into dehydration. The same is true for the elderly, this time the thirst mechanism having become less functional. (McLennan, 2000)
Dehydration causes one to be more irritable and fatigued. One may also quickly lose concentration and focus, thus dangerous for sensitive activities such as driving. The Physiology and Behavior journal recently published a study, stating that dehydrated drivers are twice likely to make errors while driving, as compared to well watered drivers. Thus dehydration can be equated to drunk driving. (Simpson, & Mazzeo 2017)
Health campaigns have successfully made many people aware of the health hazards of soda, but these same people are not aware of the health hazards of fruit juice. Thus people in many developed nations have over-consumed fruit juice, leading to high rates of obesity, high blood pressure, fatty liver disease and type 2 diabetes. (McLennan, 2000) Simply put, swapping sodas for fruit juice is of no help to your body. Worse still, research has it that fruit juice may cause more harm to your health than sodas. (Valtin, 2002)
The need for hydration does not mean every water is safe for drinking. One should go for toxin free water to avoid adding pollutants to the body. For instance, tap water may contain a number of harmful pollutants, including chlorine, heavy metals, disinfection byproducts and pharmaceutical drugs.
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(McLennan, 2000) Federal scientists recently studied water samples from 25 municipalities in the US. They found a third of the samples to be contaminated with 18 substances, including per-fluorinated compounds such as PFOA.This tells us to ever be careful on what type of water we drink. (Simpson, & Mazzeo 2017)
Bottled water may seem the next convenient option after tap water, but this also has a number of disadvantages. The plastic water bottles may directly expose you to industrial chemicals such as phthalates, bisphenol-A and bisphenol-S. Secondly, bottled water is a whooping 1900 times more expensive than regular tap water. And despite this cost, it is a known fact that 40 % of bottled water is actually tap water which may not have been subjected to any additional filtering treatment. (McLennan, 2000)
You may be surprised to know that bottled water is more prone to contamination than tap water. This is better explained by the recommended testing intervals by the relevant bodies. For instance, the US Environmetal Protection Agency (EPA) states that public water supplies should be tested for pollutants several times a day. In the contrary, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) stipulates that private bottlers should test water for pollutants either weekly, yearly, or once in four years. (McLennan, 2000)
Many people have become extra busy of late, to the point of forgetting something as easy as drinking water. This may take a toll on them without realizing, since they are pre-occupied with other things. Outlined below are a variety of strategies one can apply to ensure they drink enough water every day. (Simpson, & Mazzeo 2017)
Drink water in the morning. Make sure to drink at least one glass of water first thing in the morning, before taking tea or coffee. This may prove quite difficult as you start out, but you should get used to it in a few days of constant drinking. (Valtin, 2002)
Always pack a water bottle. It is commonplace to defer drinking water simply because you have no access to water. In case there is no drinking point at or near your work place or school, make it a habit of carrying a water bottle of a size enough to last you the whole day. (McLennan, 2000)
Make use of drinking fountains. Whenever you find the slightest opportunity, stop at drinking fountains to grab a sip before you continue with your activities. You don’t necessarily have to feel thirsty so as to drink water. The small sips spread throughout the day will see you meeting the recommended daily minimum. (Simpson, & Mazzeo 2017)
Drink whenever you eat. Choose water as the go-to drink after meals, instead of coffee, tea, juice or alcohol. (Simpson, & Mazzeo 2017) Even if you are in a hotel, do not let the waiter tempt you with hot beverages. Purposefully stick to water, sipping before, during and after.....
McLennan, J. D. (2000). To boil or not: drinking water for children in a periurban barrio. Social science & medicine, 51(8), 1211-1220.
Simpson, C. C., & Mazzeo, S. E. (2017). Skinny is not enough: A content analysis of fitspiration on Pinterest. Health communication, 32(5), 560-567.
Sobal, J., Revicki, D., & DeForge, B. R. (1992). Patterns of Interrelationships Atnong Health-Promotion Behaviors. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 8(6), 351-359.
Valtin, H., & (With the Technical Assistance of Sheila A. Gorman). (2002). “Drink at least eight glasses of water a day.” Really? Is there scientific evidence for “8× 8”?. American Journal of Physiology-Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology, 283(5), R993-R1004.
"Unhealthy Behavior Drinking Inadequate Water" (2018, October 05) Retrieved April 19, 2024, from https://www.aceyourpaper.com/essays/unhealthy-behavior-drinking-inadequate-water-essay
