Dehydration: Beauty's Mortal Enemy

We are chronically dehydrated and, for the most part, don't know it. Most everyone needs to drink more water. Some of the common health ailments we experience may be a sign of dehydration. Here are a few:

Digestive and abdominal distress – bloating, gas, indigestion and constipation

Joint pain – not all joint pain is arthritis; some is a lack of fluid in the joint

Back pain – commonly mistaken as muscle strain or over-exertion, some back pain (especially in the lower back) is a symptom of dehydration in the abdominal organs

Heart pain – some heart pain is heartburn, which is more often due to dehydration in the stomach rather than too much acid in the stomach

Allergies and respiratory problems – restrictions in breathing is a reaction by the body to conserve loss of water

Headaches – many headaches are a sign of body toxicity; toxins collect in the body when it doesn't have enough water to filtrate them properly

How to Drink Enough Water

Make a conscious effort to drink one gallon of water a day for a week. If you have been dehydrated, you will notice an immediate improvement in your state of well-being, physical health, mental clarity, emotional state and overall energy level. Many of your health challenges and minor complaints may begin to improve.

The best way to get a gallon of water a day is to drink one quart of pure water when you first wake up. This will take some discipline, but it will quickly become normal. This will flush your body and blood stream and will help stimulate a bowel movement.

Drink another quart over the next 3 hours by drinking a glass every hour or so. Drink another glass of water at lunch, and during the afternoon drink another quart. Have another glass of water at dinner and a few glasses between dinner and bedtime. If you tend to wake up once in the night as you sleep, keep a glass of water on your night table and drink it all during your middle of the night wake up.