The Most Important Meal of the Day

Breakfast has typically been thought of as the most important meal.  I'm pretty sure the cereal industry started that saying anyways.  If you are looking to read more on why breakfast may not be as important as once thought, here is a great article.  With articles like this one and more science out there that says breakfast isn't a must for everyone, we would like to propose another option, WATER!!!  It's hard to argue that water isn't important and we will share just how important it is to stay hydrated. 

Water is what gives us life.  Without it we would LITERALLY shrivel up and die.  Did you know that about 80% of the population doesn't drink an adequate amount of water.  So why aren't more people dying of dehydration???

I would argue they are...just not directly!  When you don't drink enough water your body will pull it out of other cells and tissue in your body in order to hydrate your brain, that's first priority. Since your brain is the thing that controls your entire body, it gets to dictate who gets what and when within your body.  And just like the bully on the playground at school, your brain is going to make sure it gets taken care of first.  Your brain is like, sorry liver we need it more than you, thanks; sorry skin we need it more than you, sorry intestines you figure out a way to get that waste out I need more water.   If those other organs and body systems aren't functioning at their highest level that leaves us prone to disease and sickness.

Another key area where dehydration comes into play is in your blood and cardiovascular system.  When you are dehydrated your blood volume decreases, which limits the amount of oxygen that reaches the various parts of your body.  Without oxygen your body struggles to produce energy at the cellular level.  If your cells don't have energy, they can't do all the things that they need to do to function at a high level.  That is where fatigue and disease become an issue.  Not to mention dehydration raises your BP which increases your chance of a heart attack. 

Sooo....what is the appropriate amount of water to drink?  A general rule of thumb is a 1/2 ounce per lb of body weight.  If you weigh 200 lbs that would mean you should drink 100 ounces per day.  That equation is on the low end if you are doing any type of physical activity.  We would recommend you up your water consumption to 3/4 - 1 ounce/pound if you are exercising hard or sweating a lot due to physical activity.  There is also the quality of your water that comes into play.  We are just learning more and more about structured or vorated water, which is super interesting to us.  Something else to consider...is it packaged water, and if so is the material that it comes in BPA free?  The deal with BPA is that it is an endocrine disruptor, which essentially means it is going to mess up your hormones.  Most plastic containers out there contain BPA unless they are stamped otherwise.  So that means bottled water is off limits.  There is also some emerging evidence to suggest that straight tap water isn't the best option either due to all the toxins (PCBs, pharmaceutical drugs, heavy metals)  that have leaked into our water system plus the flouride that is added.  Yeah the thing that helps our teeth may not help our bodies.  Sounds kind of doom and gloom doesn't it???  To some degree it is, the most important thing we put into our body is being tainted from all different directions.  Now are we saying you shouldn't ever drink bottled water or tap water? Heck no...if it's your only option, go for it. We definitely do if it's our only option!

According to some experts, the best option is distilled water with a pinch of pure Himilayan pink salt.  The other option would be to look into a more thorough filtration system that will eliminate some of those toxins plus flouride.  We are just starting to do some research into some systems or a home distiller.  If anyone has recommendations on what they use we would love to hear from you.  For others, we will definitely keep you posted on what we choose!

Anyone else just run to the water cooler?  I know I just refilled my water glass after typing this!